At the 2007 ICSOM Conference in Minneapolis, delegates passed a resolution asking the American Federation of Musicians and Employers Pension Fund (AFM-EPF) to develop and provide a transactional website. Since that time the AFM-EPF has offered additional services beyond simply providing copies of forms and documents for download.

By 2008, the Fund began providing a password protected area that allowed participants the ability to change their address and to view their most recent contribution statement, which is generally mailed in September of each year. As scanning and archiving has occurred, additional statements were made available (at this point they stretch back to 2000.)

Registration has also been streamlined. Previously, the sign up process included mailing a temporary password. Now, you can sign up in just a few minutes but you will need your Pension ID Number (you can find it on your annual statement.) Once registered, you can use your email address as your user ID.

In 2010, the Fund began to make available quarterly records for the current contribution year. At this point, if you have registered on the website, you should be able to view all contributions made on your behalf for the first three quarters of 2010, through September 30, 2010. Since some employers do not always pay their contributions in a timely manner, nothing is official until you receive your annual statement for 2010 (which could arrive as early as August as it did last year.)

This February, the Fund announced they have developed a calculator, called the Pension Estimator, which allows you, in just a few minutes to estimate your monthly pension benefit between the ages of 55 and 65. You can choose either the single or joint & annuitant (you and your spouse or designated beneficiary) benefit and you can even add contributions to estimate anticipated future contributions. Of course this will only provide an estimate of your anticipated monthly benefit but I am sure our members will find this is a helpful tool.

I encourage you to register at www.afm-epf.org and take a look at the information and tools the Fund now provides.