European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 17, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 26 stars and stripes june 2007 your Money tsp looks into adding Roth option by Chris Fowler stars and stripes Yokosuka naval Japan based on the results of a Survey released the fed eral retirement Thrift invest ment Board is considering asking Congress to add a Roth 401 k option to the Board hired finance and personnel consulting firm wat son Wyatt to conduct the Survey to test Waters for three proposed tsp changes adding a Roth 401 k automatically enrolling All tsp eligible participants in the program with an option to get adjusting the default fund for participants who enrol in tsp but fail to designate where to invest the Money from the g fund to an l which is More according to tsp spokesman Thomas the invest ment Board is looking closely at whether a Roth feature might make sense for the last August the Congress passed legislation pension Protection act or spa allowing 401 k plans to offer this feature on a permanent Trabucco said in an email to stars and we will be developing further information to present to the Board including what 401 g plans have done with this new a Survey online View the Watson Wyatt sur vey online at visit the Thrift savings plan web site at Hority so input from our advisory Council regarding Likely demand for such a As Well As information from employ ing agencies regarding their ability to implement such a Trabucco according to Tim senior writer for Federal the debate Over whether to go to con Gress to request changes to tsp has just it seems to me that the main concern would be the Kauff Man said in an tsp administrators notoriously Are concerned about adding any new Fea since it could drive up the administrative costs for operating the Kauffman said that people in favor of a Roth option 60 per cent of those surveyed think it will afford them greater tax Bene fits than the current tsp administrators say that most employees will have lower income in retirement than they do so it makes More Finan Cial sense to get the tax advantage up Kauffman yet for military the opposite is generally  Likely earn larger salaries once they leave the so it probably be better for them to get the tax advantage when they with draw the Kauffman added that he did not think tsp would make any moves toward a Roth option until the Middle to end of 2008 at the tsp first would have to agree on what to do and then will have to Send a legislative proposal to which would then have to approve Kauffman even if All of that gets done be fore the end of this tsp would need time to put the new option into the Federal retirement Thrift investment boards next meeting is scheduled so tsp participants can expect to hear More about this development even though few servicemen Bers Are aware of the changes being Yokosuka Fleet and family service Center personal finance manager Collin Schriver thinks All three changes should be unanimously in he is excited about the potential of a Roth of a pretax deduction with tax free Schriver said in a phone whats not to love email Chris Fowler at  report military very susceptible to identity fraud stars and stripes military personnel have emerged As prime identity theft Usa today reported the department of defense since the late 1960s has used social Security numbers for everything from dog tags to choline data thieves and con artists have begun to increasingly target military data Security experts told the thieves know this is the Achilles Heel of the sys says Todd ceo of identity theft Detec Tion firm in the past thieves have grabbed computers containing data for nearly 30 million Active and re tired service members from four veterans affairs of Usa today statistics on financial fraud As a result of these breaches Are hard to pin but defense officials the rising the paper the defense department has made it a priority to tighten Dat handling policies and has increased training on theft department spokesman Stewart Upton told Usa today via scam artists often target service members deployed Usa today when Majine Jacob of re turned from Iraq in february he Learned that someone in san Diego had opened credit card a started a shirt business and even bought a Bouse using his speaking for his who is again in Michael Dissmore told the paper that the Corporal Doest blame the but he wishes they had a better system for tracking other than social Security photo illustration by Christopher and stripes taxes pay now or pay later both the Thrift savings plan and a Roth 401 k Are tax Hel tired investment according to tsp tsp shelters investors from taxes in two deductions Are subtracted from pretax you Are taxed on less income invested in tsp is not taxed until you begin to withdraw pretax pay Check deductions both increase the amount of Money accruing in Terest and lower yearly taxable in Roth 401 k deductions Are taxed before they begin earning afterwards All interest earned and compounded is tax free and paid directly to the in both the mini mum age to begin drawing in come is military service members generally retire before reaching that with a participants Are not allowed to continue contributing after retiring from the from the time they retire until they begin withdrawing tsp earns interest Only on with a Roth 401 investors May invest into perpetuity and even pass the investment from generation to Chris Fowler Agency Hopes new Loans Spur military startups by Leo Shane Iii stars and stripes Washington the Small business administration Hopes a Pilot program offering up to in business capital to vet Erans will Spur More interest among military members in Start ing their own the dubbed the Patriot express is open to reservists and spouses of Active duty military who need government backed Loans to launch or expand their Small Busi its the first loan from the Agency directed solely at military and retired military since the Viet Nam the Loans Are geared toward entrepreneurs familiar with run Ning a Small and Likely Arent the first step for a Young Veteran hoping to open his own store or according to spokesman Joel but we have training and out reach programs for military Al ready to give them counselling and information they need to get he these Are the kind of great credit risks that Banks want to take people who have served their country and want to Start their own and hopefully this Pilot will get them working closer with us to see according to census Statis tics about 15 percent of veterans Are for troops looking to open a repair shop after years working in an army motor or those who want an it firm after computer network duties with the air the counselling can help them under stand the basics of reaching that Szabat sea administrator Steven pre Ston said he believes the new Patriot express Loans will have the most Impact among established Veteran and reservist under the Pilot individuals receiving the Loans will pay slightly lower rates be tween percent and per cent above the prime rate than on other sea and Banks issuing the Loans will see most of the balance backed by the govern the maximum also is above what the administration typically but Preston said the higher level is necessary to meet the needs of those Only of the Loans will be is sued under the Pilot but officials expect to expand that num Ber if the program is for More information on the new Loans or the existing Small business visit email Leo Shane at