On behalf of the Trustees of the DEA Annuity Fund, I am pleased to announce some important changes to the administration and investment options provided to you as a participant in the Fund.
Currently the DEA Annuity Fund offers the following two investment options to participants.
OPTION 1 is the “trustee managed” option. Under this option, the Fund’s Trustees direct the investment strategy with respect to contributions received on behalf of each participant, and the Fund Office maintains the account records, reconciles balances quarterly and administers distributions.
OPTION 2 is the self-directed option. Participants who elect this option choose and manage their own investments through choices offered by the current administrator of the self-directed portion, Empower. The record keeping for this option is performed by Empower and daily balances are available for participants to view electronically. Empower also administers account distributions for Option 2 participants.
Specific changes for participants in the trustee-managed Option 1.
Effective July 1st, 2026, the trustee-managed Option 1 will merge into the self-directed Option 2, and as a result, the DEA Annuity Fund will move to a fully self-directed plan. Empower will become the administrator and record keeper for all participants in Option 1 and 2.
Additionally, assets currently managed by the Trustees under Option 1 will transition to Empower as custodian. The “trustee managed” investment strategy will remain in effect for Option 1 participants unless they decide to move their assets into one of the many other investments offered by Empower.
New roll-over options
Under Empower’s advanced technology platform, all DEA Annuity Fund participants will now be able to roll over assets from the taxable portion of their Final Pension Loan and their banked VSF DROP Account into their DEA Annuity Fund account upon separation from the department. The technology used by the DEA Fund Office could not previously accommodate such rollover transactions.
Other advantages in moving to a fully self-directed plan
-Participants in the trustee-managed portion will now have on-line access with the ability to view their account balance.
-Change investment options without waiting for the annual changeover period.
-Receive redemptions quicker upon request; just to mention a few.
Shortly, participants will be receiving a mailing from Empower further explaining the details of the plan and how the program will be rolled out.
On behalf of the Annuity Fund Trustees and the Board of Officers, I wish you a very healthy and happy spring and summer.
Fraternally,
Scott Munro
DEA President
