Employees who have accumulated 500 hours or more of unused sick leave at retirement may elect a cash payout of their sick leave benefit over a 3-year period through the Retiree Accumulated Sick Leave (RASL) program. The RASL program is maintained and administered by the Arizona Department of Administration (ADOA) and the General Accounting Office (GAO). This program may be changed at any time with or without notice to participants.
Eligibility
To be eligible for the RASL benefit, you must meet these criteria. ADOA and GAO determine final eligibility:
- Be an active Arizona state employee at the time of retirement.
- Apply for retirement with your retirement plan (either the Arizona State Retirement System or Optional Retirement Plan) within 31 calendar days of separation from U of A service.
- Have 500 or more hours of accrued unused sick leave at the time of retirement.
- Apply in writing for the RASL benefit within 180 days of the retirement date by completing the RASL Certification Forms and returning them to Division of Human Resources.
Note: If you intend to take the deferred compensation option, you must submit the completed RASL Forms to Human Resources prior to ending your employment.
This benefit applies to eligible employees who retire from the university and have accumulated unused sick leave of 500 hours or more at time of retirement. These eligible employees may elect a cash payout of their sick leave benefit over a three (3) year period. The RASL benefit is defined in Arizona Revised Statutes and outlined in the University Policy Manual.
To be eligible for RASL benefit you must
- be an active State employee at the time of retirement,
- apply for retirement with one of the authorized State of Arizona retirement systems immediately (within 31 calendar days of separation from State service),
- have at least 500 hours of accrued unused sick leave at the time of retirement, and
- apply in writing for the RASL benefit within 180 days of your retirement date by completing the RASL Certification Form and returning it to the Division of Human Resources,
If you intend to take the deferred compensation option for your first payment, you must submit the completed RASL forms to the Division of Human Resources prior to separation from employment.
There are no extensions to these deadlines. If you do not meet them, you permanently and irrevocably forfeit this benefit.
- You must apply for retirement from one of the authorized State of Arizona retirement systems within 31 calendar days from your date of separation from State service.
- You must complete the RASL Certification Form. Label the file with your name and "RASL Application."
- Submit the form electronically to the University of Arizona Human Resources using our secure document upload portal.
- For fastest processing, when you receive the Success confirmation, email hrsolutions@arizona.edu to let us know you have uploaded a document.
- Be sure you allow enough time for HR to process the form and forward to the Arizona General Accounting Office no later than180 days after your retirement.
Yes, RASL is considered earned income not a retirement benefit. Federal, FICA, and Medicare taxes are withheld on each installment. Arizona State tax is also withheld, even if you move to another state, because the income was earned in Arizona. Amounts rolled into a deferred compensation account are subject only to FICA and Medicare taxes.
To reduce your tax liability, you may have all or part of your first RASL payment rolled over into a 457 Deferred Compensation Plan with Nationwide. Amounts rolled into a deferred compensation account are subject only to FICA and Medicare taxes. Use the RASL Deferred Compensation calculator to help you determine whether deferred compensation is to your advantage.
Here are the steps to follow:
- Contact Klark Krauter at (800) 796-9753 or (520) 262-0348 to enroll in deferred compensation with Nationwide before your last day of Uof A service.
- Submit the Nationwide RASL Deferral Notification Form directly to Nationwide before your last day of U of A service.
- Complete RASL Forms and submit to the Division of Human Resources before your last day of U of A service.
The deferral amount will still be subject to FICA and Medicare withholdings.
The maximum total benefit is $30,000.
The RASL benefit value is calculated by multiplying the hourly pay rate at the time of separation by the number of unused sick leave hours (up to 1,500) multiplied by the appropriate following percentage:
| 500–749 hours | 25% |
| 750–999 hours | 33% |
| 1,000–1,500 hours | 50% |
Example: Your hourly rate of pay is $16.00 and you have 750 hours of accrued unused sick leave. $16.00 x 750 x .33 = $3,960.00 total RASL benefit.
The cash benefit is paid in equal installments over three years. You may elect to have the payments electronically deposited or mailed directly to your home address.
The RASL benefit cannot be accelerated. However, in the event of the retiree's death, the designated beneficiary is paid the remainder of the benefit.
No. State statute prohibits this benefit from being included as compensation for retirement purposes.
- You must complete the RASL Certification Form. Label the file with your name and "RASL Application."
- Submit the form electronically to the University of Arizona Human Resources using our secure document upload portal.
- For fastest processing, when you receive the Success confirmation, email hrsolutions@arizona.edu to let us know you have uploaded a document.
- Be sure you allow enough time for HR to process the form and forward to the Arizona General Accounting Office no later than180 days after your retirement.