The Hancock County Board of Commissioners approved an additional option for county employees to make Roth contributions to their retirement plans at the BOC’s Aug. 20 meeting.
Hancock County Human Resources Director Kelly Ellert presented the change to the commissioners at the meeting, and the board approved it without hesitation. Ellert says the change will give county employees more options when planning for retirement.
The Roth option will now give county employees the ability to make post-tax contribution, whereas the plan prior to Tuesday only gave them the option for pre-tax contributions.
Nationwide Program Director for the state of Indiana Kevin Mitchell says the main benefit for Roth contributions is for those who expect to be paying higher taxes when they retire, while those who anticipate a lower tax rate when they retire usually utilize the pre-tax contributions already offered to county employees. Nationwide is the corporate provider for Hoosier Start, the retirement plan Hancock County uses.
“There’s a school of thought that some people think that for their particular situation, or for taxes in general, that it’s better for them to pay taxes now,” Mitchell said. “If they’re going to be paying less taxes in the future, such as many people will be making less money in the future, then it behooves them to pay their tax in the future and avoid paying it now.”
Mitchell says that the Roth option has gained traction in the last 15 years both within the state and across the country.
