Health care and life insurance benefits are provided for eligible retired employees through the above pension plans. Expenditures for all employee benefits are included as expenditures within the appropriate functional areas.
All faculty and exempt employees who are eligible to participate in the KTRS retirement plan may elect to participate in the Optional Retirement Plan (ORP) instead of KTRS. In doing so, the employee may choose both Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America, (TIAA-CREF) or The Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company (VALIC). Both offer a defined contribution, 403b plan.
TIAA-CREF is one of the largest and most respected financial service providers in the world (unaudited). TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, Inc. distributes CREF and TIAA Real Estate Account variable annuities. Teachers Personal Investors Services, Inc. distributes Personal Annuity variable annuities, TIAA-CREF Mutual Funds, TIAA-CREF Institutional Mutual Funds, and TIAA-CREF Tuition Financing, Inc. products. TIAA-CREF Trust Company, FSB, provides trust services. Located in New York, NY, Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America (TIAA) and TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Company issue insurance and annuities. Financial statements are available on the website, www.tiaacref.com.
VALIC is the marketing name for the family of companies comprising VALIC Financial Advisors, Inc.; VALIC Retirement Services Company; VALIC Trust Company; and The Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company (VALIC); which are all members of American International Group, Inc. (AIG).
Complete information about VALIC's variable annuities, including financial statements, fees, charges, expenses and contract limitations, can be obtained by visiting the website www.aigvalic.com or by calling 1-800-428-2542.
Funding for the ORP is provided from eligible employees who contribute 6.16% of their salary through payroll deductions and the Commonwealth of Kentucky, which also indirectly contributes 8.74% of current eligible employees' salaries to the ORP through appropriations to the University. The University's contributions to ORP for the years ended June 30, 2014, 2013 and 2012 were $554,207, $485,224, and $434,586, respectively, and equaled the required contribution for the year.
Effective July 1, 2010, KRS 61.546 states that the value of any accumulated sick leave that is added to the member's service credit in the KERS and KTRS on or after July 1, 2010 shall be paid to the retirement system by the last participating employer, based upon a formula adopted by the KERS and KTRS Boards. The KERS/KTRS sick leave liability as of June 30, 2014 and 2013 was $346,431 and $500,000.