Need More Cash?

Everyone is always looking for a way to save a few more dollars, and now is a good time to think about saving on taxes. By enrolling in certain UC benefits, you’ll be able to decrease your taxable income, save on taxes and increase your take-home pay. 

These UC benefits can help you save:

• Tax Savings on Insurance Premiums (TIP)
• Dependent Care Reimbursement Account (DepCare)
• Health Care Reimbursement Account (HCRA)
• Parking and Transportation Program
• Retirement Savings Program (Defined Contribution, 403(b) and 457(b) Plans)

All of these benefits allow you to deduct a cost or contribution from your monthly salary before your federal, state, and, in some cases, FICA (Social Security and Medicare) taxes are figured. As a result, your taxable income is reduced, and you pay less in taxes. More>>

Through November 21
There’s still time to make Open Enrollment changes
You’ve got a few days left – until November 21 – to visit the UC Open Enrollment website and decide whether you want to make any changes for 2007 in your health and welfare benefit plan enrollments.

General information and the 2007 monthly premium rates for UC medical plans are available at the Open Enrollment website, where you also can review your personal benefits summary, find out about plan benefits and services changes for 2007, use special tools to help you decide if you should make enrollment changes, and make and confirm changes.

Be sure to consider enrolling or re-enrolling for 2007 in the UC Health Care Reimbursement Account (HCRA) program – and receive a convenient spending account card to pay your expenses. For details, go online to the Open Enrollment website HCRA section.

Open Enrollment is your opportunity to take charge of your health care benefits. Don’t miss it!

San Francisco
Soccer Doc
Orthopedic surgeon Christina Allen loves soccer, which she has played for 30 years. Her expertise -- in the sport and treating injuries -- and a desire to give back to the community led her to volunteer her time to care for athletes on a variety of sports teams, including the US Soccer Women’s National Team.

Irvine
Hammer for a Good Cause
Bill Mitchell, carpenter shop supervisor, and some of his co-workers recently donated their free time and trade skills to build an incredible playhouse, which was s auctioned recently at a benefit for an Orange County shelter program for the homeless. They invested hundreds of hours, working on weekends, evenings and even coming in as early as 4 a.m., to complete the playhouse.

Los Angeles
Mozart of Math
Within one month, UCLA mathematics professor Terence Tao was named a MacArthur Fellow, also known as "Genius" awards, and winner of the Fields Medal, often described as the "Nobel Prize in mathematics." He is also one of "The Brilliant 10" scientists in the October 2006 issue of Popular Science magazine. A UCLA colleague described the 31-year-old Tao: "Terry is like Mozart; mathematics just flows out of him."
See also: http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=7351

Davis
Cat Rescuers
Veterinary specialists Autumn Davidson and Tomas Baker trekked to Africa to help save wild cheetahs from extinction. In Namibia, they hauled ultrasound and scoping equipment to a reserve dedicated to the long-term survival of the cheetah, whose future is threatened by a remarkably small gene pool that makes the species vulnerable to being wiped out by disease or other environmental threats. The UC Davis pair conducted exams of female cheetahs in order to develop techniques that will improve their reproduction

ScholarShare Moving to Fidelity
ScholarShare, the state of California's tax-deferred savings program designed to help families meet college tuitions costs, has announced that Fidelity Investments will manage the program starting in November, when the current contract with TIAA-CREF runs out. More>>

UCLI Presentations Available Online
Presentations from the recently concluded UC Leadership Institute (UCLI) are now available online.

Three hundred UC managers gathered in Irvine October 15 to 17 to participate in UCLI, which focused on integrating and communicating the University’s strategic goals that affect participants’ daily work and understanding people management issues and practical ways to approach them.

New Statement to Help Focus on Your Future
To help UC employees assess their retirement readiness, UC is partnering with Fidelity Investments Tax-Exempt Services Company (FITSCo) to produce a comprehensive personalized statement of projected UC retirement benefits and information to aid your retirement planning. This statement will give you a useful snapshot of where you are on the road to planning your retirement, and help you focus on your future retirement goals.

The statement, which will be mailed to active UCRP members in the first quarter of 2007,  begins a year-long  financial and investment education program that will also include free seminars at all UC locations, information about online retirement tools and other communications.  Watch for more information. 

Medicare Creditable Coverage
The University of California has determined that the prescription drug coverage offered by the following UC-sponsored plans (Blue Cross PLUS, Blue Cross PPO, Health Net, High Option, Kaiser Permanente CA, Kaiser Permanent Mid-Atlantic, Kaiser Umbrella, PacifiCare of California, and WHA) is considered creditable coverage. This means the prescription drug coverage, on average, is as good as Medicare’s standard prescription drug coverage.

If you are over age 65 and have a break in medical plan coverage of more than 63 days and then sign up for Medicare, you may be subject to higher Medicare Part D (prescription drug coverage) premiums.

The Women’s Health and Cancer Rights Act
Annual notification of rights
Do you know that your medical plan, as required by the Women’s Health and Cancer Rights Act of 1998, provides benefits for mastectomy-related services including all stages of reconstruction and surgery to achieve symmetry between the breasts, prostheses, and complications resulting from a mastectomy, including lymphedema?  Call your plan for more information.

Ethics Briefing Roll Out Begins
An online ethics briefing, required for all UC staff and faculty, will launch this month at the UC Office of the President. Senior leaders at all locations will be the first to take the briefing. The briefing will be rolled at the other UC locations over the next three months.

The purpose of the 30-minute briefing is to familiarize all UC employees with the Statement of Ethical Values and Standards of Ethical Con­duct, which were adopted by the UC Regents in January 2006.

Visit the UC ethics website for back­ground information, resources and updates on when the briefing will be available at your location

Academic personnel policy update

Summary of Academic Personnel Manual (APM) policies issued

APM sections and proposals under formal review