New Divorce & Your Benefits Brochure Available

NRECA has developed a new brochure, “Divorce and Your Benefits—A guide to understanding your benefit options when your marriage ends.” This new brochure highlights key points to consider and provides checklists to help employees keep track of personal data, tax information and benefits-related matters that may require action on their part or by a cooperative’s benefits administrator or HR department.

In addition, the resources for employees regarding qualified domestic relations orders (QDRO) have been updated and are now available on the Employee Benefits website at Cooperative.com, should benefits administrators need to provide them to an employee. While NRECA cannot give legal advice to participants or spouses on how to divide vested NRECA retirement plan benefits, we encourage benefits administrators and employees to use these resources, which include:

• Procedures to assist employees and their attorneys as they work through the QDRO process for either plan;
• Sample QDRO templates for both the 401(k) Pension Plan and Retirement Security Plan. Templates are not intended as “fill in the blank” style forms, but we encourage their use and suggest that parties allow NRECA to review proposed orders before they are filed with the court to minimize an employee’s legal expenses in the event an order must be amended to meet qualification requirements; and
• An Authorization to Release Confidential Information form (used to provide permission for someone other than a participant (e.g., attorney or spouse)) to request and obtain benefit and account balance information.

Co-ops may order printed copies of the Divorce & Your Benefits brochure (RGBR17001) for their employees by contacting the Member Contact Center at 866.673.2299. The divorce brochure and QDRO materials are available on the Employee Benefits website at Cooperative.com > My Benefits > Guidance and Resources > Overall Benefits Documents.

This brochure replaces the now outdated Divorce & Your Retirement Benefits (GENBR052009) brochure. The sample QDRO templates and procedure materials replace prior versions.