{"id":113694,"date":"2025-10-10T16:09:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-10T16:09:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/113694\/"},"modified":"2025-10-10T16:09:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-10T16:09:10","slug":"what-to-expect-while-youre-expecting-your-retirement-benefit-that-is","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/113694\/","title":{"rendered":"What to expect while you\u2019re expecting (your retirement benefit, that is)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Scott Kupor, the new director of the Office of Personnel Management,\u00a0publishes weekly updates on OPM and the federal workforce in his blog,\u00a0Secrets of OPM<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In September, Kupor reported that he went 230 feet underground<\/a> into the former limestone mine that has processed federal retirement paperwork for decades\u2014the Retirement Operations Center in Boyers, Pa., or ROC for short. He described the facility as a symbol of challenges across government and discussed efforts to modernize key aspects of OPM.<\/p>\n

Kupor noted that the Boyers facility, located in rural Butler County about an hour north of Pittsburgh, is unique. Housed in a cavernous, former limestone mine, it employs 600 federal workers who process thousands of retirement claims every month\u2014by hand, on paper, in what feels like a time capsule from the 1970s.<\/p>\n

When I visited the facility in 2019<\/a>, I learned that in 1960 it had 30,000 square feet of storage space with 42 employees mostly focused on file storage. Today, it has 221,000 square feet with more than 500 employees focused on operational retirement processing. An additional 150 employees work at a nearby OPM call center in East Butler, and 300 more work for Retirement Services at OPM headquarters in Washington.<\/p>\n

In his September feature, Kupor said, \u201cWe\u2019ve already begun tackling the first problem above\u2014the front end of the retirement process. Under the leadership of Joe Gebbia, the Airbnb co-founder recently appointed by President Trump as the first U.S. Chief Design Officer, we hope never to see another piece of retirement application paperwork enter the mine.\u201d<\/p>\n

The reason paper retirement forms are disappearing is the rollout of the new Online Retirement Application (ORA) system. The digital application replaces paper forms such as the SF 2801 and SF 3107 for CSRS and FERS retirement. Most agencies are required to use the system, though a few, including the U.S. Postal Service, are not yet required to participate.<\/p>\n

The Postal Service has a 90% accuracy rate when submitting completed retirement packages to OPM. They use a streamlined process called the \u201cBlue Book,\u201d which instructs employees to contact the Human Resources Shared Service Center immediately to schedule retirement counseling.<\/p>\n

Most federal employees now must submit retirement applications electronically through ORA. This process replaces the older GRB platform used by some agencies. To apply, employees email their HR office to request access to ORA.<\/p>\n

The ORA system currently can process:<\/p>\n