Thrift Savings Plan: Finance experts give guidance at Peterson AFB

Published Sept. 5, 2018
By Audrey Jensen
21st Space Wing Public Affairs

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- After retiring from military or civilian service, you may be wondering where you will be getting your income.

To help both civilians and service members plan ahead for retirement, the Thrift Savings Plan, a government-sponsored retirement and savings investment plan, is available for civilians and service members to help start the process.

To further explain the specifics of the plan, two TSP training and liaison specialists presented information at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, Aug. 16, 2018, at the base auditorium.

Stewart Kaplan and Mei Shan Josephine Krammer, TSP training and liaison specialists, took turns presenting specific details and benefits of the plan to civilians and service members in attendance so they can properly navigate and use their plans.

The two specialists discussed the Blended Retirement System, TSP contributions, investments, loans, withdrawal options and the TSP Modernization Act of 2017.

“In the end, what we’re trying to accomplish is having the biggest possible balance in our account when we go into retirement,” said Kaplan during his presentation on TSP investing. “Probably 99 percent of you here have a TSP account. That’s what’s going to fill in the gap between what you need in retirement and what you’re going to get from social security, a military pension, or another pension.”

Kaplan and Krammer both answered questions from the audience and outlined how to get the most out of the TSP.

“You want to make sure you have a reasonable assumption of what you’re going to have in your account when you go to retire, relatively within some kind of window,” Kaplan said. “That way you can have the lifestyle you’ve earned and worked for all those years.”

TSP members or those interested in starting a TSP account can go to https://www.tsp.gov/index.html for more information on these resources:

• Plan participation (How to set up and manage your TSP account)
• Investment funds (Information on TSP fund options and performance)
• Planning and tools (Retirement planning and tools for all career stages)
• Life events (Help with life events affecting your TSP account)