Required Distributions Begin at Age 73 From Both the Basic and Supplemental Pension Plans

The year in which you turn 73 is pivotal when it comes to retirement planning because it marks the year when federal law — SECURE 2.0 Act — mandates that you begin taking distributions from any tax-deferred retirement accounts, including the Basic and Supplemental Pension Plans. However, because the IRS allows for a one-time, one-year deferment of those distributions, it is the year after you turn 73 when such distributions become required.

April 1 of the year after you turn 73 is regarded as your Required Beginning Date — the date you are required to begin receiving your Basic Plan benefit if you have not done so already, and the date you must begin to receive the Required Minimum Distributions from your Supplemental Plan account.

Continue reading to learn important rules regarding how this date is determined and what it means for your retirement planning.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This information applies only to the DGA-Producer Pension Plans in which you have reached vested status. To learn your vested status for each pension plan, refer to your 2025 Pension Plans Annual Statement or sign into the myPHP benefits portal.

For more information on how you become vested, refer to the March 2025 Pension Plans Summary Plan Description and its updates.

Required Beginning Date

Your Required Beginning Date (RBD) is the date a minimum benefit amount — called a Required Minimum Distribution (RMD)— must be paid out to you as required by the IRS.

If you turned 73 on or after January 1, 2023, your RBD is April 1 of the calendar year following the calendar year you turn 73. Therefore, if you turned 73 in 2025, your RBD is April 1, 2026.

Your RBD is important for the following reasons:
    1. You must begin receiving at least a minimum benefit amount from the Supplemental Pension Plan, and you must commence your Basic Plan benefit by your RBD to satisfy the RMD rules.
    2. If you elect to delay taking your first RMD in the year you turn 73, you will need to take two RMDs in the subsequent calendar year, one by April 1 and the second by December 31. All subsequent RMDs must be taken by December 31 each year.
    3. If you are already receiving benefits from the Supplemental Plan, your benefit amount as of your RBD must be equal to at least the minimum amount required by the IRS. If it is not, additional distribution amounts up to the RMD will be required as of your Required Beginning Date.
    4. You will be sent an RMD retirement application automatically as you approach this date. To ensure you receive timely information, make sure your mailing and contact information remain current with the Plans office or enroll in the myPHP benefits portal, available at www.dgaplans.org/about-myPHP.
      5. If you do not return your RMD retirement application by the deadline, your Supplemental Plan RMD will be automatically paid out to you using the default tax withholding elections. Please refer to the section titled Important Tax Withholding Information below for more information. For the Basic Plan, if you do not return your application, benefits will automatically be paid out based on the default normal payment option:
      • for single participants – a Single Life Annuity
      • for married participants – a 50% Joint and Survivor Annuity
    5. Once you reach your RBD, you can work without your Basic Plan benefits being suspended. Prior to your RBD, benefits can be suspended if you perform eight or more days of Suspendible Service, which is work performed in the same industry, in the same trade or craft, and in the same geographic areas covered by the Plans. Suspendible Service does not include income from residual payments.

Prior to 2020, the RBD age was 70½ and was changed to age 72 as of January 1, 2020 by the SECURE Act. The SECURE 2.0 Act changed the RBD to age 73 as of January 1, 2023. It is expected this will further increase to age 75 for those born in 1960 or later. Because of these increases to the RBD age, the RBD that applied when you retired may be different from the RBD that applies now.

Required Minimum Distributions

The RMD is the minimum pension distribution payable to you as required by the IRS once you reach your RBD. Failure to take this distribution may result in IRS penalties.

The amount of the minimum distribution is determined separately under the Basic Plan and Supplemental Plan. Any distributions you have received from other retirement plans or individual retirement accounts are not considered when determining either RMD amount.

For the Supplemental Plan, the RMD amount is generally determined by dividing the taxable portion of your account balance as of December 31 of the prior year by an IRS defined life expectancy factor. The taxable portion of your account balance includes all contributions received from your employers and the overall investment gains. Your employee contributions are made on a post-tax basis and are not taxed when distributed to you.

After you begin receiving the RMD from the Supplemental Plan, you must receive subsequent distributions that satisfy the minimum amount each year by December 31. You may take your RMD as a lump sum or periodic payments, as long as the total amount distributed meets or exceeds the RMD for the year.

If you begin receiving RMDs from the Supplemental Plan, you are still eligible to request additional payment options at any time during the calendar year.

For the Basic Plan, once the benefit election is made, the entire accrued benefit is generally distributed as periodic annuity payments. RMD rules are satisfied automatically through the regular annuity payments you receive, and no further action is necessary.

For more detailed information on the RBD and RMD rules, see page 9 of the March 2025 Pension Plans Summary Plan Description.

NOTE: Different RMD rules may apply to beneficiaries and alternate payees who are assigned a portion of a participant’s benefit pursuant to the terms of a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO).

Important Tax Withholding Information

The default tax withholding rules for RMDs are 10% for federal income tax and, for CA residents, 1% for California state tax.

You may elect different amounts for each or may elect no withholding amount.

If a completed application is not returned to the Plans office by the RMD deadline and the RMD is made by default, your residency per Plans office records is used. CA is the only state for which the Plans office withholds state taxes.

Failure to take the RMD can result in an IRS penalty. Please consult your tax advisor.

How to Request a Distribution

For those turning age 73 this year, you may voluntarily begin your Basic and Supplemental Plan benefits before your Required Beginning Date by completing and submitting a Benefit Application Request Form. Forms must be submitted at least 60 days prior to the intended benefit commencement date.

If you’ve previously taken distributions from your Supplemental Plan and wish to take an additional distribution, complete and submit a Supplemental Plan Additional Distribution Request Form at least 30 days prior to the intended benefit commencement date.

Visit www.dgaplans.org/forms/pension/ for a copy of the forms mentioned above.