Welcome to your summer 2025 issue of the Proactive newsletter.

This quarterly newsletter is only part of fulfilling our mission at the Michigan Office of Retirement Services: Empower you for a successful today and a secure tomorrow. 

We strive to provide you with information when and where you need it. We are constantly working to improve our services for you, including the quality of our communications, response times, feedback, and engagement. 

I want to share a few of our customer service metrics with you to give you a snapshot of the volume of work we do. During the 2024 calendar year, we:

• Answered 234,150 phone calls.
• Responded to 41,087 questions on the miAccount Message Board.
• Received a 95.1% Customer Service Call Center satisfaction rating.
• Processed and approved 6,669 retirement applications. 
  

As I mentioned before, we are always working to be better. We use your feedback to continuously improve our processes. We want you to have the most accurate and timely information that helps with the decisions you need to make to achieve your retirement outcomes. 

Your well-being, success, and financial independence in your day to day and retirement are important to us.

Anthony Estell, executive director
Michigan Office of Retirement Services

The Roth 457 savings option was recently added to the State of Michigan 401(k) and 457 Plans (the Plans), giving you another after-tax contribution choice. Because contributions to the Roth 457 and Roth 401(k) options are after-tax, they offer you the opportunity to take tax-free distributions when you retire. As long as you don’t withdraw from your account for at least five years (beginning Jan. 1 of the year of your first Roth contribution) and before age 59½, you will not pay taxes on your investment earnings. To learn more about whether contributing to the Roth options in the Plans is right for you, read Your guide to Roth contributions. Ready to contribute? Log in to your Voya Financial account and select the Plan you want to update. Go to Contributions & Savings > Manage Contributions or call the Plans Information Line at 800-748-6128.  

Estate planning isn't just for the wealthy — it’s for anyone who wants to protect their loved ones and ensure their wishes are honored.  

With a few simple steps, you can safeguard your future and provide clear guidance for your heirs. 

Start by visiting the Michigan Department of Treasury’s MI Money Matters website, where you can create a free account and access estate planning resources.  

Your plan begins with three essential documents:

• Will: Specifies who inherits your property after death. Use free tools or consult an estate attorney for complex cases. 
• Power of attorney (POA): Grants a trusted person the authority to manage your finances if you become incapacitated. 
• Advance healthcare directive: Includes a living will (your end-of-life care preferences) and a healthcare POA (someone to make medical decisions on your behalf). 

Over the next several months you will likely be taking time off from work. In addition to addressing the immediate need of vacation or family activities, why not use some of that time to practice for retirement? 

People practice their swing before golfing, or test drive a vehicle before making a purchase. Why should retirement receive any less pre-planning? 

Retirees responded to a Michigan Office of Retirement Services Facebook post, providing retirement advice from their own experience. You can practice their advice or your own ideas while on vacation. This may help you determine what activities you may wish to pursue once you are retired.  

Here are a few of the suggestions received from our retirees: 

• Make new friends when you travel.
• Learn new hobbies.
• Do things for yourself and others, maybe volunteer.
• Keep your body and mind active. 
• Live simply. 

Whatever you may decide to do during retirement, if you practice it before you are retired, you will be more likely to be happy doing it when you reach retirement.