Preparing Your 1099:
LAGERS staff is hard at work preparing your tax documents (1099-R). Federal regulations require LAGERS must postmark your tax documentation by the last day of January. Due to postal service delays, you may not receive your 1099-R until early February. Once your 1099-R is sent to our printing company for mailing, it will also be made available for download on myLAGERS. If you have not received your hard copy in the mail by mid February, you may call our office for a replacement.
Tax Withholding:
You can change the tax withholdings from your LAGERS benefit at any time. Withholdings can be completed either on your myLAGERS online account or by submitting a completed substitute withholding form to LAGERS’ office. This form is available at www.molagers.org or by calling LAGERS’ office.
Common Issues or Questions Regarding Your Taxes:
Employee Contributions:
If you were required to contribute to your LAGERS benefit while employed, those contributions were made after tax. While retired, a portion of your monthly benefit is not taxable due your after-tax contributions. You can determine your non-taxable amount by subtracting Box 2 from Box 1 on your 1099-R.
Missouri Income Tax:
Your benefit is subject to state income tax for your state of residence. If you move out of Missouri, please notify the LAGERS office and update your state withholdings. LAGERS can only withhold for the State of Missouri.
If you live in Missouri, you may qualify for the Missouri Public Pension Exemption. When you receive public pension income in Missouri, a portion of your income is excludable from your taxable income. The exclusion amount depends on your adjusted gross income, but is limited to the maximum Social Security amount. Please be sure to discuss this provision with your tax professional.
Disability Retirements:
The taxability of disability benefits is a confusing area even for tax preparers due to the varying taxability of certain types of disability benefits. LAGERS disability benefits are taxable, and your 1099-R will reflect this.
Purchases of Service:
If you purchased service such as military service, during employment, the tax implications of your purchase of service will depend on the source
of funds you used to make the purchase. If you transferred funds to LAGERS from another qualified retirement plan that were not previously taxed, then your benefits will be entirely taxable when they are paid. However, if you used personal funds for the purchase that had been previously taxed, then a portion of your benefits will be nontaxable,
due to these after-tax funds.
Taxes on the Partial Lump Sum
The taxability of the Partial Lump Sum depends on how you received the distribution. If you received a payment directly in the last tax year, LAGERS is required to withhold 20% of the taxable amount and forward it to the IRS. Keep in mind, this is a standar d 20% withholding and may not cover your final tax liability. If LAGERS transferred the amount to another qualified retirement account, the taxability of the payment will be dependent on the account you transferred it to. Remember to discuss filing your taxes and withholdings with a trusted tax professional. LAGERS staff are not tax preparers and are not able to provide tax advice.
