Category: Newsroom

Members who entered DROP between October 2018-February 1, 2019

The City’s amendments to the DROP Program effective February 1, 2019, resulted in a record-high number of members applying to enter DROP from October 2018 until the end of January 2019. Nearly 400 members entered DROP during this 4-month period. This contrasts with the average of 36 members who entered the program during the same time period over the past three years. In addition, a pension administration system was implemented earlier this year and a new MyLAFPP was launched at the end of May. As a result, there are approximately 122 applications still in process.

Recent DROP enrollees may find the following variations of their status in MyLAFPP as their applications pass through the approval process:

• Active; OR
• DROP, without dates or balance information
• DROP, with dates but without balance information
• DROP, with dates and balance information (application complete)

The outstanding DROP applications are our top priority. We have implemented a plan and work schedule to process the files as expeditiously as possible according to your DROP Entry effective date. We anticipate completing the remaining pending applications over the next couple of months. As we finalize each application, a letter will be mailed with your DROP account information.

We thank you for your patience. In the meantime, if you have any questions about your account you may contact the DROP/Service Pensions Section at (213) 279-3100.

The new MyLAFPP has officially been launched!  Active, DROP and Retired Members plus beneficiaries have convenient access to personalized benefit information and services all in one pension administration system.

ACTIVE MEMBERS – will have access to:

• Personal information
• Pension estimates (retirement and DROP estimates)
• Recruit training time estimates and Public Service Purchase estimates

 New features!

1. View beneficiary information
2. Request appointment to retire or enter DROP
3. View lost service time
4. Confirm recruit training time purchase
5. Confirm whether your health subsidy is “frozen” or “unfrozen”

DROP MEMBERS – will have access to:

• Summary of personal information
• View monthly DROP balance
• DROP exit estimates

New features!

1. View beneficiary information
2. Request DROP Exit appointment
3. View service purchases

RETIRED MEMBERS – will have access to:

• Summary of personal information
• View monthly benefit information
• Change tax withholdings (CA only)
• Add/change direct deposit

New feature!

1. Ability to view health subsidy information

HOW TO LOGIN TO MyLAFPP

You can find the MyLAFPP link at www.lafpp.com located on the homepage:

• At the right menu bar (and on all pages); or
• MyLAFPP Pod – scroll down midway through the homepage

To access benefit information, you will be required to set up an account utilizing a LAFPP issued personal pin number (PIN). If you do not have a PIN, please contact LAFPP at (213) 279-3155.

For a step by step guide on how to login, MyLAFPP – How to Login Guide

In accordance with Governor Newsom’s Executive Order N-33-20 (Stay at Home Order) and Mayor Garcetti’s “Safer At Home” Emergency Order, our offices will be closed to all visitors until further notice and only essential services will continue as follows:

Pension checks will continue to be paid each month as scheduled. Now may be the opportune time to sign up for direct deposit if you haven’t already. Numerous financial institutions have provided updates on how to best utilize their electronic services. Retired members and beneficiaries can sign up for direct deposit and make changes to their monthly pension payments/view summary statements through MyLAFPP.

Active members who have an upcoming mandatory DROP exit date or an urgent request to exit DROP soon can arrange a remote counseling appointment that will be conducted over the phone and completed electronically via email/fax. Appointments already scheduled will take priority. Please be patient as staff will schedule appointments in priority order.

LAFPP is prepared to continue serving our members while adhering to the recommended precautionary measures for the Coronavirus (COVID-19). By activating our Business Continuity Plan at this time, staff will continue to work in staggered shifts or from remote locations to ensure that essential services continue without interruption. Our website and MyLAFPP self-services are excellent resources:

MyLAFPP Services – Click here to log on. For log-in instructions click here.

Active/DROP Members

• Run Pension and DROP Estimates
• View Annual Statements
• View Semi-Annual DROP Statements
• Recruit time purchase
• View beneficiaries

Retired Members

• Address Changes
• Direct Deposit – start or change
• Tax Withholding Changes
• View 1099-R tax form

LAFPP.com – View benefit information and download forms from our website.

• Current news and events, and MyLAFPP Login on the homepage
• View Services by Active or Retired membership
• Download forms – can be submitted by email or fax

View a list of LAFPP services and contacts

OFFICE CONTACT INFORMATION:

Phone: (213) 279-3000
Toll-Free: 844-885-2377
TTY: (213) 628-7713

When you call our main office number, please select a section and leave a message. Your call will be returned as soon as possible, usually within the hour during our regular business hours. You may also send an email to Pensions@lafpp.com.

We truly appreciate your patience and understanding during these unprecedented times. We will continue to closely monitor the situation and provide you with any new developments on any changes in our services. If you have not done so already, please provide us with your email address through MyLAFPP to also send you updates as soon as possible. We thank you for your understanding.

Financial markets across the world have been hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak, with stocks suffering the largest losses. Your pension fund invests in a variety of other assets besides stocks that help cushion the fund against fluctuations in stock prices. The fund has plenty of cash on hand to meet pension and DROP payments without the need to sell any securities in this down market.

The Fund invests for the long term with a strategic asset allocation plan and makes adjustments on an ongoing basis. This strategic approach has been proven to be the best safeguard to ensure the continued strength of LAFPP to pay your retirement benefits.

The Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) is 3.4% for 2020 and was approved by the Board of Fire and Police Pension Commissioners on March 19, 2020. The COLA will be effective July 1, 2020, and all eligible pensioners and DROP participants will receive an increase accordingly, beginning with the pension payment dated July 31, 2020. 

• Tiers 1 and 2 will receive 3.4%. 
• Tiers 3 through 6 and DROP participants will receive up to 3.0%*; and 
• Tiers 5 and 6 will have 0.4% added to their COLA bank balance. The new COLA bank balance will be 0.5%.** 
  
  *For new pensioners or DROP entrants in Tiers 3-6, the first year’s COLA is prorated based on the number of completed months since the pension effective date, therefore these members may not receive the full 3%. 
  
  **Must have retired or entered DROP with a pension effective date prior to June 2, 2019, in order to have available COLA bank balance. 

The 2019 Annual Report for Los Angeles Fire and Police Pensions is available online!

LAFPP is pleased to present the 2019 Annual Report. This report provides financial information such as the department’s budget summary, investment performance, asset allocation data, plan actuarial data, statistical information, and a summary of plan provisions for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2019.

Some of the highlights in this report are:

• The System serves approximately 27,155 members, including active, DROP, deferred vested, and retired members and beneficiaries.
• Pension benefits were actuarially funded at 93.6% and health subsidy benefits were funded at 56.2%, an increase of 0.7% and 4.9%, respectively over the prior year. The combined funding status is 88.5%.
• System assets totaled $23.3 billion on a market basis, up from $22.3 billion the prior year.
• The investment rate of return for Fiscal Year 2018-19 was 6.21%.

LAFPP continues to grow as an organization as we strive to be a leader and innovator in the public pension industry. The Board and staff continue to utilize prudent and sound investment strategies to grow and protect Plan assets over the long-term to secure the retirement benefits of our members.

In addition to this report, our historical annual reports, actuarial valuations, and financial statements are available from the Financial Reports in the Inside LAFPP section of our website.

All 1099-R tax forms have been posted to MyLAFPP for viewing and downloading. To view your 1099-R form on MyLAFPP, review the MyLAFPP Services in the Frequently Asked Questions below.

February 6, 2020

We used our newly implemented Pension Administration System to generate 1099-R tax forms for our pensioners. By January 31, 2020, over 15,600 1099-R forms were timely mailed to LAFPP pensioners. After the forms were mailed, we were informed that some tax preparers and tax software do not accept the 1099-R tax forms with blank boxes (specifically, Box 2a and Box 4), which report the federal taxable amount and federal taxes withheld. Staff has conferred with our tax counsel and have concluded that corrected 1099-R forms should be issued to the affected members, which will now reflect $0.00 instead of blank boxes.

Notification letters and corrected 1099-R tax forms will be sent to all affected members with forms that have blank boxes 2a and/or 4. We anticipate all 1099-R tax forms to be posted in MyLAFPP for viewing and downloading by February 29, 2020. Please continue to check our website for further updates.

PLEASE REVIEW THE FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS AND OTHER TAX FORM INQUIRIES.