CFR > Title 20 - Employees' Benefits > CHAPTER II—RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD > SUBCHAPTER B—REGULATIONS UNDER THE RAILROAD RETIREMENT ACT (parts 201 to 295) > PART 227—COMPUTING SUPPLEMENTAL ANNUITIES > 227.4—Reduction for employer pension.

227.4—Reduction for employer pension.

(a) General. The supplemental annuity for each month is reduced by the amount of any private pension the employee is receiving for that month based on the contributions of a railroad employer. This reduction is applied to the supplemental annuity amount after any reduction for railroad retirement family maximum. Private pension is explained in § 216.14 of this chapter.
(b) Private pension reduced for supplemental annuity. If the employer reduces the private pension for the employee's entitlement to the supplemental annuity, the reduced pension amount is subtracted from the supplemental annuity. However, the reduction in the supplemental annuity can be no greater than the difference between the supplemental annuity amount, after any reduction for railroad retirement family maximum, and the amount the private pension is reduced for the supplemental annuity. This guarantees that the sum of the reduced supplemental annuity and the reduced employer pension is not less than the amount of the full employer pension.

Code of Federal Regulations

Example: The full employer pension is $80. This is reduced by $35 because of the employee's entitlement to a supplemental annuity. The initial supplemental annuity rate is $43.
Full employer pension $80
Reduction for supplemental annuity −35
Reduced pension amount 45
Supplemental annuity 43
Reduced pension amount −45
0
Guarantee amount:
Supplemental annuity 43
Reduction in private pension −35
8
Supplemental annuity 43
Reduction in private pension −8
Reduced supplemental annuity 35
The reduced supplemental annuity amount is $35. This amount plus the reduced employer pension of $45 equals $80, the full amount of the employer pension.
(c) Part of private pension based on employee contributions. If the employer pension is based on both employer and employee contributions, a special formula is used to determine the amount to be subtracted from the supplemental annuity. The Board first computes the pension amount the employee's contributions could have purchased from a private insurance company. That amount is subtracted from the total employer pension. The result is the pension amount used to reduce the supplemental annuity.