Determining the Taxable Portion of Federal Pension Distributions
GGD-99-73R: Published: May 3, 1999. Publicly Released: May 3, 1999.
Additional Materials:
- Full Report:
Contact:
(202) 512-5594
contact@gao.gov
Office of Public Affairs
(202) 512-4800
youngc1@gao.gov
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on: (1) what reasons, if any, exist for the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to report the taxable portion of annuity benefits for newly retired federal employees on the Form CSA 1099R (Statement of Annuity Paid); and (2) the feasibility of OPM's doing so.
GAO noted that: (1) there are three reasons for OPM to report on Form CSA 1099R the taxable portion of the annuity for newly retired federal employees; (2) the task of calculating this portion can be burdensome from the retirees' perspective; (3) the complexity of the requirement could result in retirees' miscalculating the taxable portion of their annuity for income tax purposes; (4) reporting the taxable portion of the annuity on Form CSA 1099R would allow the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to use it for computer matching purposes; (5) computer matching of information and tax returns is one way that IRS verifies a taxpayer's income to determine the proper tax owed; (6) according to OPM officials, it would be feasible for OPM to report the taxable portion on Form CSA 1099R for federal employees with annuities starting after November 18, 1996, when the Simplified Method became the only method allowed; (7) before that date, retirees could use either the Simplified Method or the General Rule method, and OPM would not know which method the retiree preferred; (8) OPM has the necessary data, which are computerized, to make the Simplified Method calculation; (9) the officials GAO spoke with said that a calculation formula could easily be programmed to determine the tax-free amount and subtract it from the retiree's gross annuity amount; (10) they also said the costs of doing so would not be large; (11) OPM expects to report taxable amounts on tax year 2000 Forms CSA 1099R in January 2001 for employees who retired after November 18, 1996; and (12) the officials said that OPM has taken other actions to help retirees calculate the taxable amount.
Oct 30, 2020
-
Retirement Security:
Other Countries' Experiences with Caregiver PoliciesGAO-20-623: Published: Sep 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 30, 2020.
Sep 24, 2020
-
Retirement Security:
Older Women Report Facing a Financially Uncertain FutureGAO-20-718T: Published: Sep 24, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 24, 2020.
Aug 28, 2020
-
Retirement Security:
DOL Could Better Inform Divorcing Parties About Dividing SavingsGAO-20-541: Published: Jul 31, 2020. Publicly Released: Aug 28, 2020.
Aug 13, 2020
-
Retirement Security:
Older Women Report Facing a Financially Uncertain FutureGAO-20-435: Published: Jul 14, 2020. Publicly Released: Aug 13, 2020.
Jun 16, 2020
-
Retirement Security:
BLS Should Explore Ways to Improve the Accuracy, Timeliness, and Relevance of Its Cost-of-Living MeasurementsGAO-20-422: Published: Jun 16, 2020. Publicly Released: Jun 16, 2020.
Feb 27, 2020
-
Private Pensions:
IRS and DOL Should Strengthen Oversight of Executive Retirement PlansGAO-20-70: Published: Jan 28, 2020. Publicly Released: Feb 27, 2020.
Jan 9, 2020
-
Social Security Disability:
Action Needed to Help Agency Staff Understand and Follow Policies Related to Prescription Opioid MisuseGAO-20-120: Published: Jan 9, 2020. Publicly Released: Jan 9, 2020.
Dec 18, 2019
-
Capitol Police:
Potential Effects of Raising the Mandatory Retirement AgeGAO-20-137R: Published: Dec 18, 2019. Publicly Released: Dec 18, 2019. -
Millennial Generation:
Information on the Economic Status of Millennial Households Compared to Previous GenerationsGAO-20-194: Published: Dec 13, 2019. Publicly Released: Dec 18, 2019.
Oct 21, 2019
-
Military Pensions:
Servicemembers Need Better Information to Support Retirement Savings DecisionsGAO-19-631: Published: Sep 19, 2019. Publicly Released: Oct 21, 2019.
Looking for more? Browse all our products here