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Flexible spending plan open enrollment, May 1 - June 29

May 2, 2007

NSHE FLEXIBLE SPENDING PLAN (SECTION 125) - OPEN ENROLLMENT

The Flexible Spending Plan (Section 125) open enrollment period for NSHE is May 1 through June 29. The NSHE Flexible Spending Plan is administered by ASI, NOT the State of Nevada. Accordingly, as in previous years, we are requesting that employees not fill out the State Flexible Spending Account forms provided in the PEBP open enrollment packets.

WHAT IS A FLEXIBLE SPENDING ACCOUNT (FSA)?

A Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is a tax-free account that allows you to save money to pay for your out-of-pocket health care expenses, including prescription drug costs, medical, dental, vision and hearing expenses and/or your child or dependent care expenses, including day care, baby sitting, in-home care for older dependents and before & after school care expenses.

When you enroll in a FSA, you decide how much to contribute to either account for the entire plan year (July 1, 2007 - June 30, 2008). For the Health Care FSA you can set aside up to $6,000 per plan year.

For the Dependent Care FSA the annual maximum is $5,000 ($2,500 in the case of a married individual filing a separate tax return for the plan year) per household.

The money is deducted from your paycheck pre-tax (before Federal income taxes are deducted) in equal amounts over the course of the plan year.

After you incur expenses that qualify for reimbursement, you request tax-free withdrawals from your FSA to reimburse yourself. Any contribution amounts that you do not use by the end of the 2008 Plan Year are forfeited to the NSHE plan as required by IRS regulations.

For more information on the NSHE Flexible Spending Account and a worksheet to help you calculate your annual expenses please refer to the FSA Enrollment Guide.

HOW TO ENROLL

To make enrollment more convenient we are introducing online enrollment for the FSA. You will be able to log onto the ASI website from the comfort of your office or home and follow the prompts to enroll in this valuable benefit.

All you will need to get started is your NSHE employee identification number. Step-by-step instructions for enrolling in the program using the online enrollment system are provided below.

ASI has adopted the NSHE employee ID number and you will now have to reference that number to enroll in the program. For employees who are enrolled in the FSA for plan year 2007, ASI will continue to be able to locate your record via your Social Security number or employee ID number. In order to use the online enrollment tool, however, you will have to use your employee ID number.

When you complete the paper enrollment form you should submit it directly to ASI either via mail or fax at the address or fax number below:

ASI
PO Box 6044,
Columbia MO 65205-6044
Fax TOLL-FREE TO: 1-866-381-9682

Please make sure you keep a copy of the enrollment form, fax confirmation or mailing information for your records.

Whichever method you choose for enrolling in the FSA, the cut-off date for accepting enrollment applications will be Friday, June 29, 2007.

HOW MUCH WILL IT COST TO PARTICIPATE?

There is a $3.50 fee to participate in the FSA Health Care and/or Dependent Care plans. Additionally, an employee may choose to request the OPTIONAL DEBIT CARD for an additional fee of $1.50 per month.

HOW MUCH CAN I CONTRIBUTE TO THE PLAN?

• Health Care: $6,000 per plan year or $500 maximum per month. The minimum for this plan is $25 per month.
• Dependent Care: $5,000 per plan year or $416.66 maximum per month per household ($2,500 in the case of a married individually filing a separate tax return for the plan year). This plan also has a $25.00 per month minimum.

Any contribution amounts that are not used by the end of the 2008 Plan Year are forfeited to the NSHE plan as required by IRS regulations.

ONLINE ENROLLMENT INSTRUCTIONS

1. Sign on to www.asiflex.com/nshe to begin the enrollment process
2. Enter your NSHE Employee Identification Number and click "begin"
3. Enter your email address in order to receive an email acknowledgement of a successfully submitted enrollment application. A confirmation packet will be mailed to your home after the close of open enrollment that includes claim forms and further information.
4. Click "continue"
5. To enroll in the medical FSA or dependent care FSA you must check the box next to the category or categories in which you wish to enroll and complete the per-month and annual amount boxes. An entry in these boxes appears exactly as it is. For example, 100 is one-hundred dollars where as 1.00 is one dollar. Payroll deductions are taken equally out of 12 paychecks starting in July 2007. For classified employees deductions will come out of the check issued on the 10th day of the month. For professional employees the deduction will come out of the check issued on the last day of the month.
6. Click "continue"
7. For reimbursement by direct deposit enter your account information or select check.
8. Click "continue"
9. For e-mail notices of direct deposit, enter your email address.
10. Click "submit" to get to the summary screen. If you wish to make a change click "make Changes to Form' to correct your enrollment.
11. Click "send this enrollment" to finalize your enrollment in the plan. Once you finalize your enrollment, the screen will show a confirmation number. Print or save this screen for your records.