All posts by Franklin Ford Daniel

About Franklin Ford Daniel

Franklin Daniel, a Human Resources Professional at Middlebury College, enjoys the administration of the College's retirement plans and other benefits. He is a member of WorldatWork Society of Certified Professionals where he earned the Certified Benefits Professional designation, trained to comply with U.S. legal and regulatory requirements and integrate benefits programs with business strategy and design. Prior to joining Middlebury College, Franklin started his career with the Service Employees International Union holding various roles where his professional training started in the field of employee benefits. Before his human resources career, Franklin spent his days in the soccer field as a professional soccer player with the NJ Nationals and Club Atlético Banfield (Argentina). He also spent a year working as a barista in a seedy Parisian cafe in Greenwich Village, which he still considers his most challenging job to date. He holds a B.A. from the University of Rhode Island. Outside the office, he can be found walking his Newfoundland, coaching and playing soccer and his perennial dream to explore and photograph New York City's backstreets on his motorcycle. Follow @franklindaniel_ on Twitter.

IRS ANNOUNCES 2019 PLAN CONTRIBUTION AND BENEFIT LIMITS

For Faculty, For Staff, Midd Points
On November 1, 2018, the Internal Revenue Service announced cost-of-living adjustments affecting dollar limitations for pension plans and other retirement-related items beginning January 1, 2019. See the chart below for further details.

The highlights of limitations that changed from 2018 to 2019 include the following:

  • The 401(a) annual compensation limit applicable to retirement plans increased from $275,000 to $280,000.
  • The elective deferral limit increased from $18,500 to $19,000 and age 50 catch-up limit remains unchanged at $6,000.
  • The 415(c) contribution limit applicable to defined contribution retirement plans increased from $55,000 to $56,000.
2019 2018
RETIREMENT PLANS
Annual Compensation Limits For Retirement Program Purposes 280,000 275,000
Elective Deferrals 403(b) – (for under age 50) 19,000 18,500
Catch-up Contributions For 403(b) Plan Participants age 50 and over 6,000 6,000
457(b) Elective Deferrals 19,000 18,500
Defined Contribution Limits On Maximum Combined Employee/Employer Contributions To Defined Contributions Plans 56,000 55,000
OTHER
Social Security Taxable Wage Base 132,900 128,400
Medicare Wage Base No Limit No Limit

All figures in US dollars.

Sources: www.irs.gov, www.ssa.gov

 

Open Enrollment

For Faculty, For Staff, Human Resources, Midd Points
Open Enrollment for Middlebury’s 2019 Health & Welfare Benefit Plan is being held from November 1 – 14, 2018.  All benefits-eligible employees are required to complete the open enrollment process within this time period even if they do not intend to make benefit changes for 2019.

Open Enrollment is your opportunity to:

• Continue your current medical, dental, or vision elections into the new year OR add coverage for yourself and/or dependents OR terminate your own or your dependents’ coverage.
• Continue your current voluntary life and/or accidental death and dismemberment coverage for the new year OR increase OR decrease the amount of existing coverage in these plans OR apply for new coverage (subject to approval).
• Enroll in the healthcare and/or the dependent care flexible spending account(s) for next year. If you do not make an FSA election, you will not be contributing for 2019 even if you participated in 2018.  For more information, including Healthcare FSA rollovers, please click here.

Open Enrollment must be completed, using BannerWeb, between November 1 – 14, 2018.  Benefits-eligible employees will be able to access the open enrollment module from any computer with internet access.

Getting Started

1. Access the Open Enrollment System:
• Click this link: http://go.middlebury.edu/bannerweb OR
• On the bottom right-hand corner of the Middlebury homepage, http://www.middlebury.edu/  click “Quick Links” and then “BannerWeb.”

2. Enter your BannerWeb User ID (your Midd ID number) and your PIN and click “Login.”

3. Click “Employee”, then “Benefits and Deductions”, and then “Open Enrollment.”

If you have any questions, please feel free to call the Open Enrollment Hotline: (802) 443-2320. You may also email Nancy Lindberg or Franklin Daniel at nlindberg@middlebury.edu or fdaniel@middlebury.edu.

 

Benefits Open Enrollment Coming Soon

For Faculty, For Staff, Human Resources, Midd Points

Please mark your calendars – the annual open enrollment period for Middlebury’s health and welfare benefit plans will be held from November 1st through the 14th.  All benefits-eligible employees are required to complete the on-line process during this window so please watch your email on November 1st for instructions and benefit details.  If you will be out of town and will not have access to the internet during the open enrollment period, please contact Human Resources at 802-443-5465 before November 1st to make alternate enrollment arrangements.  Meanwhile, to reduce pressure on yourself during the open enrollment period consider beginning the process of estimating your flexible spending account elections now, so that you are ready to go when open enrollment starts.

– Benefits Team