Md. Code Regs. 09.32.02.14

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 12, June 14, 2024

Section 09.32.02.14 - Retirement Payments

A. Definitions.

(1) "Contributory retirement plan" means a plan providing a retirement payment under which an employing unit pays or has paid some, but not all, of the premiums or contributions, and the claimant has paid some, but not all, of the premiums or contributions.

(2) "Lump-sum retirement payment" means the gross amount of a retirement payment that is paid in one payment. Any retirement payment paid in more than one payment is not a lump-sum retirement payment, even if the installments are paid irregularly.

(3) "Noncontributory retirement payment" means a plan providing a retirement payment under which an employing unit pays or has paid all premiums or contributions and the claimant pays or has paid none.

(4) "Periodic retirement payment" means the gross amount of a retirement payment payable on a recurring basis.

B. Deductible Pension Payments.

(1) retirement payments shall be deducted from benefits if the payments are made under a plan maintained or contributed to by a base period employer.

(2) Deductible retirement payments include but are not limited to:

(a) State government pensions;

(b) Local government pensions;

(c) Federal Civil Service retirement pensions and annuities;

(d) Federal Civil Service disability pensions;

(e) Private employer pensions;

(f) Military retirement pensions;

(g) Military disability pensions;

(h) Railroad retirement annuities;

(i) Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA) and Keogh Plans, to which the base period employer contributed directly;

(j) Trust, annuity, or insurance funds, to which the base period employer contributed; and

(k) Profit-sharing plans established to provide employees with income on retirement.

C. Nondeductible retirement Payments. retirement payments may not be deducted from benefits if the payments derive from:

(1) Social Security benefits;

(2) Survivor's or widow's pensions;

(3) Military service connected disability compensation as defined in 38 U.S.C. § 301 et seq. (Veterans' Administration Disability Benefits);

(4) Temporary disability insurance; or

(5) Workers' compensation and black lung benefits.

D. Method of Deduction.

(1) Verification

(a) A claimant shall provide documentary proof of any retirement payment. When the claimant cannot provide the verification, the Secretary shall request verification from the employer.

(b) When a claimant cannot provide documentary proof of the retirement payment, the claimant's sworn statement shall be accepted subject to employer verification and may not affect payment of claims.

(2) Calculation. Deductible retirement payments shall be deducted from benefits payable to the claimant as follows:

(a) 100 percent of each noncontributory retirement payment paid by or originating from a base period employer shall be fully deducted from basic weekly benefit amounts payable throughout the claimant's benefit year;

(b) 50 percent of each contributory retirement payment paid by or originating from a base period employer shall be deducted from basic weekly benefit amounts payable throughout the claimant's benefit year;

(c) A periodic contributory or noncontributory retirement payment prorated by week shall be deducted from the claimant's basic weekly benefit amount beginning with the first week in which the effective date of the retirement payment falls and for which the claimant has filed a continued claim.

(3) Dependents' Allowance. The deduction of retirement payments from benefits paid does not affect the weekly benefit amount for purposes of calculating the dependents' allowance, except that if no benefit payment is due after the deduction, the dependents' allowance is not payable.

(4) Duration of Benefit Payments. Benefits reduced as a result of a retirement payment deduction are payable until the maximum benefit amount is exhausted for the claimant's benefit year, provided all of the eligibility requirements of the Unemployment Insurance Law are met.

(5) Effect on Partial Earnings. If a claimant has partial earnings in any week for which the claimant's weekly benefit amount is to be reduced by a deductible retirement payment amount, the partial benefits are computed first, and the retirement payment is deducted from the remainder, if any.

E. Lump Sum Retirement Payments.

(1) Deductible Lump Sum retirement Payments.

(a) Except as otherwise provided, a lump sum retirement payment shall be deducted from benefits if the payment is made under a plan maintained or contributed to by a base period employer.

(b) A deductible lump sum retirement payment shall be deducted from benefits payable to the claimant only if the payment is actually received within the claimant's first benefit year.

(c) A deductible lump sum retirement payment shall be deducted from benefits payable to the claimant as follows: A lump sum retirement payment shall be allocated by week, beginning with the week the claimant was separated from employment, according to the claimant's last weekly rate of pay.

(d) The allocation in §E(1)(c) of this regulation extends for as long as the employer maintaining or contributing to the plan is a base period employer.

(e) Other calculations concerning deductible lump sum retirement payments shall be made pursuant to §D of this regulation.

(2) Nondeductible Lump Sum retirement Payments.

(a) A lump sum retirement payment or lump sum profit-sharing payment may not be deducted from benefits if the:

(i)-(iii) (text unchanged)

(b) With regard to §E(2)(a)(iii) of this regulation, the:

(i) Claimant shall provide documentation to the Secretary that states that the lump sum retirement payment has been placed in a qualified retirement plan, and gives the name of the institution or fund in which the payment was placed;

(ii) Lump sum retirement payment shall be verified as set forth in §D(1) of this regulation.

Md. Code Regs. 09.32.02.14

Regulations .14, Claims for Benefits, adopted effective October 29, 1990 (17:21 Md. R. 2531)
Regulation .14 amended effective January 2, 1994 (20:26 Md. R. 2029)
Regulation .14D amended effective October 24, 1994 (21:21 Md. R. 1815)
Regulation .14D amended effective December 28, 1998 (25:26 Md. R. 1922); amended effective 44:8 Md. R. 403, eff. 4/24/2017