June 8, 2020: July 1 Retirees and T-DROP Participants

While our offices are still closed to the public, our staff is diligently working to process hundreds of retirement and T-DROP applications for those retiring or entering T-DROP on July 1, 2020.

Retirees

For all who have reached this milestone in their career, ATRS would like to congratulate you on a job well done and thank you for serving the students of this great state. We wish you all the very best.

As a July 1 retiree, your first benefit payment will be paid on July 29, 2020 via electronic deposit (EFT).

Once your application is processed, you will receive an acknowledgement letter indicating your final benefit amount along with other details regarding your retirement.

As a reminder, ATRS does not manage or administer the public school health insurance program for retirees. That program is administered by a separate state entity, AR Benefits.  If you have not done so already, we recommend contacting AR Benefits to discuss your health insurance options after retirement.  AR Benefits can be reached at 501.682.9656. 

Many retirees are concerned that receipt of Social Security benefits will reduce their ATRS benefit. The good news: this is not true. Although many state retirement systems do coordinate their benefits with Social Security, ATRS does not reduce its benefits once you become eligible for Social Security. So your Social Security benefit has no impact whatsoever on your ATRS benefit. ATRS retirees have the double benefit of both ATRS lifetime benefits and Social Security benefits.

If you are considering returning to work after retirement, we strongly encourage you to review your termination separation period. 

T-DROP

If you are entering T-DROP July 1, and once your T-DROP application is processed, you will receive an acknowledgement letter indicating your T-DROP benefit along with a 10 year projection of your estimated benefits payable under the T-DROP plan.

For any questions or concerns, please contact one of our Retirement Counselors at 501.682.1517 or info@artrs.gov. Retirement Counselors are available Monday through Friday from 8:00am to 4:30pm.

May 11, 2020: Data Security Event Notification Letter

We recently discovered that an agency email account was accessed by an unauthorized individual. We hired independent computer forensic investigators to assist with our investigation and to determine the extent of unauthorized activity. The forensic investigators determined that an unauthorized user gained access to one email account for a limited period of time. At this time, we have no evidence that any information contained in the e-mail account was actually viewed or misused by the unauthorized individual, but out of an abundance of caution, we are providing written notification and free identity protection and credit monitoring services to around 50,000 of our members.

The letter, received by ATRS members, includes information on signing up for identity protection services through ID Experts. We recommend that each ATRS member review the information provided and enroll in the services described in the letter. It is always a good idea to review your bank or credit card statements and immediately inform your bank if you notice any suspicious activity. You can also visit the Federal Trade Commission’s website, www.identitytheft.gov, for more information on protecting your identity.