PERA Retirement Deduction

The PERA provides lifetime retirement benefits to vested members. Employees (excluding teachers and other licensed staff) earning over $425 in gross pay per month must contribute to PERA through payroll deductions at the current employee rate. Employers must also contribute to PERA on behalf of employees at the current employer rate.

Verify current PERA contribution rates with the Public Employees Retirement Association, as they may change annually.

If you have employees in different PERA plans (e.g., Coordinated and Police & Fire), you need separate deduction codes for each.

To configure PERA Retirement deductions, do the following:

Set up the PERA Retirement Deduction

You must first create the PERA Retirement deduction record on the Deduction Table page.

Menu path

From the Human Resources menu, select Reference Tables. From the Payroll menu, select Deductions.

To set up a PERA Retirement deduction record, you must enter or select valid information on the following tabs of the Deduction Table page:

General tab

Enter or select the following field values on the General tab of the Deduction Table page.

Field	What to enter or select
Deduction Code	Enter a four-character code (e.g., "PERA", "PER2", "PERC").
Title	Enter a descriptive title (e.g., "PERA Coordinated Retirement").
Check Title	Enter an abbreviated title for pay stubs (e.g., "PERA COORD").
Frequency	Select the deduction frequency code that matches your pay schedule.
Maintain Arrears	Select this option if you want to track and collect missed deductions.
Method	Select R - Employee % for percentage-based PERA contributions.
Subjective Gross	Use the default option SP - Subject Pay Gross or select the appropriate gross basis.
Include in EAC "What If" Calculator	Select this option to make the deduction available in the Employee Access Center (EAC) Paycheck Calculator feature. Employees can calculate the change in their paycheck if they add this deduction or benefit. Leave it blank to exclude the deduction from the calculator.

Employee tab

Enter or select the following field values on the Employee tab of the Deduction Table page.

Field	What to enter or select
Maximum Method	Select one of the following: Y - Year to Date F - Fiscal Year to Date
Withholding Account	Enter the liability account for PERA withholdings.
Deduction Amount/Rate	Enter the PERA contribution rate (varies by plan).
Maximum Gross	Leave blank unless there is a wage cap.
Maximum Deduction	Enter the annual maximum if applicable.
Cafeteria Plan	Select N - Deduction is not part of the cafeteria plan.
Deduction for a Bond	Leave this option unchecked.

Employer tab

Enter or select the following field values on the Employer tab of the Deduction Table page.

Field	What to enter or select
Benefit Method	Select R - Record % to use a percentage-based employer match.
Benefit Amount/Rate	Enter the employer contribution rate (varies by plan).
Benefit Charging	Select one of he following: A - All Pay Rates P - Primary Pay Rates
Benefit Account	Enter the expense account for employer contributions.
Maximum Benefit	Enter the annual maximum if applicable.
Encumber Benefits	Select this option if you want to encumber employer contributions.
Times Encumbered	Enter the number of times per fiscal year.

Taxation tab

Enter or select the following field values on the Taxation tab of the Deduction Table page.

Field or Section	What to enter or select
Deduction Tax Exemptions section - Federal Tax	Select this option.
Deduction Tax Exemptions section - State Tax	Select this option.
Deduction Tax Exemptions section - FICA Tax	Depends on the PERA plan. Coordinated plans are subject to FICA tax. Basic plans may not be subject to FICA tax.
Deduction Tax Exemptions section - Local Tax	Select this option if applicable.
Benefit Taxes section	Select the required options based on your tax requirements.

Vendor tab

Enter or select the following field values on the Vendor tab of the Deduction Table page.

Field	What to enter or select
Vendor	Enter or select the PERA vendor code for liability payments.
Payment Frequency	Enter the vendor payments frequency code.

Next, you must map the PERA Deduction Code to MN PERA on the MN Retirement Deduction page.

Map the PERA Deduction Code

After setting up a PERA Retirement deduction record, you must map the PERA Deduction Code to MN PERA. Refer to MN Retirement Deduction for more information.

Assign the PERA Deduction Code

After mapping the PERA Deduction Code to MN PERA, you must assign the deduction code to employees.

Menu path

From the Human Resources menu, select Entry & Processing. From the Employee menu, select Employee Deductions.

Refer to the Employee Deductions page and set up employee deduction records.