The Great Plains Conference participates in the Pension Plans of the United Methodist Church.
The current pension plan is the Clergy Retirement Security Program (CRSP). CRSP consists of both a defined benefit (DB) plan, which provides a monthly benefit at retirement based upon years of credited service to the Church, and a defined contribution (DC) plan, which provides a retirement account balance established and funded by annual conferences.
Plan Compensation refers to base salary plus housing. The contribution base shall be a clergy's Plan Compensation.
The Defined Benefit (CRSP-DB) component costs 9.2 percent of Plan Compensation. In 2020 the conference will continue to pay a portion of this bill out of reserves and will bill the church an amount equal to 3 percent of Plan Compensation.
The Defined Contribution (CRSP-DC) component of the program currently is billed at 2% of Plan Compensation to the local church or to a conference- responsible extension ministry. January, 2020 the rate of 3 percent of Plan Compensation will be billed to the local church or to a conference- responsible extension ministry. Clergy will receive a contribution equal to 3 percent of Plan Compensation into their CRSP-DC account when they contribute the required 1% into their UMPIP. If the clergy does not make the 1% contribution into UMPIP, they will only receive 2 percent of Plan Compensation into their CRSP-DC account.
Clergy under appointment full time, three-quarter time, or half-time to a local church, charge, conference or entity for which the GPUMC has pension responsibility (including Deacons, Local Pastors, and clergy appointed to Medical Leave who are approved for CPP benefits) are required to participate in the Clergy Retirement Security Program (CRSP).
Clergy under appointment quarter-time, the GPUMC will sponsor UMPIP.
The clergy will receive pension of 12% into their UMPIP accounts. The UMPIP will be billed to the local church or to a conference-responsible extension ministry at the rate of 10% percent of Plan Compensation. The Conference will pay the additional 2% out of reserves for a total of 12%.
Clergy appointed less than one-quarter are not eligible to contribute into UMPIP. No other pension benefits would apply.
Clergy under appointment to attend school, leave of absence, sabbatical leave, family leave, and clergy retired-and-rehired under ¶358.6 of The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church-2016 are not eligible to participate in the Clergy Retirement Security Program (CRSP). However, clergy who are retired appointed at a local church can make make personal contributions to their UMPIP accounts through the church's lay UMPIP program.
Continuing current practice, CRSP Benefit contributions will be provided for clergy appointed to medical leave (and not yet receiving CPP disability benefits) for a maximum of 90 days while the application for CPP benefits is being processed. The 90-day period begins the day of the appointment to incapacity or medical leave, not the day the application is filed.
When a clergy person is denied or discontinued from receiving CPP disability benefits, the conference shall not be liable for any pension following date of denial.
Resources