MEMBERS ENJOY RC 10 REGIONAL CONFERENCE, MAY 10, 2017

  

RC 10 members enjoyed their Regional Conference that was held on May 10, 2017. The event was well-organized and featured four excellent speakers, with a delicious luncheon that allowed for that all-important social time with friends and colleagues that we may not have seen in a while.

The first speaker after the welcome was Elizabeth Pivonka of the Social Security Administration. One member's feedback stated that she was "One of the best speakers ever. Articulate and very knowledgeable." She gave an informative presentation that included answers to those all-important questions like what effect the age you are when you begin to take social security has on the payments, and what happens to social security payments when a spouse dies. Another member said her session was an "eye-opener."

Next on the agenda was attorney Steve Kramer of Feldman, Kramer and Monaco P.C., who spoke about Tools of Estate Planning. He discussed topics that are all-important for retirees, including creating documents such as Health Care Proxy, Living Will, Power of Attorney, Last Will and Testament, etc. He explained that the legal service through NYSUT Member Benefits can offer legal assistance for the cost of an annual fee that can be taken out of pension payments. The plan offers two free hour-long office consultations; a Legal Security Package that includes the essential forms that Mr. Kramer discussed, and guaranteed maximum fees for a number of other personal legal matters. Mr. Kramer went into details about how to set up a grantor trust to protect assets from Medicaid and avoid probate, and emphasized that planning needs to be done five years before the person becomes ill. The trust is a more extensive matter that costs $2,500 through the legal plan (as compared to the average cost of $5,000 outside of the plan). One member stated that Mr. Kramer's presentation was "Excellent, information I didn't know. Important." Another said, "You can never know too much about these issues! Excellent. Could have listened to him longer. Very helpful, effective presentation with humor."

The next speaker was Floyd Cameron, of NYSUT Retiree Services. Floyd talked about the challenges NYSUT faces 

from Washington D.C., as well as issues here in New York State. Retirees could be especially affected by the referendum to have a State Constitutional Convention that would open the door to changes in pension structure and affect workers benefits like the right to collectively bargain. Challenging cases coming to the Supreme Court may have an impact on how unions can collect dues. Movements like those out of Wisconsin seek to make all of the United States right-to-work, while others are acting to privatize Social Security and cut Medicare benefits. These changes would affect not only public employees, but retirees as well.

Floyd also emphasized that retirees are not a burden! Studies show that 90% of retirees remain in New York and spend 86 cents of every dollar in the same county where they worked, live, or volunteer. In addition, our pension is deferred compensation for lower wages over the course of our careers. If we activate our votes, we can push back on these harmful initiatives. One member said they received "Very good information. A Constitutional Convention is going to affect way more than we know."

Our last speaker was local author Anthony Musso, who has written travel books like "Hidden Treasures of the Catskills" and "Hidden Treasures of the Hudson Valley." Members enjoyed his enthusiastic presentation that taught much about local history and gave ideas for visits to "obscure sites in our backyard." 

The member feedback expressed an appreciation of the conference and that members continue to look forward to this yearly experience. One member said, "The conference continues to be a highlight of the year!"