If retirement is still five to ten years away, FEGLI probably feels like a solved… more…
Latest Articles
Choosing the Right Life Insurance as a Federal Employee: Term, Whole, Universal, or Variable
Choosing a life insurance policy isn’t one-size-fits-all. In this column, Certified Financial Planner Ed Zurndorfer walks through how term, whole, universal, and variable life insurance each work, their advantages and drawbacks, and which type tends to make the most sense depending on a federal employee’s budget, health, and long-term financial goals. more…
How AI Workforce Changes Could Affect Your Retirement Date, Pension, and Paperwork
AI isn’t changing your FERS or CSRS pension formula. But if you’re approaching retirement, changes happening around your job could still affect the retirement plan you’ve been counting on — from promotion prospects and your future High-3 average salary to whether you reach your planned retirement date on the path you expected. Here’s where AI workplace changes could matter, and what federal employees nearing retirement should be watching now. more…
OPM Weighs Changes to FEHB Health Plan Options
OPM is asking whether the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program should offer more health plan options — or fewer. A new request for information, opens a 60-day comment period on how the number and type of FEHB and PSHB plan options affects premiums, consumer experience, and program costs. Here’s what’s actually being asked, and how to weigh in before the window closes. more…
House Republicans Push OPM to Review Federal Law Enforcement Retirement Classification
A group of House Republicans has asked OPM to reconsider how it classifies certain federal police forces for retirement purposes, arguing that officers at agencies like VA Police and the Pentagon Force Protection Agency perform law-enforcement-level duties without qualifying for enhanced retirement coverage. The push draws on a recent GAO report documenting the same disparity across 17 agencies, including higher attrition among officers without enhanced benefits. Nothing has changed yet for affected employees, but the story is worth tracking given the retirement formula differences at stake. more…
TSP Week in Review: Sept. 7 – 11, 2026
A four-day trading week brought a rough stretch for most TSP investors, as escalating tensions overseas and a hotter-than-expected inflation report weighed on stocks. Every core fund but one closed the week lower, with one fund taking a noticeably steeper hit than the rest. See which funds held up, which one struggled most, and what next week’s Federal Reserve meeting could mean for TSP balances going forward. more…
How to Maximize Your 2026 TSP Contributions and Not Lose Agency Matching Contributions
Hitting the Thrift Savings Plan contribution and catch-up contribution limits too early in the year can still cost FERS employees their agency matching contributions. Ed Zurndorfer shows you how to calculate the right per-pay-date amount, whether you’re under age 50, ages 50-59, or in the age 60-63 “super catch-up” window. more…
2026 Thrift Savings Plan Maximum Contribution Limits
The Internal Revenue Service announced the cost-of-living adjustments affecting 2026 TSP contribution limits — as well as dollar limitations for traditional and Roth IRAs and other retirement-related items… more…
2027 CSRS / FERS / Social Security COLA Estimate
Fresh inflation data has forecasters pulling in different directions on the 2027 Cost-of-Living Adjustment. One major advocacy group lowered its estimate this month, while another raised its own — with two other independent forecasters landing lower still. See the range of estimates, what’s driving this summer’s inflation numbers, and what the outcome would mean for the both the CSRS and FERS annuity adjustments. more…
2027 CSRS / FERS COLA Watch for Federal Retirees
The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its latest inflation data, and the 2027 federal retiree COLA trend has moved higher as a result. With one more month of Consumer Price Index data still to come, the estimate for CSRS, FERS, and Social Security retirees continues to shift — and the gap between the two systems remains a factor worth understanding well before the Social Security Administration’s official announcement in mid-October. more…