Headlines about "Distributions - misc"
Gathered from the web by the editors at BenefitsLink.com.
Why Women Are at Greater Financial Risk in Retirement and How Annuities Can Help (PDF)
31 pages. Excerpt: "The Female Factor offers an analysis of women's economic position in retirement, laying out the factors that determine whether they will achieve financial security in their 'golden years.' This recently-updated report discusses lifetime annuities as an important retirement income security tool for women. When combined with Social Security and other retirement income, an annuity can help cover basic living expenses while addressing the risk of outliving assets." (Americans for Secure Retirement)
Nest Egg Plan Hatched for Home Buying
Excerpt: "The federal government's slow response to the housing crisis has prompted one Long Islander to formulate a remedy of his own. Ed Mazoyer, a financial consultant at Vanderbilt Securities in Melville . . ., wants the government to allow homebuyers to take up to $100,000 from their retirement plans, either from a 401(k) or an Individual Retirement Account, with no penalty, if they use the funds to buy a house." (Long Island Business News)
IBM to Increase Pension Payments for Some Retirees
Excerpt: "Yes, it's true IBM Corp. plans to raise certain retiree pension payments. But not all the details are worked out yet, because the raise is 'a work in progress,' said Doug Shelton, a spokesman in Armonk for IBM. The increase will affect about 42,000 retirees who retired before 1997. About half of those who retired before 1997 will be eligible. The goal is to raise payments to those who were not able to participate in the 401(k) plan." (PoughkeepsieJournal.com)
Annuities in 401(k) Plans Gaining Momentum, Report Finds
Excerpt: "The use of annuities as an investment alternative within 401(k) plans will gain momentum as those approaching retirement seek to create guaranteed retirement income streams, according to a report by the Financial Research Corporation (FRC)." (Wolters Kluwer)
[Guidance Overview] Benefits Quiz from the April 2008 Trucker Huss Benefits Report (PDF)
Pages 1-2 of 10 pages. Excerpt: "The . . . questions are designed to refresh, and to fine tune, your benefits expertise. Some of the answers (which are found on page 8 of this Newsletter) may surprise you." (Trucker Huss)
One-Fourth of Participants Have Taken Premature Plan Distributions, Poll Finds
Excerpt: "According to the survey, the most common reasons for premature withdrawals include a family member losing a job and the cost of a down payment on a home." (Wolters Kluwer)
PBGC's Pension Benefits Take-Back 'Nightmare' for Steel Plant Retirees
Excerpt: "[More than 1,000 steel plant retirees] have learned that their pension benefits were overpaid for years by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. The overpayment will be collected by a 10 percent reduction in their benefit rate, further decreasing their monthly check." (The Morning Journal)
How Will Low-Income Boomers Cope with Retirement?
Excerpt: "The report finds that, because of long-term projected growth in real earnings, low-income boomers will have higher real incomes in retirement than their predecessors and a lower incidence of poverty. Typical leading boomers will have higher income replacement rates at retirement and will be more likely to have enough income to replace 75 percent of their earnings than previous generations of retirees. However, typical trailing boomers will have much lower replacement rates in retirement than leading boomers (although about the same as earlier retirees) and will be less likely to have enough income to replace 75 percent of their earnings than leading boomers." (AARP)
Pennsylvania State Employees' Pension Hikes Could Cost Taxpayers $10 Billion
Excerpt: "A multibillion-dollar bill to increase pension benefits for some 250,000 retired state workers and teachers advanced out of a Pennsylvania House committee on Tuesday. The State Government Committee voted unanimously to send to the floor a bill that would provide increases ranging from about 2.7 percent for the most recently retired to 25 percent for those who retired before July 1990. The estimated cost is $10.4 billion over 20 years, but an actuarial analysis should produce a more precise figure." (AP via Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
New Hampshire Retirement Rescue Plan Fast-Tracked
Excerpt: "The Senate version of the House's reform bill will give annual 2.5 percent cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) to all New Hampshire Retirement System retirees on July 1. The increase would apply only to their first $30,000 in annual pension payments. Retired workers who make more than $30,000, about one third of all NHRS pensioners, would see a $750 increase next year." (Union Leader)
[Guidance Overview] In the Qualified Plan Industry, What Is a QOSA?
Excerpt: "Effective for plan years starting on January 1, 2008 and thereafter, the Pension Protection Act of 2006 has amended the joint and survivor annuity rules to require that a plan subject to such annuity requirements also offer a qualified optional survivor annuity (QOSA) to participants. The plan must also provide participants with a written explanation of the terms and conditions of the QOSA." (McKay Hochman Co., Inc.)
Who Prefers Annuities? Observations About Retirement Decisions
Excerpt: "To find out [why most people do not choose annuities], Watson Wyatt Worldwide asked a national panel of older workers and recent retirees about their payout and risk preferences, retirement decisions and related issues. Our observations are based on the 2007 U.S. Surveys of Older Employees' and Retirees' Attitudes Toward Lump Sum and Annuity Distributions From Retirement Plans." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)
[Guidance Overview] Arthur Andersen Loses $25 Million in Insurance Coverage
Excerpt: "One-time accounting giant Arthur Andersen cannot recover $25 million in insurance coverage for its freelance settlement of $231 million with retirees who lost pensions in the firm's demise, a federal appeals court has ruled. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision puts companies on notice that they cannot assume an insurer will consent to settlements, or that insurance policies covering fiduciary breaches can be stretched to cover a contract dispute." (Law.com)
Pitfalls of Working Past Retirement Age
Excerpt: "[W]orkers with defined-benefit pensions and those who already have tapped Social Security benefits might not realize is that there are significant financial disincentives that make working into retirement age a tricky proposition." (The Wall Street Journal)
401(k) Loans = Retirement Insecurity
Excerpt: "Conclusion. The option of borrowing against a 401(k) is attractive; however, potential borrowers should be wary. Even in extreme situations, it is best for workers to seek other sources of capital before tapping their 401(k) accounts. Otherwise, borrowers are leaving much of their potential earnings on the table. A small loan now can equal a huge loss in future retirement security." (National Center for Policy Analysis)
[Opinion] 'Bad Boy' Clauses Aren't Passe After All - But Sometimes It Takes a Judge to Do the Right Thing
Excerpt: "ERISA's prohibition against bad boy clauses generally precluded a court being able to order the retirement plan to pay out a participant's benefits to a third party as restitution, even for a crime committed against the employer. But what if a crime was committed against the plan? Under these circumstances the Department of Labor or a Federal court could order the Plan Administrator to offset the plan's losses against the participant's account." (The Retirement Plan Blog)
[Guidance Overview] No Fiduciary Liability for Employer or HR Representative Who Gave Participant Inaccurate Benefit Information
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: This case puts a new spin on the DOL regulations regarding fiduciary responsibility. While other courts appear to have taken the position that delegating responsibility for benefit estimates is generally a fiduciary act that may be subject to fiduciary liability . . ., this court concluded that providing estimates is not a fiduciary function, so there could be no fiduciary liability for improper delegation of that responsibility." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
The 4% Rule - At What Price?
Excerpt: "The 4% rule is the advice most often given to retirees for managing spending and investing. This rule and its variants finance a constant, non-volatile spending plan using a risky, volatile investment strategy. As a result, retirees accumulate unspent surpluses when markets outperform and face spending shortfalls when markets underperform. The previous work on this subject has focused on the probability of short falls and optimal portfolio mixes. We will focus on the rule's inefficiencies¿the price paid for funding its unspent surpluses and the overpayments made to purchase its spending policy." (Social Science Research Network)
[Opinion] Who Needs Retirement Savings When You Can Bail Out Lenders?
Excerpt: "Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz., has a fascinating plan (HR5776, the 'Homeowner Empowerment Act') which he claims will help homeowners facing foreclosure. Fascinating not because it might help homeowners (of course not), but for what it says about Shadegg's priorities. Under the proposal, homeowners could use IRAs or pensions to pay mortgages." (East Valley Tribune)
The 5% Guaranteed Minimum Withdrawal Benefit: Paying Something for Nothing? (PDF)
18 pages. Excerpt: "Retirees want products that insure they will not outlive income, have some inflation protection, and at the same time maintain flexibility and control. Annuities can offer such benefits, but individuals are often reluctant to annuitize assets. Two of the risks inherent in variable annuities – the inability to leave an estate and the potential for low income – led to the creation of a new product, the 5% Guaranteed Minimum Withdrawal Benefit (GMWB.) The GMWB product seems to offer everything that retirees are looking for." (TIAA-CREF Institute)
[Guidance Overview] ERISA - Erroneous Pension Estimates
Excerpt: "Where a plaintiff brought suit under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, arguing that the defendant employer must pay him the amount of the erroneous benefit estimates he received before he left the defendant's employ instead of the lesser amount he was entitled to under the defendant's employee benefit plan, a judgment for the defendant must be affirmed because of the plaintiff's failure to show any fiduciary breach." (Lawyers Weekly, Inc.)
One-Fourth of Americans Have Dipped into Retirement Savings Prematurely
Excerpt: "A new Wall Street Journal Online/Harris Interactive Personal Finance Poll indicates about one-quarter of adults who are actively planning for their retirement have prematurely withdrawn money from their retirement savings. According to a press release on the survey results, the most common reasons for premature withdrawals from retirement investment products are a family member losing a job and a down payment on a home." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
[Opinion] The Downside to 401(k) Loans (PDF)
Excerpt: "401(k) conventional wisdom is that loans are just a part of any well-rounded 401(k) plan. Because TRI-AD tends to be a leader rather than blindly following conventional wisdom, we are going to express the opinion that largely unfettered access to 401(k) accounts is counter to the plans' purpose of providing a way for participants to save successfully for retirement." (TRI-AD)
Retirement Plan Expert Says Use 401(k) Loan to Eliminate Credit Card Debt
Excerpt: "Consumers stung by the sudden doubling of their minimum required monthly credit card payments are finding new ways to eliminate credit card debt by replacing their card debt with cheaper alternatives such as 401(k) loans . . . ." (Neotrope®)
[Guidance Overview] CRS Report for Congress: Survivor Benefits for Families of Civilian Federal Employees and Retirees (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "Federal employees with permanent appointments are eligible for retirement and disability benefits under either the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) or the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). . . . Both FERS and CSRS provide survivor benefits for spouses and dependent children of employees and retirees. . . . The federal government pays compensation to dependent survivors of federal civilian employees who are killed while performing their duties; however, a survivor eligible for both an annuity under CSRS or FERS and for survivor compensation cannot receive both." (Congressional Research Service, U.S. Library of Congress)
Making Your Money Last as Long as You Live
Excerpt: "EVEN for people who have built up a decent nest egg, deciding how to use it is one of the demands of early retirement. The good life may be within reach, but the financial logistics still require careful attention." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Court Affirms no Fiduciary Breach in Miscalculated Benefit Estimates
Excerpt: "The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed a district court's determination that miscalculations of pension benefits by a human resources employee and a plan's online payment calculator did not constitute a fiduciary breach under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act . . . ." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Former Employee Sues Stinker Stations Over Retirement Plan Being Discontinued
Excerpt: "A former worker for Stinker Stations has sued the Boise company, alleging it is trying to withhold retirement benefits that he and other workers earned. Edward Brasley, 48, a former tanker truck driver who worked for the gasoline retailer for almost 19 years, alleges that the chain illegally tried to eliminate a deferred compensation retirement plan put in place by Stinker's former owners." (IdahoStatesman.com)
Hardship Withdrawals and the Mortgage Crisis
2 pages. Excerpt: "Hardship withdrawals from Vanguard® defined contribution plans rose in 2006 and 2007, although the absolute level of withdrawals is still quite low. The increase may be correlated with either the emerging home mortgage crisis or broader economic stress among financially vulnerable plan participants." (The Vanguard Group, Inc.)
[Guidance Overview] IRS Notice 2008-30 – Guidance Relating to Certain Distribution-Related Provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "This Summary highlights the following distribution provisions affecting defined contribution plans: Rollovers from eligible retirement plans to Roth IRAs; Qualified Optional Survivor Annuities (QOSAs) as an alternative to Qualified Joint and Survivor Annuities (QJSAs) for defined contribution plans subject to the funding standards of section 412 of the Internal Revenue Code; and Gap-period earnings for distributions of excess deferrals." (The Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies)
Update of Model 402(f) Notice Included in Forthcoming IRS Guidance
Excerpt: "The model notice provides a safe harbor explanation that plan administrators may provide to recipients of eligible rollover distributions from employer plans in order to satisfy the notice requirements of Code Sec. 402(f)." (Wolters Kluwer)
[Guidance Overview] Calculating Lump Sums After PPA
Excerpt: "In our view, retaining the traditional approach to determining actuarial equivalence is perfectly defensible. To suggest that a result is wrong because it produces an answer 0.05% different from another approach is to impute a false level of precision to these calculations generally. All approaches require some kind of judgment about within-year mortality." (JPMorgan Chase & Co.)
[Guidance Overview] CRS Report for Congress: Summary of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) (PDF)
76 pages; April 10, 2008. Excerpt: "The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) provides a comprehensive federal scheme for the regulation of employee pension and welfare benefit plans offered by employers. ERISA contains various provisions intended to protect the rights of plan participants and beneficiaries in employee benefit plans. These protections include requirements relating to reporting and disclosure, participation, vesting, and benefit accrual, as well as plan funding. ERISA also regulates the responsibilities of plan fiduciaries and other issues regarding plan administration. ERISA contains various standards that a plan must meet in order to receive favorable tax treatment, and also governs plan termination. This report provides background on the pension laws prior to ERISA, discusses various types of employee benefit plans governed by ERISA, provides an overview of ERISA's requirements, and includes a glossary of commonly used terms." (Congressional Research Service, U.S. Library of Congress)
Defunct Firm Forces 401(k) Distributions
Excerpt: "Former employees engaged in a lawsuit against their defunct former employer Wurld Media Inc. were surprised last month when they received lump-sum distributions of their 401(k) accounts. The Albany Times Union reports that the former employees received a letter with their checks saying the distribution was ordered by ex-CEO Gregory Kerber, the trustee of the retirement plan. The former employees are suing Wurld Media and successor company ROO Group Inc., claiming contributions to their 401(k) were withheld from their paychecks but never deposited to their accounts." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Many Veterans Missing Out on Pension Funds
Excerpt: "The Department of Veterans Affairs' Form 21-526 -- a combined application for compensation and/or pension -- has seven pages of instructions, five pages of personal information required, two pages of compensation criteria to review, three pages of dependency questions and four pages for the actual pension application. This is followed with five pages of authorization to release information forms and three pages of required online application criteria." (Caller.com)
AK Steel Appeals Surviving Spouses' Benefit Ruling
Excerpt: "AK Steel has appealed a ruling by a federal judge in Ohio that the company erroneously cut the pension benefits due to widows and widowers of AK Steel retirees." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
[Guidance Overview] IRS Answers Questions About PPA Distributions
Excerpt: "In Notice 2008-30, the IRS answers questions about certain distribution-related provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA) that took effect in 2008. The notice addresses interest rate assumptions for lump sum distributions, rollovers from eligible retirement plans to Roth IRAs, qualified optional survivor annuity (QOSA) requirements and gap-period earnings." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)
Hancock Puts Out 401(k) Guaranteed Income Rider
Excerpt: "John Hancock Retirement Plan Services has launched its Guaranteed Income for Life (GIFL), an optional 401(k) rider featuring a principal guarantee. A John Hancock news release said the GIFL product offers participants upside potential, downside protection, and a lifetime income source." (planadviser)
Why Don't the People Insure Late Life Consumption? A Framing Explanation of the Under-Annuitization Puzzle (PDF)
12 pages. Excerpt: "Rather than attempting to rationalize the lack of annuity demand, this paper explores the idea that aversion to annuities is not a fully rational phenomenon. A large literature has documented behavioral biases in a wide range of activities that are important steps in the process of planning for retirement, including whether to participate in employer sponsored pension plans, how much to save, and how to allocate one's portfolio. To the extent that individuals exhibit biases in the wealth accumulation aspects of planning for retirement, it seems natural that similar biases might also extend to the wealth decumulation stage of retirement planning." (TIAA-CREF Institute)
[Guidance Overview] Distributing 403(b) Annuities, Part II: The 403(b) Plan Distributed Annuity
Excerpt: "[T]he new 403(b) regulations permit the distribution of a 'fully paid individual insurance annuity contract,' as a distribution option upon the termination of a 403(b) plan. We envision this as a particularly useful option in plans which are funded with individually owned annuity contracts, contracts over which the employer has little-if any-control. It gives the employer the ability to relinquish all of its obligations related to these pesky sorts of arrangements without having to actually force the distribution of funds from its terminating 403(b) plan. The regulations are silent, however, on just how these 'fully paid individual insurance annuity contracts' should be treated in the absence of an employer." (Baker & Daniels)
[Guidance Overview] Retirement and Survivor Annuities for Former Spouses of Federal Employees (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "A former spouse of a federal employee may be entitled to a share of the employee's retirement annuity under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) or the Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS) if this has been authorized by a state court decree of divorce, annulment, or legal separation. An employee also may voluntarily elect a survivor annuity for a former spouse. A state court can award a former spouse a share of the employee's retirement annuity, a survivor annuity, or both. A court also can award a former spouse of a federal employee a portion of the employee's Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) account balance as part of a divorce settlement." (Congressional Research Service via BenefitsLink.com)
[Guidance Overview] Notice 2008-30 - Guidance on PPA Changes to Distribution Rules for 2008
Excerpt: "Notice 2008-30 provides guidance on distribution-related provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA) that are effective in 2008, including rollovers from eligible retirement plans to Roth IRAs, additional survivor annuity options, and interest rate assumptions for lump sum distributions. The notice also provides guidance regarding plan amendments for certain gap-period earnings." (McKay Hochman Co., Inc.)
[Guidance Overview] PBGC Proposed Regs Address Reallocation Liability Upon Mass Withdrawal
Excerpt: "The proposed regulations clarify that for each modification to the withdrawal liability method discussed in the rule, a plan's unfunded vested benefits, determined with respect to plan years ending after the plan year designated in the plan amendment, are reduced by the value of the outstanding claims for withdrawal liability that can reasonably be expected to be collected for employers who withdrew from the plan on or before the designated plan year." (Wolters Kluwer)
Fact Sheet on Benefit Cutbacks in Single Employer Plans
Excerpt: "Starting in 2008 some underfunded pension plans sponsored by a single employer will be subject to restrictions on benefits. These benefit restrictions were implemented by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA), which Congress passed to shore up the funding of traditional private sector defined benefit pension plans. This fact sheet explains the four basic benefit restrictions under the PPA for single employer plans and the underfunding levels that trigger each restriction." (Pension Rights Center)
Fact Sheet on Benefit Cutbacks in Multiemployer Plans
Excerpt: "Under the PPA, multiemployer plans that are significantly underfunded are given an exception to the anti-cutback rule's protection for already-earned subsidized early retirement and survivors benefits. If certain procedures are followed, plans in 'critical status', can eliminate the entire subsidized early retirement benefit (and/or subsidized survivors benefits) for workers who have not yet retired. Workers will still get all earned benefits if they wait to collect the pension until normal retirement age, usually age 62 or 65, but the pension will be reduced (typically by 6 percent a year) if collected at an earlier retirement age." (Pension Rights Center)
The Trajectory of Wealth in Retirement (PDF)
Excerpt: "As the baby boomers begin to retire, a great deal remains unknown about the evolution of wealth toward the end of life. In this paper, we develop a new measure of household resources that converts total financial, nonfinancial, and annuitized assets into an expected annual amount of wealth per person. We use this measure, which we call 'annualized comprehensive wealth' to investigate spend-down behavior among older households in the Health and Retirement Study." (David A. Love, Michael G. Palumbo, and Paul A. Smith via Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)
Michigan Appellate Court Throws Out 401(k) Distribution Injunction
Excerpt: "A Michigan company fighting to block a 401(k) distribution to the firm's former purchasing agent accused in a corporate embezzlement scheme has lost a battle before a state appellate court." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Bankruptcy Appellate Panel Limits 401(k) Loan Deduction
Excerpt: "A 401(k) participant now seeking Chapter 13 bankruptcy protection may only deduct the balance she owes on two plan loans from her bankruptcy estate." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
NFL Retirement Plan Amendment Reduces Pension Payout to Participants
Excerpt: "An amendment made to the Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan, which was made effective April 1, 2007, reduces the monthly pension benefit of plan participants who elect the Qualified Joint and Survivor Annuity Option or the Life and Contingent Annuitant Pension Option. The reduction can be as large as a 6.3% decrease of the monthly benefit." (RetiredPlayers.Org)
IRA Hardship Loans Sought
Excerpt: "So-called hardship loans from individual retirement accounts would be permitted under a bill introduced last month. The IRA Assistance Act of 2008 (HR 5641), co-sponsored by Reps. Thaddeus McCotter, R-Mich., and Ron Paul, R-Texas, would allow hardship loans from IRAs -- but not Roth IRAs -- for qualifying situations as determined by the Internal Revenue Service under current law . . . ." (Investment News; free registration required)
Borrowing from 401(k) Accounts Can Be a Bad Deal All Around
Excerpt: "The subprime crisis and its many ripple effects are prompting more financially strapped homeowners to borrow from their 401(k) plans. That not only puts their long-term fiscal health in jeopardy, but also places a large burden on their employers." (CFO.com)
[Guidance Overview] Proposed IRS Regs Amend Notice Requirements for Benefit Accrual Reductions
Excerpt: "The IRS has issued proposed regulations which would amend the requirements for providing notice to certain affected persons when a plan significantly reduces benefit accruals. The proposed regulations set forth timing rules for ERISA §204(h) notices for plan amendments reducing benefit accruals which are permitted to be effective before the applicable amendment date, and reflect other changes to notice requirements made by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA; P.L. 109-280)." (Wolters Kluwer)
Using Pension Funds for Buyouts
Excerpt: "Using overfunded pension money to tempt workers into retirement with lump-sum packages allows employees to defer taxes. But it can be a risky venture in today's up-and-down stock market climate." (Human Resource Executive Online)
[Guidance Overview] IRS Guidance on 2008 Law Changes
Excerpt: "The IRS has released guidance on several law changes going into effect in 2008. Of interest to defined contribution practitioners, Notice 2008-30 discusses distributions of gap period income for 402(g) corrections, rollovers of pretax plan accounts to Roth IRAs, and qualified optional survivor annuities." (SunGard Corbel LLC)
[Opinion] The Real Scoop on Annuities
Excerpt: "Today, it's difficult to distinguish one financial institution from another as they compete for the ever-growing pool of investment dollars. Insurance companies, now publicly owned, have become am integral part of an industry that seems uninterested in protecting anything other than their obscenely paid leaders. The time-honored distinction of the annuity contract was the guaranteed retirement benefit it provided. The 'you will never outlive your income' boast could not be uttered by any other financial entity!" (MarketOracle.co.uk)
Funds to Be Restored to Enron Litigation Settlement Fund
Excerpt: "In a settlement with the Department of Labor (DOL), Hewitt Associates and the Enron Creditors Recovery Corp. have agreed to restore $11.2 million to a court supervised settlement fund for Enron participants." (Wolters Kluwer)
More Employees Borrowing Against 401(k) Plans
Excerpt: "Retirement plan participants are taking out loans on their investments at an accelerated rate jeopardizing their future assets, a leading Boston College researcher says. The percentage of participants in 401(k) programs who have taken a loan from their investments rose from 9 percent in 2005 to 18 percent in 2007, said Alicia Munnell, director of the Boston College Center for Retirement Research." (Workforce Management; free registration required)
[Opinion] A 401(k) Debit Card Is Dumb
Excerpt: "To improve retirement savings, we should be making it harder for workers to get their hands on 401(k) money -- not easier. Certainly not as easy as going to the ATM machine. But that's exactly what the 401(k) debit card by Reserve Solutions does." (The Baltimore Sun)
Raiding Retirement Funds to Stave Off Foreclosure
Excerpt: "Most 401(k) plans and IRA accounts have rules in place that let you use your retirement savings to prevent foreclosure on your primary residence, either by offering loans on the balance or allowing you to simply withdraw the money." (bankrate.com via The E.W. Scripps Co.)
Detroit Automakers Using Pension Funds for Retirement Incentive Offers
Excerpt: "Some workers, however, are balking at the arrangements, worried about their future retirements, even though the pension funds being used contain more money than they need to meet obligations. Chrysler LLC and General Motors Corp. confirmed Friday that they are using the technique, while a Ford Motor Co. representative was unsure." (Detroit Free Press)
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