Page 10 - Jupiter Ocean Mile - November '19

Page 10, Jupiter Ocean Mile

Financial Focus Northern Notes

Be Creative When Environmental Sustainability fossil fuels to power them. Both hydraulic oil and diesel
fuel are also flammable as well. Over the years, Northern
Withdrawing From By O’Neal Bardin, Jr., has replaced older diesel driven hydraulic pumps with
direct drive electric pumps. Not only are these pumps more
Executive Director,
Retirement Accounts Northern Palm Beach efficient; they are also more environmentally friendly.
County Improvement Northern’s Emergency Operations Center was designed
By Sally Sima Stahl District and built to withstand a Category 5 hurricane and provide
Like many people, The staff at Northern a safe working environment for essential staff during and
you may spend decades Palm Beach County after the storm. Power loss and power fluctuations are
putting money into your Improvement District common in severe storms. This can damage electrical
IRA and your 401(k) work hard to maintain the equipment and sensitive computerized systems. The
or similar employer- stormwater systems and Emergency Operations Center has a generator that will
sponsored retirement infrastructure within their power the building during periods of power outages or
plan. But eventually you areas of responsibility. fluctuations. This generator runs using natural gas rather
will want to take this Nort he rn a l so ha s a than diesel fuel. This is a more reliable and cleaner fuel
money out – if you must responsibility to protect the environment where we live for running this type of generator.
start withdrawing some and work. Given that responsibility, many of our systems In 1998, Northern initiated its SCADA telemetry
of it. How can you make are designed for environmental sustainability. Electric system. With the original investment, four remote
the best use of these stormwater pumps, propane generators and remote telemetry units were constructed in Ibis Golf and Country
funds? telemetry operations of stormwater equipment are a few Club, as well as a central base station at Northern’s
To begin with, here’s some background: When of the many ways that Northern limits its impact on the headquarters. Over the past 21 years, the telemetry system
you turn 70½, you need to start withdrawals – called environment. has been expanded to 69 remote sites spread throughout
required minimum distributions, or RMDs – from your Stormwater pumps are used to move excess storm Northern’s jurisdiction. The remote telemetry units
traditional IRA and your 401(k) or similar employer- water out of an area to eventually deposit in a larger monitor water levels, and have programmed logic to adjust
sponsored retirement plan, such as a 457(b) or 403(b). downstream body of water. These pumps range in size those levels using operable gates and stormwater pumps.
(A Roth IRA is not subject to these rules; you can from 25-horsepower pumps to massive 150-horsepower The telemetry units can also be operated with computers
essentially keep your account intact for as long as you pumps. They move from 2,000 to 35,000 gallons of water at a central location or out in the field. This allows staff
like.) You can take more than the RMD, but if you per minute! Pump stations in some areas have two pumps, to minimize the number of trips out to various sites using
don’t take at least the minimum (which is based on one for redundancy, while others can have up to six fuel powered vehicles.
your account balance and your life expectancy), you’ll pumps. That’s a lot of water moving at one time! When Northern Palm Beach County Improvement District is
generally be taxed at 50 percent of the amount you these pump stations were first constructed, most of the committed to environmental sustainability and is always
should have taken – so don’t forget these withdrawals. pumps were run by diesel engines. They were loud, messy looking for ways to improve current functions. Northern is
Here, then, is the question: What should you do and dangerous machines. High pressure hydraulic lines dedicated to utilizing progressive science and technology
with the RMDs? If you need the entire amount to help could burst creating a safety hazard for staff as well as the to accomplish that goal.
support your lifestyle, there’s no issue – you take the potential for the hydraulic oil to contaminate the nearby
money and use it. But what if you don’t need it all? waterways. Diesel engines create noxious exhaust and use
Keeping in mind that the withdrawals are generally
fully taxable at your personal income tax rate, are there
some particularly smart ways in which you can use the
money to help your family or, possibly, a charitable
organization?
Here are a few suggestions:
• Help your grown children with their retirement
accounts. Your grown children may not always be able
to afford to “max out” on their IRAs. You might want
to help them with any excess funds from your own
retirement accounts. You can give $15,000 per year, per
recipient, without incurring any gift taxes – an amount
far higher than the current annual IRA contribution
limit of $6,000 (or $7,000 for individuals 50 or older).
• Help your grandchildren pay for college. You
might want to contribute to an investment specifically
designed to build assets for college. A financial
professional can help you choose which investments
might be most appropriate.
Of course, if your grandchildren are already in
college, you are free to simply write a check to the
school to help cover tuition and other expenses.
• Help support a charitable organization. Due to
recent changes in tax laws, many individuals now claim
a standard deduction, rather than itemizing. As a result,
there’s less of an incentive, from a tax standpoint, for
people to contribute to charitable organizations.
But if you’d still like to support a charitable group
and gain potential tax benefits, you might want
to consider moving some, or all, of your required
distributions from your IRA to a charity.
You can transfer up to $100,000 from your IRA
in this type of qualified charitable distribution, thus
meeting your RMD requirements without adding to
your taxable income. Furthermore, this move might
keep you in a lower tax bracket. (Before making this
transfer, though, you will need to consult with your
tax advisor.)
Your RMDs can contribute greatly to your retirement
income, but, as we’ve seen, they can do even more than
that – so use them wisely.
This article was written by Edward Jones for use
by your local Edward Jones financial advisor. Edward
Jones, its employees and financial advisors cannot
provide tax or legal advice. You should consult your
attorney or qualified tax advisor regarding your
situation.
Call me for a free portfolio review at (561) 748-
7600, Sally Sima Stahl, AAMS, 1851 W. Indiantown
Road, Ste. 106, Jupiter, FL 33458.