OPEN ENROLLMENT May 21 - June 8, 2018 for. SHORT PLAN YEAR Effective: July 1 - December 31, 2018

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1 Flex Plan FLEXIBLE SPENDING ACCOUNT 1 OPEN ENROLLMENT May 21 - June 8, 2018 for SHORT PLAN YEAR Effective: July 1 - December 31, 2018 TASC representatives are available at the JFB A-Level from May 21 through June 1, 2018 from 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. to answer questions. HOW DOES THE FLEX PLAN WORK? A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Code Section 125 Cafeteria Plan. This allows participants to set aside an elected amount from their salary on a pre-tax basis each year into their FSA(s), and subsequently access those funds for qualifying healthcare, dependent care, transit and/or parking expenses incurred within the plan year (July 1, December 31, 2018). Your pre-tax contributions towards an FSA will lower your taxable salary and save money as you use these allocated pre-tax dollars on eligible purchases. Whether WHAT ARE THE CHANGES BEING MADE TO THE FLEX PLAN? LADWP s Flex Plan will be transitioning from a July - June plan year to a January - December calendar plan year to align the Flex Plan with the IRS Tax Year. In order to facilitate this transition, we have to close out the current calendar year by having a short plan year. The short plan year will be from July 1, 2018 through December 31, LADWP s Flex Plan will be switching from a passive enrollment to an active enrollment. All employees wishing to participate in the Flex Plan will be required to actively enroll and elect benefits during the open enrollment period for the upcoming short plan year. Benefit Amounts for the short plan year have been adjusted as shown below: 1,325 Health FSA 1,560* Parking (260/month) 2,500 Dependent Care FSA 1,560* Transit (260/month) * less any LADWP parking/transit subsidy

2 2 HEALTHCARE FSA The Healthcare FSA allows you, the participant, to set aside up to 1,325 for this short plan year, to be used exclusively to pay for eligible out-of-pocket health-related expenses (medical, dental, vision, etc.). Once you are enrolled in the Healthcare FSA, you will receive by mail, a TASC Debit Card with your lump sum elected funds loaded in the Card and ready for your use. If you are a current participant in the Flex Plan, your elected funds will be loaded on to your currently active card. You may also use your own funds then file a Request for Reimbursement (RFR) afterwards. HEALTH PLAN PREMIUMS If you are enrolled in either a LADWP or union-sponsored health plan and your premium exceeds your LADWP subsidy, your out-of-pocket contribution toward your premium is automatically deducted from your paycheck on a pre-tax basis. You do not need to enroll in the Flex Plan to receive this pre-tax benefit. Because the out-of-pocket contribution is already automatically deducted on a pre-tax basis from employees paychecks, health plan premiums are not eligible expenses for the Flex Plan s Healthcare FSA. LADWP allows participants in the Healthcare FSA to carryover the IRS maximum allowable amount of 500 to next year s Healthcare FSA. The carryover amount applies to the following year s benefit after close of the prior plan year s runout period, at which time it may be used to reimburse expenses incurred in the new plan year. For further detailed information regarding LADWP s Flex Plan please go to MYDWP under Human Resources - Flex Plan for a copy of the Summary Plan Description. DEPENDENT CARE FSA If you need child care or elder care, the Dependent Care FSA will allow you to pay for these services with pre-tax dollars. The Dependent Care FSA allows you to set aside up to 2,500 per household* for the short plan year from your salary, for use exclusively to pay for child care or elder care expenses. Once you are enrolled in the Dependent Care FSA, you will receive a TASC Debit Card by mail, and your bi-weekly payroll deduction funds are loaded on to the Card by installment. Note: The maximum benefit is 2,500 per household for the short plan year, even if your spouse does not work for LADWP. Any prior contributions to a Dependent Care FSA plan from a previous employer needs to be Enroll online at

3 3 TRANSIT ACCOUNTS The Transit Account provides employees a way to lower the cost of getting to work by reducing mass commuting expenses. The IRS allows you to pre-tax up to 260/month (1,560 for the short plan year) from your salary to spend on your mass transit expenses. However, LADWP employees, who are also receiving a 50 pre-tax monthly LADWP subsidy (300 short plan year) from the CARS Office can only have a maximum annual election of 1,260 (1, = 1,260). Therefore, you may only pre-tax up to 210/ month (105 x 2) via bi-weekly payroll deductions. PARKING ACCOUNTS For the Parking Account, you may set aside up to 260/month pre-tax dollars to pay for your nonladwp facility parking expenses. For instance, if you pay for parking at a location from where you catch the train to work, this expense could be paid for with your pre-tax dollars. Please note: The parking fee at LADWP facilities is already a pre-tax deduction and not eligible for the Flex Plan Program. FLEX PLAN ADMINISTRATION LADWP s third-party administrator for the Flex Plan, TASC, has self-service tools available to easily manage your FSA(s) through your FlexSystem accounts and TASC Card transactions: Web Portal: (24-hour, 7 days a week online enrollment during the Open Enrollment period). MyTASC Online: MyTASC Mobile App: MyTASC Text Messaging (SMS) Phone: Enroll online at

4 4 SHORT PLAN YEAR WORKSHEET HEALTH CARE FSA ESTIMATED ELIGIBLE EXPENSES (MEDICAL) Health Insurance Deductibles COST Coinsurance or Co-Payments Vision Care / Eyewear (glasses / contacts) Dental Care Prescription Drugs Over The Counter Medications (Prescribed, RX required) Chiropractic Orthodontia Eye Surgery (Laser Vision Correction) Counseling and Therapy Psychology and Psychiatry Acupuncture Other Miscellaneous Costs TOTAL (IRS CONTRIBUTION LIMIT : UP TO 1,325) DIVIDE by the number of pay periods in the short plan year (13 pp) THIS IS YOUR DEDUCTION PER PAY PERIOD HEALTHCARE FSA (estimated tax savings calculation) COST TOTAL (IRS CONTRIBUTION LIMIT : UP TO 1,325) MULTIPLY by your household s tax bracket percentage THIS IS YOUR ESTIMATED TAX SAVINGS TOTAL SAMPLE LIST OF ELIGIBLE EXPENSES Health Care FSA Vision care including eyeglasses, contact lenses and saline solution Co-payments and deductibles Acupuncture Dental care, both preventative and restorative Orthodontia, child and adult Eye surgery, including laser vision correction Physical therapy, counseling and psychology Chiropractic therapy/exams/adjustments Prescriptions and prescribed over-the-counter medicines Additional information may be found on the TASC website

5 SHORT PLAN YEAR WORKSHEET DEPENDENT CARE FSA ESTIMATED ELIGIBLE EXPENSES (DEPENDENT CARE) COST CHILD CARE EXPENSES Day Care Services (up to age 13) In-Home care / Au Pair services Nursery and Preschool After-School Care Summer Day Camps Babysitting ELDER CARE SERVICES Day Care Center In-Home Care Other Miscellaneous Costs TOTAL (IRS CONTRIBUTION LIMIT : UP TO 2,500) DIVIDE by the number of pay periods in the short plan year (13 pp) THIS IS YOUR DEDUCTION PER PAY PERIOD DEPENDENT CARE FSA (estimated tax savings calculation) COST TOTAL (IRS CONTRIBUTION LIMIT : UP TO 2,500 per household for the short plan year) MULTIPLY by your household s tax bracket percentage THIS IS YOUR ESTIMATED TAX SAVINGS TOTAL SAMPLE LIST OF ELIGIBLE EXPENSES Dependent Care FSA Child Care (up to age 13) Before and after-school programs Day care and nursery school Day camp Pre-school Elder Care In-home care Day care for disabled adult or child Transportation (provided by the care provider) Additional information may be found on the TASC website 5

6 6 WHO IS ELIGIBLE? You are eligible to participate in any of the LADWP Flex Plan benefits if you are an ACTIVE LADWP Civil Service employee regularly scheduled to work at least 20 hours a week. Employees who are retired, exempt daily rate, part-time exempt, or on a limited appointment, are not eligible. ADMINISTRATIVE FEE If you participate in the Healthcare, Dependent Care, Transit and/or Parking FSAs, effective July 1, 2018, the administrative fee will be 1.42 per pay period for the short plan year and is deducted via payroll deduction on a bi-weekly basis. (1.42 x 13 pay periods per year = 18.46/short plan year). There are no enrollment or re-enrollment fees. There is no administrative fee for the Pre-Tax Premium Plan. Note: If you participate in one or more FSAs, (Healthcare, Dependent Care, Transit or Parking), you will only be deducted one administrative fee, per pay period. CARRYOVER LADWP allows up to 500 of unreimbursed funds for the Healthcare FSA to roll forward toward the short plan year. If you have funds leftover from the previous plan year that will be carried forward into the short plan year, the administrative fee of 1.42 per pay period will apply throughout the remainder of the short plan year. For example, a participant has 400 remaining in his/her Health Care FSA as of July 1, 2018 that he/she has not spent. After the 90-day runout period to submit for reimbursement, the funds will automatically transfer to the short plan year regardless if the participant has made a new election for the short plan year. This means that the participant will have an active account with TASC, their 400 will be loaded into the account and the participant will be required to pay the administrative fee of 1.42 per pay period for the entire short plan year. Note: Even if the participant has NOT elected a new benefit amount during open enrollment, due to the carryover option provided by LADWP, the participant will still be required to pay the administrative fee of 1.42 per pay

7 PAYROLL DEDUCTIONS 7 Your health plan premium will be automatically deducted from your paycheck (once a month) on a pre-tax basis throughout the plan year. For the Healthcare, Dependent Care, Transit and/or Parking accounts, the total amount of money you choose to set aside will be deducted in equal installments from your salary (before your withholding taxes are taken) each pay period during the plan year (July 1 December 31, 2018). New employees who enroll during the plan year will have payroll deductions taken in equal installments from their salary for the remaining pay periods of the short plan year. Participants will also be required to pay the administrative fee of 1.42 per pay period. OPEN ENROLLMENT The Open Enrollment period for the 2018 short plan year is May 21 June 8, During this period, you must enroll online at (24-hours, 7 days a week) into the Flex Plan FSA. All participants will be required to actively enroll and elect benefit amounts during the open enrollment period for the upcoming short plan year. Outside of the open enrollment period, you must contact LADWP s Flex Plan Administrator at flexplan@ladwp.com, if you are a new employee and would like to enroll (within 60 days from the date of hire) or if you are a current participant needing to make changes to your FSA. Changes to the FSA are allowed whenever a participant experiences a qualifying change of status during the plan year (please refer to the Additional Information section on page 11 in this newsletter for more details). If you are currently enrolled in the FLEX Plan and want to continue for the 2018 short plan year, you are still required to make your elections during the Open Enrollment period. If you are currently enrolled in the FLEX Plan and you do NOT want to continue your participation in the plan, you DO NOT need to do anything during the Open Enrollment period because the Flex Plan is transitioning to an active enrollment process. However, in order to make sure your FSA account is canceled you are required to deplete all funds that you have contributed to your account(s). If you have funds that are eligible for the carryover options offered by the LADWP s Flex Plan as of June 30, 2018, those funds will automatically be transferred to the short plan year (July 1, 2018 December 31, 2018) and result in your current bi-weekly administrative fee continuing throughout the short plan year. NEED INTERNET ACCESS TO ENROLL? Computers with Internet access will be available to employees during the Open Enrollment period on May 21, 2018 May 25, 2018 and May 29, 2018 June 1, 2018 at LADWP, John Ferraro Building on A-Level.

8 8 THE TASC CARD For your convenience, you will receive a prepaid MasterCard TASC Card. It s a prepaid debit card (not a credit card) used for payment of eligible benefits expenses. It s valid for four years and can be used continuously as you stay enrolled in the Flex Plan. HOW THE CARD WORKS The TASC Card provides access to two accounts on one card MyBenefits and MyCash. The MyBenefits account holds your FSA elected funds used to pay for eligible healthcare, dependent care, transit and/or parking expenses. The MyCash account is where funds are deposited when you are reimbursed for an eligible expense (for which you have submitted a request for reimbursement). This is optional as you can choose to have your reimbursements directly deposited to your bank account (paper checks are no longer issued for reimbursement). If you opt to use the MyCash feature of the TASC Card, your purchases are not limited to a particular merchant or type of expense, it s just like using cash. You can also access your funds from your MyCash account via ATM (you need to request a PIN) or use it for FSA expenses in case you have run out of MyBenefits funds. In addition, your funds in MyCash can be transferred (via your MyTASC account online) to your personal bank account and you can choose between a recurring or a one-time transfer. To manage your account online, login to your MyTASC Online at or to the MyTASC Mobile App at to access your accounts from your smartphone or tablet, anywhere at anytime. USING THE TASC CARD To activate your TASC card, just swipe it like you would any debit card when making an eligible purchase. It becomes active on the first successful swipe. Once the transaction is approved, TASC/FlexSystem will take care of paying the provider and deducting the money from your FSA(s). Your TASC Card will be pre-loaded with your total annual elected Health FSA amount only. Your Dependent Care, Transit and Parking funds will be loaded into your TASC Card as soon as your bi-weekly installment contribution is deducted from your paycheck. The amount you have available in your FSA is the balance on the TASC Card. You may use the TASC Card up to this amount only. You will be able to check your available balance at TASC/FlexSystem will monitor your TASC Card transactions. Whenever your card transactions go through, TASC may still request proof of documentation such as receipts, statements, etc. (always retain copies for your records). If you receive such a request, you must submit the requested documentation within the required timeframe. Please note: It is not mandatory for participants to use the TASC Card. Participants have the option to pay from their own funds and then submit a request for reimbursement. The deadline to incur expenses for the current plan year (July 2017 June 2018) is June 30, 2018 (end of plan year) and the deadline to submit a request for reimbursement for expenses incurred during the plan year is September 30, 2018.

9 9 IMPORTANT SPECIAL IRS REGULATED RULES! Tax savings available through the Healthcare and Dependent Care FSAs are made possible by Sections 125 and 129 of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Code. The tax savings available through the Transit and Parking are made possible by Section 132 of the IRS Code. These sections of the tax law also impose certain restrictions, as indicated below: RULE (Applicable to Healthcare FSA only) Up to 500 Carryover Over 500, Use it or Lose it (Dependent Care FSA) Use it or Lose it You can carryover your Transit and Parking account balances into the next plan year, if you continue participation in the Flex Plan You must incur expenses prior to the end of the plan year before you can be reimbursed You cannot transfer funds between FSAs You cannot make any changes during the plan year unless you experienced a qualifying change of status EXPLANATION You can carryover up to 500 of your unused Healthcare FSA funds at the end of the plan year. Carryover funds will be applied to your account after the claims runout period (90 days after the plan year ends). However, any unused dollar amount over 500 will be forfeited, per IRS rule. Maximum election amount is now 2,650 per plan year. *For the Short Plan Year from July 1, 2018 December 31, 2018) the maximum election amount is 1,325. At the end of the plan year, any unused balance left in your Dependent Care FSA will be forfeited, per IRS rule. Maximum election amount remains at 5,000 per plan year. *For the Short Plan Year from July 1, 2018 December 31, 2018) the maximum election amount is 2,500. Any leftover Transit and Parking account balances will be carried over to the new plan year 30 days after the start of the new plan year. If you cancel your account(s), you have 90 days from the effective date of cancellation to use the funds up and file claims (260 each month/account allowed, per IRS) or your unused remaining account balance will be forfeited. If you opt not to use the TASC Card, you must incur an expense using your funds before you can file for a Request for Reimbursement (RFR). You must submit the RFR form with the appropriate receipts/bills after using your own funds to pay for an eligible expense. For compliance purposes, you cannot use funds from the Healthcare FSA to pay your dependent day care expenses or transit/parking expenses, nor can you use funds from the Dependent Care FSA to pay for healthcare or transit/parking expenses. For Healthcare or Dependent Care FSA, you cannot make any changes outside of the open enrollment period unless you have a qualifying change of status. Please notify the Flex Plan Administrator within 30 days from the date of the qualified change of status event to make the change. All active participants are required to pay the administrative fee of 1.42 per pay period. Participants with fund balances in the Health Care FSA during the carryover period, will be required to continue paying the administrative fee of 1.42 per pay period. The administrative fee of 1.42 will be applicable for the duration of the short plan year. For further detailed information regarding LADWP s Flex Plan please go to MYDWP under Human Resources - Flex Plan for a copy of the Summary Plan Description. NEED INTERNET ACCESS TO ENROLL? Computers with Internet access will be available to employees during the Open Enrollment period on May 21, 2018 May 25, 2018 and May 29, 2018 June 1, 2018 at LADWP, John Ferraro Building on A-Level.

10 10 DURING OPEN ENROLLMENT (MAY 21, 2018 JUNE 8, 2018), ONLINE SIGN-UPS ONLY! Online enrollment into FlexSystem FSA is available 24-hours a day from the convenience of your home. Once you are enrolled, you may access your FlexSystem FSA online at any time. Please note: The online enrollment portal is only accessible during the open enrollment period (May 21 June 8, 2018). If you miss enrolling at this time, you will have to wait until the next plan year s open enrollment period to enroll. Instructions: 1. Choose which FSA(s) you wish to participate in for the 2018 Short Plan Year. 2. Determine your elections to be contributed pre-tax into each type of FSA. 3. Watch the presentation for the step-by step instructions on how to enroll online using the link below: 4. The (LADWP) Employer ID Number is: Login to: to establish your personal username (12-digit Participant TASC ID) and password. 6. A valid address is required to authenticate your account. Once you have authenticated your account, just follow the system prompts to enroll. 7. You will receive a confirmation that your enrollment is complete.

11 11 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Changing Elections During the Plan Year (outside of open enrollment period) You may make changes to your FSA during the plan year only if you experience a qualifying change of status such as: Marriage or divorce Birth or adoption of a child Change in employment status Child has turned 13 (and no longer qualified for dependent care) Once you have a qualifying change of status and would like to make changes to your FSA, you must file a request within 30 days from the date of your change of status event, by contacting the LADWP Flex Plan Administrator at flexplan@ladwp.com to effect the change. New hires have 60 days from the date of hire to enroll in the Flex Plan. Request for Reimbursement (RFR) Simply submit a request for reimbursement to FlexSystem using one of the following methods: Submit via MyTASC Mobile App (free download) Submit via MyTASC Text Message (SMS) Download your personalized RFR form online (paper) Additional information may be found on the TASC website

12 Los Angeles Department of Water and Power P.O. Box Los Angeles, CA Employee Health And Benefits Office, Room 559 Address Service Requested ENROLL ONLINE: FLEX Plan SHORT PLAN YEAR ACTIVE ENROLLMENT 2018 O PEN E NROLLMENT MAY 21 - JUNE 8, 2018 Enroll from home or work anytime 24/7 during Open Enrollment (May 21 June 8, 2018) To make changes to your LADWP FLEX Plan, log into: