Washington State University offers employees the option of participating in Voluntary Investment Programs. These accounts allow employees to tax defer additional retirement savings over and above their regular plans, including the Department of Retirement System plans (PERS, LEOFF), the WSU Retirement Plan (WSURP), as well as, individuals who participate in the Federal Retirement Plan.
Unlike the regular WSU Retirement Plan and DRS retirement plans, these accounts are not matched by WSU. An employee may contribute as little as $30 a month, and up to the maximum tax deferral allowed by Federal IRS tax laws. Contact Human Resource Services for information regarding maximum limits.
WSU Offers Two Voluntary Investment Plans
Under this plan (457b), you will work primarily with DCP, and they will communicate to WSU your retirement contribution selections. You may speak with a DCP consultant by contacting them at 1-888-327-5596. See the WSDCP webpage for more information.
The Voluntary Investment Program (VIP) is a 403(b) plan that allows employees to accumulate additional
retirement savings. TIAA-CREF is the current vendor for the VIP.
Effective January 1, 2010, the VIP will allow contributions to an after-tax Roth 403(b) account.
Employees may contribute to the VIP on a pre-tax basis through the use of the existing investment
vehicles or on an after-tax basis to a Roth 403(b) account, or a combination thereof. When the
employee separates from WSU, Roth accumulations can be rolled over to another retirement plan
that accepts Roth Rollover funds.
If you are participating in the VIP for the first time you must fill out the Salary Reduction Agreement Form completely and submit the completed form to the Pullman HRS office. In addition, complete the online application for the TIAA-CREF Group Supplemental Retirement Annuity by enrolling online with TIAA-CREF at www.tiaa-cref.org/wsu. Click on the "Enroll Now" button, and choose the Supplemental Retirement Plan option.
If you contribute to a TIAA-CREF plan you may contact a consultant. For a telephone meeting call (800) 842-2252 or to schedule an in person meeting call (800) 732-8353. See the TIAA-CREF webpage for more information.
In 2015 and 2016, you can generally contribute the following amounts to both the VIP and DCP accounts:
- $18,000 - If you are under age 50.
- $24,000 - If you are age 50 or over.
Since the VIP and the WSURP are both 403b plans, participants of the WSURP who are contributing to that plan at the 10% level, 7.5% of that contribution is required, whereas 2.5% is voluntary. Therefore, the 2.5% portion of your regular retirement contribution will be counted toward the VIP contribution level.
The maximum combined employee and employer contribution allowed under IRC 403(b) for 2015 and 2016 is $53,000. WSU reserves the right to stop VIP contributions to prevent over-deferrals.
