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RRB_seal_150pxThe payment of a railroad retirement annuity can be affected by entitlement to social security benefits, as well as certain other government benefits. Such dual entitlement, if not reported to the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB), can result in benefit overpayments that have to be repaid, sometimes with interest and penalties. The following questions and answers describe how dual benefit payments are adjusted by the RRB for annuitants eligible for social security benefits and/or other benefit payments.

1. How are dual benefits paid to persons entitled to both railroad retirement and social security benefits?

Since 1975, if a railroad retirement annuitant is also awarded a social security benefit, the Social Security Administration determines the amount due, but a combined monthly dual benefit payment should, in most cases, be issued by the RRB after the railroad retirement annuity has been reduced for the social security benefit.

2. Why is a railroad retirement annuity reduced when a social security benefit is also payable?

The tier I portion of a railroad retirement annuity is based on both the railroad retirement and social security credits acquired by an employee and figured under social security formulas. It approximates what social security would pay if railroad work were covered by social security. Tier I benefits are, therefore, reduced by the amount of any actual social security benefit paid on the basis of nonrailroad employment, in order to prevent a duplication of benefits based on social security-covered earnings.

The tier I dual benefit reduction also applies to the annuity of an employee qualified for social security benefits on the earnings record of another person, such as a spouse. And, the tier I portion of a spouse or survivor annuity is reduced for any social security entitlement, even if the social security benefit is based on the spouse’s or survivor’s own earnings. These reductions follow principles of social security law that, in effect, limit payment to the higher of any two or more benefits payable to an individual at one time. An annuitant is required to advise the RRB if any benefits are received directly from the Social Security Administration or if those benefits increase (other than for a cost-of living increase).

However, the tier II portion of a railroad retirement annuity is based on railroad service and earnings alone, is computed under a separate formula, and is not reduced for entitlement to a social security benefit.

3. Are there any exceptions to the railroad retirement annuity reduction for social security benefits?

No. However, if an employee qualified for dual benefits before 1975 and met certain vesting requirements, he or she can receive an additional annuity amount which offsets, in part, the dual benefit reduction. This additional amount, which reflects the dual benefits payable prior to 1975, is called a vested dual benefit payment. Legislation enacted in 1974 coordinated dual railroad retirement and social security benefit payments to eliminate certain duplications, but this legislation also included a grandfather provision to preserve the pre-1975 dual benefits of persons meeting certain vesting requirements by including vested dual benefit payments in their annuities.

Awards of these vested dual benefit amounts are now limited only to vested railroad employees with dual coverage on their own earnings. Spouses and widow(er)s retiring since 1981 no longer qualify. Fewer than ten vested dual benefits were awarded in fiscal year 2013.

4. Are there any funding limitations on the payment of vested dual benefits?

Vested dual benefit payments are funded by annual appropriations from general U.S. Treasury revenues. These appropriations account for less than one percent of total financing sources for the railroad retirement system. Payment of vested dual benefits is dependent on the time and amount of such appropriations. If the appropriation in a fiscal year is for less than the estimated total vested dual benefit payments, individual payments must be reduced.

5. Can Federal, State, or local government pensions also result in dual benefit reductions in a railroad retirement annuity?

Tier I benefits for employees first eligible for a railroad retirement annuity and a Federal, State or local government pension after 1985 may be reduced for receipt of a public pension based, in part or in whole, on employment not covered by social security or railroad retirement after 1956. This may also apply to certain other payments not covered by railroad retirement or social security, such as from a non-profit organization or from a foreign government or a foreign employer. Usually, an employee’s tier I benefit will not be reduced by more than 1/2 of his or her pension from noncovered employment. However, if the employee is under age 65 and receiving a disability annuity, the tier I benefit may be reduced by an added amount if the pension from noncovered employment is a public disability benefit.

Military service pensions, payments by the Department of Veterans Affairs, or certain benefits payable by a foreign government as a result of a totalization agreement between that government and the United States will not cause a reduction.

6. How does the public service pension apply to spouse or widow(er)s’ benefits?

The tier I portion of a spouse’s or widow(er)’s annuity may be reduced for receipt of any Federal, State or local government pension separately payable to the spouse or widow(er) based on her or his own earnings. The reduction generally does not apply if the employment on which the public service pension is based was covered under the Social Security Act throughout the last 60 months of public employment. Most military service pensions and payments from the Department of Veterans Affairs will not cause a reduction. Pensions paid by a foreign government or interstate instrumentality will also not cause a reduction. For spouses and widow(er)s subject to a public service pension reduction, the tier I reduction is equal to 2/3 of the amount of the public service pension.

7. What dual benefit restrictions apply when both a husband and wife are rail employees entitled to railroad retirement annuities?

If both the employee and spouse are railroad employees and either had some railroad service before 1975, the spouse tier I amount is reduced by the amount of the railroad employee tier I to which the spouse is entitled and that initial reduction is restored in the spouse tier II amount. The spouse tier I amount cannot be reduced below zero.

If both the employee and spouse started railroad employment after 1974, the amount of any spouse or divorced spouse annuity is reduced by the amount of the employee annuity to which the spouse is also entitled.

In survivor cases, if a widow or dependent widower is also a railroad employee annuitant, and either the widow(er) or the deceased employee had 120 months of railroad service before 1975, the tier I reduction may be partially restored in the survivor tier II amount.

If either the deceased employee or the widow(er) had some railroad service before 1975 but less than 120 months of service, the widow(er)’s own employee annuity and the tier II portion of the survivor annuity would be payable to the widow(er). The tier I portion of the survivor annuity would be payable only to the extent that it exceeds the tier I portion of the widow(er)’s own employee annuity.

If the widow(er) is entitled to a railroad retirement employee annuity and neither the widow(er) nor the deceased employee had any railroad service befo
re 1975, the survivor annuity (tier I and tier II) payable to the widow(er) is reduced by the total amount of the widow(er)’s own employee annuity.

8. Can workers’ compensation or public disability benefits affect railroad retirement benefits?

If an employee is receiving a railroad retirement disability annuity, tier I benefits for the employee and spouse may, under certain circumstances, be reduced for receipt of workers’ compensation or public disability benefits.

9. How can an annuitant find out if receipt of any dual benefits might affect his or her railroad retirement annuity?

If an annuitant becomes entitled to any of the previously discussed dual benefit payments, or if there is any question as to whether a dual benefit payment requires a reduction in an annuity, he or she should contact an RRB field office by calling toll-free at (877) 772-5772. Annuitants can find the address of the RRB office serving their area by calling this number or by visiting www.rrb.gov. Most RRB offices are open to the public from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on federal holidays.

caduceusUTU members and their dependents insured under the Railroad Employees National Early Retirement Major Medical Benefit (ERMA) Plan (GA-46000) will have their lifetime maximum amount of coverage increased, effective Jan. 1.

ERMA is a comprehensive benefits plan for employees who retire at or after age 60 with 30 years of service. The plan covers qualified employees, spouses and dependents until the employee reaches age 65. If the employee qualifies for Medicare before reaching 65, ERMA no longer covers the employee, but dependents continue coverage until the employee reaches age 65. ERMA is not applicable when any covered individual becomes Medicare eligible.

The lifetime maximum, effective Jan. 1, 2014, will be $141,400, an increase of $5,200.

The formula for increasing the lifetime maximum under ERMA was agreed upon by labor and management in 2001. The new lifetime maximum was derived by utilizing the October 2013 Consumer Price Index data for hospital and related services and physician services.

For individuals who have reached the lifetime maximum, the incremental maximum available is applied to eligible expenses submitted for dates of service on or after Jan. 1, the effective date of the new maximum.

This change will apply to all railroads and crafts participating in ERMA.

 

railyard1-150pxWASHINGTON – The Association of American Railroads Nov. 21 issued the following statement from President and CEO Edward R. Hamberger in response to the Senate Commerce Committee staff report Update on the Financial State of the Class I Freight Rail Industry.

“Unfortunately the Committee’s updated report ignores that the rail industry’s return to financial health has resulted in record private investments – not taxpayer dollars – being plowed back into the nation’s rail network that serves the needs of diverse freight shippers and passengers alike. At a time when there is pressure to reduce government spending on just about everything – including transportation infrastructure – the country’s privately owned freight railroads have, in the last three years alone, reinvested nearly $70 billion back into the rail system, including $25.5 billion in 2012. This includes billions of dollars in a new, Congressionally-mandated, state-of-the-art positive train control system that the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 requires railroads to install by the end of 2015.

There is nothing wrong with success. In fact, the rail industry’s success is predicated on the fact that the balanced regulatory system in place today is working. This success should be lauded, not undermined. Freight railroads provide safe, reliable and efficient service to American businesses large and small, and help keep them competitive in domestic and world markets, all the while keeping average rates lower than where they were 30 years ago when the Staggers Act was passed.

The rail industry didn’t stand on the sidelines during the recession, we continued investing and we continued hiring. In fact, our industry has seen almost a 6 percent increase in employment the last three years and as many as one in five of all new hires are veterans. That is a track record we are proud of.

Much is riding on freight rail to continue helping deliver our recovering economy and all efforts should be focused on letting the current system work.”

Earlier in the day, Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Chairman John D. Rockefeller IV issued an update to the 2010 Committee Majority Staff Report that examined the financial state of the rail industry, concluding that the financial performance of dominant Class I freight rail companies is at its strongest since the passage of the Staggers Act of 1980.

“The Staggers Act was designed to give a boost to the rail industry during a time when railroads were struggling – but today the railroads are enjoying tremendous financial success,” Rockefeller said. “At this point the evidence is clear that the dominant freight railroads are financially strong.”

“It is not any secret that I think that – more than three decades after the Staggers Act – the Surface Transportation Board (STB) needs to take a close hard look at whether large freight rail companies now enjoy an unfair competitive advantage,” Rockefeller added.

bus_frontNew tour buses and buses that provide service between cities must be equipped with seat belts starting in late 2016 under a federal rule issued Wednesday, a safety measure sought by accident investigators for nearly a half century.

Beginning in November 2016, all new motorcoaches and some other large buses must be equipped by manufacturers with three-point lap-shoulder belts, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said. The rule doesn’t apply to school buses or city transit buses.

Read the complete story at NBC News.

The Federal Railroad Administration and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration have issued a safety advisory to reinforce to railroads the importance of properly classifying Class 3 materials and ensuring the railroads’ safety and security plans address the vulnerabilities cited in FRA’s Aug. 7 Emergency Order No. 28. That order told the railroads to take steps within 30 days to ensure trains moving hazardous materials do not move while unattended and possibly cause a disaster similar to the July 6, 2013, derailment and explosion of a train carrying crude oil in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, Canada.

Class 3 materials are flammable and combustible liquids. To move a large bulk quantity (792 gallons – 3,000 liters – or more), railroads must develop and adhere to a transportation safety and security plan that covers personnel security, unauthorized access, and en route security.

The new advisory says FRA and PHMSA are working together on audits to make sure the safety and security plans address the vulnerabilities cited in the emergency order, and also that PMHSA is making unannounced inspections and testing to verify material classification and packing group assignments by offerors of crude oil for transport.

The two DOT agencies also issued a joint safety advisory on Aug. 7.

The Lac-Mégantic explosion and fire killed 42 people, with five more presumed dead, and extensively damaged the town. “While the Transportation Safety Board of Canada is still investigating the cause of the Lac-Mégantic accident, the catastrophic consequences of the accident and the known increase over the last several years in the rail transportation of Class 3 hazardous materials has made clear the need to review existing regulations and industry practices related to such transportation,” the new advisory states. “PHMSA and FRA have worked closely to take a number of actions intended to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the United States and the agencies will continue to do so.”

To read the complete Safety Advisory 2013-07 as published in the Federal Register, click here.

Soloviyovs, George.web
Soloviyovs

MASON CITY, Iowa – The National Transportation Safety Board says unsecured railroad cars are the probable cause of the death of a Union Pacific railroad worker in Mason City in 2012.

Georgiy Solovlyov, 36, of Stanhope, a switchman, was found on the tracks in the area of 13th St. and North Quincy Ave. at about 2:30 a.m. July 31, 2012.

Read the complete story at the Mason City Globe Gazette.

Soloviyovs was a member of Local 867 at Des Moines, Iowa. View this link for additional information.

As the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee prepares a markup on rail reauthorization legislation, the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP) is urging Congress to embrace a national vision for intercity passenger trains.

NARP is concerned that committee leaders may be moving toward ‘shrinking rather than strengthening the nation’s already-limited passenger train network,” NARP officials said yesterday in a press release.

NARP makes the case that Americans want more trains, citing Amtrak’s ridership growth. The national intercity passenger railroad carried 31.6 million riders in fiscal-year 2013, setting the tenth ridership record in 11 years. However, U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), who chairs the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, has questioned the continued funding of some Amtrak long-distance routes.

“What happens to the people that are stranded if Congress kills the long distance trains?” said NARP President Ross Capon. “Because make no mistake: if Congress eliminates operating support for these interstate routes that is what will happen. For many of these communities, it’s their only connection to cities in other states.”

NARP drafted several goals and recommendations for Congress to consider in drafting rail reauthorization legislation. Long-term goals include:

  • expanding service to put 80 percent of Americans within 25 miles of a railroad station within 25 years;
  • constructing at least one dedicated 200 mph high-speed line with operations commencing by 2025;
  • initiating a federal program to strengthen intermodal connections; and
  • improving safety.

Policy recommendations call for including a high-performance rail network in the next surface transportation reauthorization bill and creating a high-performance railroad network account in the Transportation Trust Fund (renamed from the Highway Trust Fund).

two-person_crewMembers of the SMART Transportation Division and all of rail labor have the opportunity to make it federal law to have two qualified persons working on all freight trains operating in the United States a reality.

Now is the time to contact your legislators in the House of Representatives and ask them to co-sponsor and support H.R. 3040.

Introduced in the House Aug. 2 by U.S. Reps. Michael Michaud (D-Maine) and Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), this legislation will require that “no freight train or light engine used in connection with the movement of freight may be operated unless it has a crew consisting of at least 2 individuals, one of whom is certified under regulations promulgated by the Federal Railroad Administration as a locomotive engineer … and the other of whom is certified under regulations promulgated by the Federal Railroad Administration as a conductor pursuant to section 20163.”

“This legislation is not only about the safety of the American public and the safety of railroading operating crews, it is an opportunity to prevent what in my opinion is an unsafe operating practice – having only one crew member aboard a train,” said SMART TD President John Previsich. “This measure will not only protect our communities, it will protect our jobs.”

The legislation reflects heightened concerns over crew size arising from the tragic July 6 derailment of a Montreal, Maine & Atlantic fuel train in Lac Mégantic, Quebec, which killed 47 and destroyed the center of the town. The MM&A train was crewed by a single person.

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) and the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) recently sent memos to Capitol Hill opposing this important piece of legislation, stating in part: “H.R. 3040 mandates freight trains operate with a certified locomotive engineer and a certified conductor without taking into consideration the realities of current industry practices and the overall rail safety record in the United States.”

In surveys conducted by DFM Research on behalf of the SMART Transportation Division, 78 percent of citizens in five congressional districts in Pennsylvania, Iowa, Kansas and Colorado and the state of Kentucky, support a federal law requiring freight trains to operate with a crew of two.

In a recent letter to all members of Congress, the SMART TD’s Legislative Office wrote: “The reality is that 99+ percent of America’s trains already operate with two federally-certified crew members. It was the recent July 6, 2013, accident at Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, where 47 people lost their lives and a town was destroyed, that gave rise to this legislation.

“That accident happened because a crew member, working alone, had his train roll away causing horrific death and devastation.

“There are many tasks that must be performed by the crew of a freight train that one person cannot accomplish alone.

“Under current Federal Railroad Administration regulations and railroad operating rules: a single person crew cannot make a Class I air brake test; one person cannot act as a first responder when a collision at a road crossing occurs; one person cannot inspect his or her train when it breaks in two or derails, including when there is the possible release of hazardous materials; and one person cannot inspect his or her train when cars in that train become defective.

“Another reality is that freight train crews work long hours, day and night, with few set shifts, and are on call 24/7. With as little as 1 hour and 15 minutes’ notice, we are required to report to work for a 12-hour shift, often operating trains laden with hazardous materials. Fatigue in the freight railroad industry is our number one safety problem, and having two crew members is the main way that we help mitigate fatigue. Having two crew members is also the best way to assure compliance with our complex operating rules. Rules such as properly securing your train so it doesn’t roll away and destroy a town.

“H.R. 3040 – the Safe Freight Act – is a bipartisan bill that will ensure that trains are operated safely everywhere in America. We respectfully ask that you support this important bill and consider becoming a co-sponsor.”

To send a message to your House and Senate representatives to co-sponsor and support this legislation, visit www.utu.org and select the “H.R. 3040 Two-person Crew Bill” tile at the bottom right corner of the homepage.

By entering your ZIP code and street address, a webpage prepared by the South Central Federation of Labor (of Wisconsin) will identify your representatives in both the House and Senate. After entering your email address, the website will send a prepared message to your legislators that reads, in part: “I am writing to you today to ask you to support H.R. 3040, the Safe Freight Act, which will improve railway safety by eliminating the risky practice of single-person train crews. It would ensure each train is operated by a crew of at least two people, including a certified engineer and a certified conductor.”

The SCFL webpage link was established by SMART?TD Wisconsin State Legislative Director Craig Peachy.

Contact your legislators today.

It’s been sitting around in Pomona for nearly 53 years, but now the beast they call Big Boy is making tracks for Wyoming.

Officially known as Union Pacific steam engine No. 4014, the locomotive has been parked at the RailGiants Train Museum in Pomona since 1962, a displaced piece of the past.

Read the complete story at the Los Angeles Times.

Union Yes; Union check yesAfter Volkswagen issued a letter in September saying the company would not oppose an attempt by the United Auto Workers (UAW) to unionize its 1,600-worker Chattanooga, Tenn., facility, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) was flabbergasted.

“For management to invite the UAW in is almost beyond belief,” Corker, who campaigned heavily for the plant’s construction during his tenure as mayor of Chattanooga, told the Associated Press. “They will become the object of many business school studies – and I’m a little worried could become a laughingstock in many ways – if they inflict this wound.”

Read the complete story at In Thee Times.