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"HELPS" Retiree Act - Information
by Tara Johnson 12 Nov '24

12 Nov '24

We received this information and wanted to pass it along to both our retiree members and active members... Federal law was changed in January and all retired law enforcement and fire/EMS can exclude up to $3,000 worth of medical insurance premiums from their taxable income. Below is a link with additional information and also an excerpt below another state's Troopers' Association. https://www.ncpers.org/blog_home.asp?Display=329 Please be sure your retired law enforcement and fire/EMS members are aware that they may reduce their taxable earnings by up to $3,000 for medical insurance premiums paid during a calendar year. This is allowable under the Healthcare Enhancement for Local Public Safety Retirees Act, or the “HELPS” Retiree Act. Previously, there was a requirement that the premium had to be deducted from the retiree’s pension check in order to qualify for HELPS credit. That is no longer the case following the adoption of the federal Secure 2.0 retirement law. Qualified premiums paid directly for health, accident or long-term care insurance qualifies for the credit in 2023 and beyond. The $3,000 reduction does not appear on the annual 1099R form that is sent out by the pension fund. The retiree must claim the reduction on his or her personal 1040 tax form on Line 5B or similar adjustment. Instructions on claiming the reduction are included in IRS Publication 575 (page 7 with an update on page 2). As this is not a simple matter, pensioners may want to consult with their tax preparer to properly claim the reduction. Note that married couples where both the parties are retired police/fire/EMS may take a reduction in income of up to $6,000. Let’s do what we can to ensure that our retired members can take advantage of this tax break for retiree medical insurance. Please share this information with anyone who may benefit! While we cannot give you tax advice, we highly recommend reaching out to your tax advisor with the information below and they can assist you with any additional questions you may have. This is likely new to them, too, so please help us spread the word! Stay safe, Tara Tara Johnson Director of Operations & Benefits State Law Enforcement Bargaining Council STAN | NCOA | NSFMA PO Box 6729 Lincoln, NE 68506 Phone: 402.489.2081 Cell Phone: 402.440.8284 Fax: 402.500.3666 This email may contain confidential and privileged information for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any review or distribution by others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender and delete all copies.

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Q4 STAN Board Meeting - 11/9
by Tara Johnson 04 Nov '24

04 Nov '24

Hi members! We have a STAN Board meeting upcoming on November 9th. If you have any agenda items you would like to have discussed at the upcoming meeting, please be in contact with your Troop Area or Retiree Representative. (Contact information is attached.) Thank you, Tara Tara Johnson Director of Operations & Benefits State Law Enforcement Bargaining Council STAN | NCOA | NSFMA PO Box 6729 Lincoln, NE 68506 Phone: 402.489.2081 Cell Phone: 402.440.8284 Fax: 402.500.3666 This email may contain confidential and privileged information for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any review or distribution by others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender and delete all copies.

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Glimmer of Hope Invitation
by Tara Johnson 08 Oct '24

08 Oct '24

Hi STAN Members, If you don't have anything going on this Sunday, we have two spots available to members for the Disrupting Traffick Glimmer of Hope event. It begins at 5pm and is in Hickman. If you are able to attend (your s/o may attend with you) please let me know. Dress is business casual. First come, first serve. 🙂 Thanks! Tara Johnson This email may contain confidential and privileged information for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any review or distribution by others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient please contact the sender and delete all copies.

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New Troop B STAN Representative
by Tara Johnson 09 Sep '24

09 Sep '24

Good afternoon, On behalf of the STAN Board, please help me welcome Andrew Bestenlehner as the new Troop B Area Representative. He will be taking the place of Jesse Pfeifer following Jesse's promotion to Lieutenant. For those of you in the Troop B, please be sure to add Andrew to your phone contacts if you do not already have him. His phone number is 402.218.8987 and he can be reached at abestenlehner(a)netroopers.org or troopb(a)netroopers.org. I have attached the updated STAN Contact list for you! Congratulations to Andrew! Have a wonderful week, Tara Tara Johnson Director of Operations & Benefits State Law Enforcement Bargaining Council STAN | NCOA | NSFMA PO Box 6729 Lincoln, NE 68506 Phone: 402.489.2081 Cell Phone: 402.440.8284 Fax: 402.500.3666 This email may contain confidential and privileged information for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any review or distribution by others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender and delete all copies.

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Announcements and Q2 Meeting Minutes
by Tara Johnson 19 Aug '24

19 Aug '24

Hello Members! We have a few quick things to share! The recent vote to amend the STAN By-Laws passed. This amendment now ensures retirees can continue their STAN membership with no annual dues. I have attached a copy of the amended By-Laws that are updated based on the vote. Secondly, please help the board and I thank Jesse Pfeifer who was our Troop B Representative for the last month. Jesse has been promoted to Lieutenant - huge congrats, Jesse! Because of this promotion, I will be sending out nomination forms for Troop B today and there will be a vote to follow for the Troop Area representative. I have also included a copy of the approved meeting minutes from the Q2 STAN Board meeting. Thank you, Tara Tara Johnson Director of Operations & Benefits State Law Enforcement Bargaining Council STAN | NCOA | NSFMA PO Box 6729 Lincoln, NE 68506 Phone: 402.489.2081 Cell Phone: 402.440.8284 Fax: 402.500.3666 This email may contain confidential and privileged information for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any review or distribution by others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender and delete all copies.

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Pella Family GoFundMe
by Tara Johnson 11 Aug '24

11 Aug '24

This is never an easy thing to share, but I know you all show up BIG for our blue family! As you may know, Jordan is a Trooper living in Exeter with his wife, Sara and their two adorable children. Recently Sara was diagnosed with Stage Four Colon Cancer. STAN sent support to the family, but we wanted to share their GoFundMe that has been set up for the opportunity to support them financially on an individual basis. If you read through the GoFundMe, you will quickly learn how dedicated Sara is to her family, students, and community. Please continue to keep their beautiful family and Sara's medical team in your thoughts and prayers - sending them all your good vibes and love. https://gofund.me/b0cc9d47 From their GoFundMe, "Sara has been diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer and has a long road ahead of doctor's appointments and treatments. With this comes the cost of gas, lodging, medical bills plus life expenses that don't seem to go anywhere, no matter the circumstances." Thank you, Tara Tara Johnson

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Q3 2024 STAN Board Meeting Notice
by Tara Johnson 09 Aug '24

09 Aug '24

Hi members! We have a STAN Board meeting upcoming on August 14th. If you have any agenda items you would like to have discussed at the upcoming meeting, please be in contact with your Troop Area or Retiree Representative. (Contact information is attached.) Thank you, Tara Tara Johnson Director of Operations & Benefits State Law Enforcement Bargaining Council STAN | NCOA | NSFMA PO Box 6729 Lincoln, NE 68506 Phone: 402.489.2081 Cell Phone: 402.440.8284 Fax: 402.500.3666 This email may contain confidential and privileged information for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any review or distribution by others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender and delete all copies.

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July Reminders!
by Tara Johnson 26 Jul '24

26 Jul '24

With July's paycheck, it's a great time to review your paystubs for accuracy which we hope you do monthly! Please check your comp and vacation banks, ensure your hourly pay is correct, your merit pay is accurate, and all insurance deductions are what they should be! I have attached a link to the contract (paylines & merit pay) and the insurance premium document for your reference. https://das.nebraska.gov/emprel/docs/NE_DAS_Employee_Relations_Labor_Contra… Please also remember that STAN/SLEBC Dues are 1.5% of the starting monthly wage of a Step 1 Trooper ($81.90) Also, beginning July 1st, your retirement contributions will reduce from 16% (Tier 1) or 17% (Tier 2) to 10% for everyone, so please ensure this is correct as well. Reminder: The state does not notify STAN/SLEBC of any address changes or life events such as birth, marriage, adoption, divorce, etc.. You need to notify me as soon as possible so that we can get the changes made in a timely manner. Bargaining for the 2025-2027 contract will also begin soon. If you have ideas or suggestions for the bargaining team, please send the suggestions to: bargainingteam(a)groups.netroopers.org<mailto:bargainingteam@groups.netroopers.org> Thank you, Tara Tara Johnson Director of Operations & Benefits State Law Enforcement Bargaining Council STAN | NCOA | NSFMA PO Box 6729 Lincoln, NE 68506 Phone: 402.489.2081 Cell Phone: 402.440.8284 Fax: 402.500.3666 This email may contain confidential and privileged information for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any review or distribution by others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender and delete all copies.

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STAN By-Laws Amendment - VOTE (Deadline: 07/31/2024)
by Tara Johnson 24 Jul '24

24 Jul '24

Hello STAN Members, Please see the proposed amended STAN By-Laws linked below. If this passes, the amendment will remove the annual dues for retirees. This also removes some of the benefits, such as voting rights beyond voting for their STAN Board Representative. The Board was requested to review the retiree dues amount (now set at $60/year) by Retiree Representative Scott Black. The retirees pay their dues year after year as an active Trooper and many of these retirees are not members past their employment. Currently, we have 64 retired members with approximately 450 in total eligible. The goal of this amendment is to continue to keep retirees in the "loop" with any information that might pertain to them available through STAN. Scott has gone to a lot of work gathering contact information for each retiree or their surviving spouse. Keeping retirees involved is important to many. Below in red is the proposed amendment and here is the link to the current by-laws: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dujjQZ6NHlvB3cTLFsq9waOuDiDuJjHT/view?usp=… [cid:ff2d77e8-b014-49b0-9be0-c4fb2de9e3b1] Please reply to this email or contact a STAN Representative with any questions. Thank you, Tara Johnson

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Troop B Representative Results
by Tara Johnson 21 Jun '24

21 Jun '24

Members, On behalf of the STAN Board, below are the voting results for the Troop B STAN Representative. Jesse Pfeifer - 20 votes Bryan Wiggins - 8 votes Please help us in thanking both Bryan and Jesse for their willingness to run for this position! As Bryan winds down his time on the STAN Board, please be sure to thank him for his time and sacrifices as he has served. Congratulations to Jesse as he begins his duties on the STAN Board on July 1st. For those of you in Troop B, please be sure to have Jesse's personal phone number (402.640.8004) saved in your phone in the event of needing to contact him for whatever reason. His email for STAN related issues will be jpfeifer(a)netroopers.org. Thank you, Tara Tara Johnson Director of Operations & Benefits State Law Enforcement Bargaining Council STAN | NCOA | NSFMA PO Box 6729 Lincoln, NE 68506 Phone: 402.489.2081 Cell Phone: 402.440.8284 Fax: 402.489.6093 This email may contain confidential and privileged information for the sole use of the intended recipient. Any review or distribution by others is strictly prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender and delete all copies.

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