CALIFORNIA STATE TEACHERS’ RETIREMENT SYSTEM INSIDE ...

INSIDE

2 Pay Dates for 2019

3 Update Your Tax Withholding Online with myCalSTRS

4 Still Receiving Benefit Checks by Mail? Sign Up for Direct Deposit

5 Retirement Incentive Program: Don't Jeopardize Your Increase in Benefit

6 CalSTRS to Release Fifth Annual Sustainability Report This Spring

8 myCalSTRS: Access Your Benefit Information Online, Anytime

9 CalSTRS Welcomes Kirsty Jenkinson as New Corporate Governance Director

10 Why Full Funding Matters-- CalSTRS Report Dispels 80 Percent Funding Myth

11 CalSTRS Receives Top Honors

Also inside:

2018 Summary

Report to Members

WINTER 2019

CALIFORNIA STATE TEACHERS' RETIREMENT SYSTEM

Understanding Your 1099-R

Each year, CalSTRS mails IRS Form 1099-R to benefit recipients at the end of January. Here are some common questions we receive about 1099-Rs.

What payments are included on my 1099-R?

Your 1099-R for tax year 2018 reports the total benefit amounts CalSTRS paid you in 2018 (January 1, 2018, through December 31, 2018).

Why do I have more than one 1099-R?

If you received more than one type of benefit payment from us in 2018, such as your monthly benefit and a lump-sum payment, you received a 1099-R for each. You may also receive 1099-Rs for your retirement income from other financial institutions reporting other income from retirement plans such as 403(b)s, 457(b)s, IRAs and annuities. A small number of retired members also receive W-2 forms for the portion of their CalSTRS benefit that exceeds the annual limit set by Internal Revenue Code section 415(b).

What if I repaid an overpayment?

Members occasionally receive an overpayment of their CalSTRS benefit that they must pay back. The method of repayment and timing of the overpayment and repayment determine how your income gets reported. If you received an overpayment in 2018 and repaid it in 2018, the Gross Distribution box and Taxable Amount box on your 1099-R showing the total amount you received in 2018 will be adjusted accordingly. Overpayments from years prior to 2018 that were repaid in 2018 are reported differently depending on whether the overpayment was recovered from subsequent benefit payments (pre-tax) or repaid by check (post-tax). If the overpayment was recovered through deductions from

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SEMIANNUAL NEWSLETTER FOR CalSTRS BENEFIT RECIPIENTS

Teachers' Retirement Board Dana Dillon, Chair Sharon Hendricks, Vice Chair Keely Bosler Joy Higa Harry M. Keiley Fiona Ma Paul Rosenstiel Tony Thurmond Nora E. Vargas Karen Yamamoto Betty Yee

Jack Ehnes Chief Executive Officer

Christopher J. Ailman Chief Investment Officer

Laura Martin Editor

John Ewing Designer

Statements in this publication are general and the Teachers' Retirement Law is complex and specific. Nothing contained in this publication should be construed as legal advice.

If a conflict arises between information contained in this publication and the law, the law prevails.

CalSTRS Retired Educator is published twice a year for retired members and benefit recipients of the California State Teachers' Retirement System. Send your comments or suggestions to:

Editor, Communications CalSTRS P.O. Box 15275 MS 34 Sacramento, CA 95851

printed on recycled paper

Pay Dates for 2019

The tables below show the pay dates for CalSTRS benefit payments in 2019. Payments are made in arrears, so the payment you receive each month is for the prior month's benefit. The State Controller's Office issues the payments and determines the check mailing and direct deposit dates. You can also view 2019 pay dates online at paydates.

2019 Pay Dates

Benefit Month January 2019 February 2019 March 2019 April 2019 May 2019 June 2019 July 2019 August 2019 September 2019 October 2019 November 2019 December 2019

Check Mailing Date

Southern California* and Out of State

Northern California**

01/29/2019

01/30/2019

02/26/2019

02/27/2019

03/26/2019

03/27/2019

04/26/2019

04/29/2019

05/28/2019

05/29/2019

06/26/2019

06/27/2019

07/29/2019

07/30/2019

08/27/2019

08/28/2019

09/26/2019

09/27/2019

10/29/2019

10/30/2019

11/22/2019

11/25/2019

12/27/2019

12/30/2019

Direct Deposit Date

02/01/2019 03/01/2019 03/29/2019 05/01/2019 05/31/2019 07/01/2019 08/01/2019 08/30/2019 10/01/2019 11/01/2019 11/27/2019 01/02/2020

2019 Supplemental Benefit Payment Dates

Payments are made to members and beneficiaries whose current benefit is worth less than a specified percentage of the original benefit when adjusted for increases in the California Consumer Price Index. The percentage is currently set at 85 percent.

Benefit Month

March 2019 June 2019 September 2019 December 2019

Check Mailing Date

Southern California* and Out of State

Northern California**

03/26/2019

03/27/2019

06/26/2019 09/26/2019

06/27/2019 09/27/2019

12/27/2019

12/30/2019

Direct Deposit Date

03/29/2019 07/01/2019 10/01/2019 01/02/2020

What If Your Payment Hasn't Arrived Yet?

Direct Deposit If you have direct deposit, your financial institution has until the close of the direct deposit date to place the funds in your account. Please contact your financial institution to find out what time it places your funds into your account.

Paper Checks If your benefit payment is mailed to you and you have not received it by the fifth business day of the month, contact us at 800-228-5453.

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*ZIP Codes beginning with 900?930 **ZIP Codes beginning with 931?961

continued from page 1

your subsequent benefit payments, the recovered amount will be reduced from the gross distribution reported on your 2018 1099-R.

If you repaid an overpayment from a prior year by sending a check to CalSTRS in 2018, we are not able to reduce your 1099-R for either year. However, you may be able to recover taxes you paid on that income if the total repayment amount for 2018 is $3,000 or more. If the amount of your check repayments in 2018 is $3,000 or more, we will send you a letter acknowledging the repayment. For example, if you received an overpayment of $5,000 in 2017 and repaid us $5,000 by check in 2018, you should have received a letter acknowledging the repayment. Keep this letter for your 2018 tax return. Since federal tax legislation that became effective in 2018 affected the tax treatment of these repayments, consult a tax professional for additional information on how to use this information on your tax returns.

What if I did not receive my 1099-R?

Your 1099-R was mailed in late January to your mailing address on file with CalSTRS as of December 21, 2018. You can print a duplicate 1099-R from your secure myCalSTRS online account at . You also can call, fax or email us to request a copy.

View and print your 1099-R through your myCalSTRS account. Don't have an account yet? Sign up today at and securely access your CalSTRS account information 24/7.

If you've moved, be sure to update your address using your myCalSTRS account or by submitting the Address Change Request form available at forms. If you have a valid email address, you can request address changes over the phone by calling us at 800-228-5453.

What if I do not understand my 1099-R?

To start, you will find descriptions for all of the boxes on the back of your 1099-R. You can also:

? Read the Tax Information FAQs at tax-information.

? Visit the California Franchise Tax Board website at ftb. or call 800-852-5711.

? Check out the IRS website at or call 800-829-1040.

Update Your Tax Withholding Online With myCalSTRS

With the release of new tax withholding tables for 2019, now is a good time to review your withholding preferences.

If you wish to update your tax withholding preferences, you can do it quickly and securely through myCalSTRS.

Manage your income tax withholding preferences online through myCalSTRS. If you don't have a myCalSTRS account, sign up today at and get immediate, secure access to your accounts.

Simply log in to your account, click View & Update Your Tax Withholdings and follow the directions. You can also view up to three estimates of income tax withholding elections.

To change your income tax withholding by mail, download, complete and submit the Income Tax Withholding Preference Certificate. Your election will take effect within 60 days after we receive your form.

If you have tax withholding questions, see tax-information, contact the IRS or California Franchise Tax Board, or consult with a qualified tax professional.

WINTER 2019 ? CalSTRS Retired Educator ? 3

The last thing you need to worry about during a disaster is if your money will get to you on time

Still receiving benefit checks by mail?

Sign up for direct deposit for quickest access to your benefit payment

We hope it never happens to you, but if a natural disaster strikes and the postal service is unable to deliver your mail, you may not get your benefit check on time. Direct deposit gives you the quickest access to your benefit payment--your money is automatically deposited in your bank account every month whether or not the mail service is running.

Sign up today using your myCalSTRS account or download the Direct Deposit Authorization form at forms. Your first payment will be deposited into your account within one to two pay periods after we receive the authorization.

4 ? CalSTRS Retired Educator ? WINTER 2019

To learn more, go to directdeposit.

Retirement Incentive Program: Don't Jeopardize Your Increase in Benefit

Did you retire under the CalSTRS Retirement Incentive Program? This program is provided by some employers and allows Defined Benefit Program members who are eligible to retire to receive two additional years of service credit. However, you will lose the ongoing increase in your benefit if you:

? Become an active member again by terminating your service retirement to return to CalSTRS-covered employment (reinstatement).

? Receive unemployment benefits within one year of your retirement effective date.

? Return to work within five years to any job with the same employer that granted your incentive credit. This includes working as a substitute teacher.

Learn more about the CalSTRS Retirement Incentive Program at retirement-incentive-program or call us at 800-228-5453.

CalSTRS Invests in Planned Expansion of Headquarters Campus

The Teachers' Retirement Board approved the construction of a nearly 275,000-squarefoot expansion of CalSTRS' West Sacramento headquarters. The additional space will allow the organization to meet increasing complexities inherent to implementing the CalSTRS Collaborative Investment Model and ongoing administration of the pension plan, while maximizing investment assets and capital returns for the fund over the long term.

Institutional Investors and Asset Owners, Managers Launch Principles for a Responsible Civilian Firearms Industry

A coalition of long-term, global institutional and private investors with combined assets of more than $4.83 trillion has come together to create and promote Principles for a Responsible Civilian Firearms Industry. The five principles provide a framework for institutional investors seeking to improve engagement with public and private companies globally that manufacture, distribute, sell or regulate products within the civilian firearms industry in order to address gun safety issues and reduce investment risk.

CalSTRS to Divest from Private Prisons

CoreCivic and GEO Group to be removed from Teachers' Retirement Fund portfolio

In November, the Teachers' Retirement Board voted to direct investment staff to remove the fund's holdings in the two U.S. publicly held companies that operate private prisons: CoreCivic and GEO Group.

WINTER 2019 ? CalSTRS Retired Educator ? 5

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