Author: vciwork

The Cost of Living Adjustment for 2020 is 1.02 per cent on base pension. This increase is effective as of January 1, 2020. The adjustment will automatically be applied to your pension. Members who retired during 2019 will receive a prorated portion of this increase. Those who retired in, or prior to, 2018 will receive a full COLA.

COLA is currently granted at 60 per cent of the increase in the Alberta Consumer Price Index (ACPI). 

Your T4A statement will be mailed out in February 2020. It will also be available on mypensionplan.ca.

On November 22, Bill 22, Reform of Agencies, Boards and Commissions and Government Enterprises Act, received Royal Assent, the final step required for a Bill to become an Alberta law. This Bill amends a number of different pieces of legislation including legislation related to the governance of PSPP.

Once Bill 22 comes into force, PSPP Corporation will become a Provincial corporation and the Auditor General of Alberta will become the auditor of the Corporation and the Plan. While becoming a Provincial Corporation affects the independence of the Corporation, the Plan itself will continue to be a jointly-sponsored pension plan. The PSPP Sponsor Board, consisting of representatives from employer and employee sponsor organizations, will continue to determine Plan rules, establish a funding policy and set contribution rates. PSPP Corporation will continue to be the Administrator and Trustee of the Plan and the Plan fund. The Plan will continue to provide the same pension benefit to Plan members and there is no change to contribution rates.

The Plan fund will continue to be invested by Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) in accordance with the investment policy and asset mix set by PSPP Corporation. The day to day pension administration services will continue to be provided by Alberta Pensions Services Corporation (APS). What will change is that PSPP Corporation will no longer have the ability to select different service providers for these services if necessary in the future because Bill 22 legislates AIMCo and APS to be the permanent service providers.

While we work through the changes implemented by Bill 22, PSPP Corporation remains committed to managing the Plan in the best interest of PSPP members.

Further to our last update regarding the 2019 Provincial Budget, there is no new information to provide regarding pending changes to PSPP governance as the draft legislation detailing the changes has not yet been released. PSPP Corporation continues to await clarification on the statements made in the Government of Alberta’s 2019 Provincial Budget and Fiscal Plan.

Based on the information available, we understand that pending changes will not result in changes to pension benefits or contributions.

The pending changes are expected to limit the Corporation’s ability to select service providers for pension administration and investment management services. By legislation, Alberta Pensions Services Corporation (APS) and Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) currently provide these services to the Corporation. On March 1, 2019, PSPP Corporation was granted the ability to choose its own service providers starting 2024. However, if the pending changes are passed, the Corporation will no longer have service provider choice and will be required to use APS and AIMCo as its exclusive service providers, permanently.

More updates will be provided as information becomes available.

November 1, 2019

On October 24, 2019, the Government of Alberta released the 2019 Provincial Budget and Fiscal Plan. The Fiscal Plan states that “changes by the previous government will be reversed to control administrative costs and enhance governance provisions for public sector pension plans. Plans will continue to be administered by the Alberta Pensions Services Corporation, and invested by AIMCo.”

It is not clear what this statement will mean for PSPP. PSPP Corporation will assess the impact to the Plan and its members and employers as soon as the legislation required to make any changes is published.

In the meantime, its business as usual for PSPP Corporation. Pensions will continue to be paid and the Plan will continue to be administered on behalf of more than 85,000 PSPP members and the employers who participate in the Plan.

PSPP Corporation is pleased to present the September 2019 Report to Members.

In this issue:

  • Q&A with our Chair
  • What’s in store for 2020
  • PSPP employer spotlight: Agricultural Financial Services Corporation
  • Ready, Set, Retire – Part 3

… and more!

If you are thinking about retiring or simply want to learn more about your pension options, one-on-one sessions are a great opportunity to speak with an information specialist who understands PSPP.

Half hour one-on-one sessions are available across Alberta on the following dates. 

All fall session dates are now full. Check back in February for the announcement of the spring off-site session dates.

Calgary

  • September 18-19
  • October 1-2
  • November 5, 6, 20, 21

Edmonton (Downtown)*

  • December 10-12

Grande Prairie

  • October 8 – 9

Lethbridge

  • October 7 – 8

Medicine Hat

  • September 24

Red Deer

  • September 19
  • October 29-30
  • November 26

Updated October 1: The crossed out dates are now fully booked. Check back as dates can re-open if cancellations occur.

You can register by logging into mypensionplan.ca and clicking “Book an Information Session,” or by calling the Member Services Centre at 1-877-453-1PSP (1777).

These sessions are PSPP-specific. Please note that we do not offer any financial planning or advice, or information related to Canada Pension Plan, Old Age Security or your other employment benefits.

Preparing for a one-on-one session

You must bring photo identification and a pension estimate with you to the session. The pension estimate you bring should be no older than six months so that we have the most recent details about your pension history and your pension options on hand. To get an updated estimate, log on to mypensionplan.ca, click on Pensions in the menu bar, and select “Pension Projection Calculator”.

Additional one-on-one session dates will be scheduled for spring 2020.

*If you’re located in the Edmonton area, half-hour sessions are available at our south side office year-round during regular business hours. You can make an appointment by calling us at 1-877-453-1PSP (1777).

Visit our Information Session page for more details.

PSPP Corporation is pleased to present the April 2019 Report to Members.

In this issue:

  • Q&A with our Chair
  • A look back at 2018
  • Joint governance
  • New Board members

Paper copies of this report are no longer being mailed to members. To ensure you receive email notification regarding future issues, please log in to mypensionplan.ca and sign up to “Go Green.”

Enjoy!

The 2018 tax slips will be mailed out the last two weeks of February 2019. Please go online to mypensionplan.ca to confirm that we have your correct mailing address. You can view and print your tax slips online at mypensionplan.ca starting Feb. 2, 2019.

You can also change the amount of tax deducted from your pension in 2019 by updating your TD1 information on mypensionplan.

Your pension is payable on the second-last banking day of the month, except in December. In December, the pension is paid before December 25.

If you receive your pension payments by cheque, your cheque will be mailed on the dates shown in the list below. Consider setting up direct deposit of your pension to your Canadian bank account. To do this, submit a Request for Direct Deposit form or void cheque through the Secure Mailbox on mypensionplan.ca, or by mail or fax.

The following are the 2019 payment dates for pensioners:

January 30
February 27
March 28
April 29
May 30
June 27
July 30
August 29
September 27
October 30
November 28
December 23

Tax slips are issued for each calendar year and will be mailed by the end of February for the previous year.

If you do not receive your pension, contact APS, PSPP’s administrator.

The Cost of Living Adjustment for 2019 is 1.5 per cent on base pension. This increase is effective as of January 1, 2019. The adjustment will automatically be applied to your pension.

Members who retired during 2018 will receive a prorated portion of this increase. Those who retired in, or prior to, 2017 will receive a full COLA.

COLA is currently granted at 60 per cent of the increase in the Alberta Consumer Price Index (ACPI). 

Your T4A statement will be mailed out in February 2019. It will also be available on mypensionplan.ca.