Retirement Plan Enrollment

State law requires all regular faculty and staff to enroll in a retirement plan on the first day of employment. Non-exempt employees must enroll in the Maryland State Retirement and Pension System (SRPS). For more information on the pension plan, please review retirement documents in the reference material section. When you enroll you must complete the following document:

Please note, USG-HR Office has a certified Maryland Notary Public Officer who can assist you with any work-related documents that require notarization.

Health Benefits Enrollment

USG participates in the State of Maryland health benefit plans. New employees have 60 calendar days from their original date of employment to enroll in a healthcare plan for themselves and eligible dependents. Enrollment for benefits will be completed online via the State of Maryland Employees Benefits Portal. You will not be able to enroll until you receive a series of emails from the State that will include your user name (known as a “W” number) and a temporary password. Once you receive this information you will be able to enroll in benefits. Please note that these emails can take up to 30 days from your start date to be sent to you. This process cannot be expedited in any way.

  • Effective Date of Coverage: Benefits will be effective on the first of the month following your date of hire. The exception is if your hire date is the 1st day of any month. Then your effective date will be the 1st of the month that you started work. Coverage may NOT be backdated to your date of hire.
  • Processing Time: Normal processing time for online benefits requests can take between 30-60 days from hire for your benefits to become active. Various factors include receiving the enrollment information from the state benefits office, the time frame you take to submit your request, and your response to additional information that the state may request after you submit your application.

Regardless of when you enroll within your 60 days of hire, your benefits coverage will still be effective on the first of the month following your date of hire. If it applies, you will be responsible for paying any mandatory retroactive adjustment payments for periods of coverage back to your benefits effective date.

Even though your coverage will become effective the 1st of the month following your hire date you will not receive your benefits cards until the State of Maryland Employee Benefits Division has processed your online request. If you have a medical need during this time you may be required to pay out of pocket for these services by your medical providers. If you pay out of pocket for a service it may be possible to submit claim forms for reimbursement. For more information, please contact the State of Maryland Employees Benefits Division at (410)-767-4775.

* Remember that you will not be able to cancel, change, or add to your coverage once you have made these decisions until the next open enrollment period. Exceptions to this rule are allowed only under select circumstances referred to as qualifying events. Therefore, it is very important that you make careful and informed decisions regarding your benefits coverage.*

When can I change my coverage?

Open Enrollment
Once a year, there is an open enrollment period that allows all eligible employees to change, cancel or add to existing coverage. For example, you can change from one health insurance company to another during this time, or you can cancel coverage altogether.

Changes in Coverage Due to Qualifying Events
The State Health Benefits Program operates as a pre-tax cafeteria benefits program under Section 125 of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Code. The IRS regulations governing the program do not permit changes after open enrollment, except in very limited circumstances. Once you have selected a plan, you must stay in the selected plan, at the selected coverage level, for the full calendar year, unless there has been a qualifying event.

A qualifying event is a change in family status, such as the birth of a child, loss of a dependent, marriage, or divorce. A qualifying event can also occur in cases where your spouse’s employment is terminated. You have 60 days from the occurrence of the qualifying event to make changes to your benefits. The changes made, however, must be because of and consistent with the change in status that has occurred.

Limited changes may also be permitted for administrative error when it is demonstrated that a mistake has been made by a processing agency.

NOTE: Mistakes and other errors made by the employee or retiree do not constitute administrative error under IRS regulations.

The penalty for non-compliance with the IRS regulations is the loss of tax-exempt status for both the State and the employees in the plan. Changes outside of the open enrollment period will be permitted only in accordance with IRS regulations. For this reason, you are cautioned to be very careful in making your selections.

NOTE: To receive any applicable refunds, you must submit errors in writing to the State Employee Benefits Division within 60 days of an incorrect deduction from your check.

Transfers from a different USM institution or State of MD Agency

If you have accepted a position at USG and are currently employed with another USM institution or State of MD agency, you will need to do the following:

  •  Before you start at USG, have your Benefits Coordinator complete this form and fax it to 301-738-6140. We also request that you bring a copy of this form with you to Onboarding to ensure there are no missed benefit deductions
  •  Have your payroll representative prepare the following on the institution or agency letterhead and bring with you to Onboarding:
    •  Name
    •  Date of Hire
    •  Category of Employment
    •  Breaks in service
    •  Total number of accrued hours for annual and sick leave

Reference Materials/Other Forms

For more regarding benefits, please visit  UMD Benefits At A Glance.  

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