Headlines about "Multiemployer plans"

Gathered from the web by the editors at BenefitsLink.com.

PBGC Aids Insolvent Multiemployer Pension Plans
Excerpt: "The insurance program for multiemployer plans differs from its single-employer program. The PBGC actually takes over failed single-employer plans but does not take over insolvent multiemployer plans. Instead, it sends financial assistance to the plan to ensure that guaranteed benefits are paid." (Workforce Management; free registration required)

Genetic Testing: An Ever-Evolving Health Field Raises Complex Coverage Issues (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "Since the 1990s, there has been explosive growth in both the number of genetic tests and the costs associated with them. As part of their constant efforts to manage their health plan costs, trustees of multiemployer health funds need to be aware of these developments so they can periodically revisit their plans' coverage for genetic testing to ensure that it has medical value. This NewsLetter presents an overview of the issues and options." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

Market Troubles Hit Multiemployer Plans Hard
Excerpt: "A new Segal Company report shows a deterioration in the funding status of more than 360 multiemployer client plans between 2008 and 2009 due to the meltdown in the investment markets." (PLANSPONSOR.com)

Senate Bill Takes Aim at Small Employer Insurance Groups
Excerpt: "Congress is taking aim at MEWAs, or Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements, which are cooperative-like entities in which health and other benefits are marketed to groups of small employers." (HCPro, Inc.)

Results from Segal's Survey of Multiemployer Plans' 2009 Zone Status: Winter 2010 Report
Excerpt: "The Segal Company's Survey of Plans' 2009 Zone Status reports the percentage of multiemployer pension plans that fell into each of the three zones - red ('critical status'), yellow ('endangered status') and green (neither critical nor endangered) - in 2009." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

[Guidance Overview] 2009 Form M-1 Now Available; Virtually Unchanged from 2008
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: We expect that the 2010 Form M-1 will request information about a MEWA's or ECE's compliance with the recently enacted mandates and that the DOL will also update the self-compliance checklists for these mandates. Substantial penalties apply for failing to comply with the Form M-1 reporting requirements. Thus, filings should be completed on a timely basis." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)

'Withdrawal Liability' in a Multiemployer Pension Plan (PDF)
Pages 2-3 of 8 pages. Excerpt: "A multiemployer plan with assets that are lower than its liabilities has one of these creatures, but unless and until a contributing employer withdraws (hence the name) from the plan, it's an interesting but easy-to-ignore figure." (American Academy of Actuaries)

[Guidance Overview] Union May Indemnify Employer for Withdrawal Liability Owed to Multiemployer Plan
Excerpt: "A union may use a collective bargaining agreement to indemnify an employer for the withdrawal liability owed by the employer to a multiemployer plan, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Philadelphia (CA-3) has ruled in Pittsburgh Mack Sales & Service, Inc. v. International Union of Operating Engineers, Local Union No. 66." (Wolters Kluwer)

Women Reshape Union Agenda
Excerpt: "Women make up nearly half of the union membership and that is having an impact on issues that come up at the bargaining table. There's more of an emphasis on work/life issues, paid sick leave and paternity leave, experts say." (Human Resource Executive Online)

[Guidance Overview] Beyond Compliance with Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008: An Opportunity to Integrate Behavioral Health and Medical Coverage
Excerpt: "Sponsors of group health plans have the opportunity to reexamine their current behavioral health coverage as they prepare to comply with the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA). If trustees of multiemployer health funds start soon, they will have sufficient time to conduct a thorough and thoughtful plan review and craft strategies for better management of the coverage for mental health and addiction conditions. These strategies can help keep cost increases under control, while maintaining, and even enhancing, critical benefits." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

Retiree Medical Benefit Reductions Limited under House Version of Proposed Healthcare Reform
Excerpt: "Section 110 of the House Bill amends [ERISA] to require all group health plans, including union plans, to add a provision that expressly bars post-retirement reductions in the benefits provided to retirees or their beneficiaries unless the reduction is also made with respect to active participants. This prohibition would override any plan provision that reserves the right to amend or terminate the plan or specifically authorizes the plan to make post-retirement reductions in retiree medical benefits." (Michael Best & Friedrich)

Administrator Charged with Embezzling Tens of Millions from Union Benefit Plans
Excerpt: "[T]he announcement said, between 2002 and 2008, King caused at least $42.6 million to be transferred, in the form of checks, from the bank accounts of the Local 147 Funds into a bank account controlled by King Care, including the following approximate amounts per year . . . ." (PLANSPONSOR)

[Opinion] Union Pension Bailout Bill Would Burden Employers and Taxpayers
Excerpt: "[Labor union] leaders habitually put high principle aside when their own hides need bailing out. Case in point: a bill introduced in late October by Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D. (see photo), the Preserve Benefits and Jobs Act of 2009 (H.R. 3936). This legislation would enlist taxpayers to support troubled union-sponsored multiemployer pension plans and impose major burdens upon employers. Ultimately, the general public will pay the tab. It's another example of how interest-group politics benefits the relative few at the expense of the great many." (National Legal and Policy Center)

[Guidance Overview] Bill to Ease Multiemployer Pension Funding Is Introduced in Congress (PDF)
2 pages. Summarizes the multiemployer features of newly proposed pension funding relief legislation: the Preserve Benefits and Jobs Act of 2009 (PB&J Act), which was introduced by Congressmen Pomeroy and Tiberi. (Segal Company)

[Opinion] Bill to Ease Multiemployer Pension Funding Is Introduced in Congress (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "Funding relief legislation for multiemployer pension plans was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives on October 27. H.R. 3936, the Preserve Benefits and Jobs Act (PB&J Act), sponsored by Representatives Earl Pomeroy (D-ND) and Patrick Tiberi (R-OH), includes extensive relief for single employer plans as well. This is a notable starting point, but Congress is still a long way from passing legislation to make it easier for trustees, employers and unions to deal with the impact of the 2008 market losses on pension plan funding." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Guidance for Approval of Revocation Requests for Multiemployer Plans (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "On September 9, 2009, the IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2009-43. This guidance provides additional conditions for the automatic approval of requests for the revocation of multiemployer elections provided under the Worker, Retiree and Employer Recovery Act (WRERA)." (Prudential Retirement)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Regulations on Pension Funding and Benefit Restrictions (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department recently published final funding regulations for single-employer pension plans, which will generally first take effect for the 2010 plan year. Employers can also rely on these regulations for 2008 and 2009, if they choose. The regulations contain a large amount of technical details. This Bulletin gives a high-level summary of key provisions that might be of interest to private sector employers. It notes highlights of the following: The rules for determining minimum required contributions and The rules for how benefit restrictions are administered." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

.For Delphi Pensioners, the Union Label Helps
Excerpt: "The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, which insures pension plans, caps the amount of benefits it will pay, using a formula based on age and the type of benefits an employee earned. But in a side arrangement, G.M. is agreeing to pay special supplements, called top-ups, so that Delphi's union retirees get everything they were promised. The automaker is drawing the money from its own pension fund, according to a person familiar with the arrangement. In a sense, the G.M. pension fund is being weakened to help the Delphi union members." (The New York Times; free registration required)

[Guidance Overview] For 2010, Only PBGC Single Employer Premium to Increase, No Change in PBGC Guarantee Limit Anticipated (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "For 2010, the per capita flat-rate Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) premium for single employer plans will increase by one dollar and the per capita flat-rate premium for multiemployer plans will be unchanged. The PBGC has not yet released its monthly maximum guarantee for 2010, but because there was no change in the 'old law Social Security wage base' ($79,200), Segal does not expect the maximum benefit guaranteed by the PBGC under private-sector single employer pension plans that terminate during 2010 to change from the 2009 level." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

[Guidance Overview] Multiemployer Plan Wrongfully Suspended Retiree's Benefits After Misreading ERISA's 'Trade or Craft' Rule
Excerpt: "A multiemployer pension plan violated ERISA when it suspended a retired meat cutter's monthly benefit after he obtained employment as a baked goods independent distributor, the U.S. Court of Appeals in St. Louis (CA-8) has ruled in Eisenrich v. Minneapolis Retail Meat Cutters and Food Handlers Pension Plan. The determination of whether two jobs are included within the same 'trade or craft' under ERISA ?203 must be based on the specific skills actually used by the retiree in the two jobs, and not the general classification of the two jobs." (Wolters Kluwer)

[Guidance Overview] GINA Regulations Require Redesign of Health Plan Wellness and Disease Management Incentives
Excerpt: "The Bulletin provides an overview of GINA's prohibitions; discusses the regulations involved in using health-risk assessments to ask questions about an individual's family medical history; and briefly outlines the action steps for sponsors of group health plans. Plan sponsors must conduct a compliance review immediately to ensure that: Health-risk assessments (including those designed by outside vendors) and any associated wellness policies and procedures comply with GINA's broad prohibition on collecting genetic information; and Wellness or disease management programs do not collect or use genetic information to screen individuals for eligibility for benefits under the plan." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

DOL Rejects Bush Administration LM-2 Union Reporting Changes
Excerpt: "In a generally anticipated move, the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) will publish a rule [today] rescinding the Bush administration's most recent changes to the LM-2 union report filed under the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA). This development confirms the Obama administration's interest in reducing the administrative burden on unions, and may signal the beginning of a focus shift to certain aspects of employer reporting under the LMRDA. In particular, many believe that OLMS will soon enhance scrutiny on employer and consultant reporting of so-called 'persuader' activity." (Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP)

Developments of Interest in the Multiemployer Health Plan Environment (PDF)
1 page. Excerpt: "This report includes: Recent developments in health care and the multiemployer marketplace. Data including consumer price index (CPI) and Segal health trends. A context for what's happening to health plans." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

[Guidance Overview] State Court Next Stop for Union Plan Wrongful Payment Suit
Excerpt: "A Taft-Hartley plan is not permitted to recoup more than $13,000 in wrongly paid health plan claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), but may be able to take the dispute into New York state court, a federal judge in New York has ruled. The decision came in a suit by the N.Y. State Teamsters Council Health & Hosp. Fund against Daniel Williams and his ex-wife Nicole Ferren, with allegations that Williams and Ferren submitted $13,287.43 in medical claims for Ferren after the two were divorced and that the plan mistakenly paid them. The suit said Williams never informed the plan of the divorce." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)

Rebuilding Workers' Retirement Security: A Labor Perspective on Private Pension Reform
Excerpt: "This chapter surveys the issues facing policymakers and workers' organizations thinking about rebuilding a viable retirement security system in the United States, in the context of declining defined benefit coverage and persistent serious flaws in defined contribution plans. The chapter lays out principles for a universal system of supplemental retirement income coverage based on mandatory contribution levels, mandatory portability, limitations on early withdrawals, and annuitization. The structure outlined envisions continued participant and employer choice of both investment strategy and benefit design, with incentives built in for collective asset management." (Pension Research Council; registration required to download fulltext of paper)

The Relationship Between Union Status and Employment-Based Health Benefits (PDF)
Pages 15-21 of 24 pages. Excerpt: "Union workers are much more likely tohave employment-based health benefits than nonunion workers. In September 2007, 82.7 percent of union workers were covered by health benefits through their own job, compared with 58.2 percent of nonunion workers . . . . Overall, 94.2 percent of union workers had employment-based health benefits, compared with 76.4 percent of nonunion workers." (Employee Benefit Research Institute)

[Guidance Overview] Third Circuit Validates Indemnity Agreement in Collective Bargaining Agreement for Payment of Withdrawal Liability (PDF)
Pages 2-3 of 5 pages. Excerpt: "The Third Circuit's decision does not give employers a free pass on withdrawal liability, but it may very well provide employers with an opportunity to significantly reduce theirexposure to this type of liability -- over which they typically have little control -- through the collective bargaining process." (Proskauer Rose LLP)

[Official Guidance] Text of PBGC Approval of Special Withdrawal Liability Rules for Multiemployer Plan for Chicago Apartment Cleaning Businesses (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "Over the past 10 years, cessation of contributions by any individual employer has not had an adverse impact on the Local 1 Plan's contribution base. Most of the employers that have ceased to contribute have been replaced by another employer who begins contributions for the same employees at the same location for the same work. . . . Contributions to the Local 1 Plan are made with respect to Chicago residential buildings. This contribution base is secure and the departure of one employer from the Local 1 Plan is not likely to have an adverse effect on the contribution base so long as the number of buildings covered does not decline." (Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation)

[Guidance Overview] Boeing Change to Retiree Health Benefits Gets Court Approval
Excerpt: "The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois has found that Boeing Co. did not violate the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) or the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA) when it presented changes to retirees' health benefits in a 2006 collective bargaining agreement (CBA). The court rejected the UAW's argument that benefits as set out in previous CBAs were vested and could not be changed. According to the opinion, previous CBAs stated the benefits would be provided 'for the duration of the Agreement.'" (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)

Union Pension Plans Hurt Workers, Study Shows
Excerpt: "Unlike non-union plans, collectively bargained pensions are often underfunded, lack portability and cannot respond quickly to market forces, according to the authors of a new study. Although labor unions often promote defined benefits plans for recruiting purposes, many of these plans are under severe financial pressure and place workers at a disadvantage, according to Diana Furchtgott-Roth, a senior fellow with the Hudson Institute and her colleague Andrew Brown." (The Washington Examiner)

[Guidance Overview] Third Circuit Applies Arbaugh Test to Find Jurisdiction Under LMRA Section 301
Excerpt: "The Third Circuit found another context in which Arbaugh v. Y & H Corp., 546 U.S. 500 (2006) applied to relax the jurisdictional nexus of a federal claim with the elements of a cause of action. In this instance, the jurisdictional issue arose over the application of section 301 of the Labor Management Relations Act ('LMRA'), 29 U.S.C. ? 185. The arrangement at issue was an agreement by a union to indemnify an employer for the employer's withdrawal liability to a pension plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, 29 U.S.C. ?? 1001-1461 ('ERISA'), and the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act of 1980, 29 U.S.C. ?? 1381-1461 ('MPPAA'). The indemnification agreement was entered into to facilitate an asset sale by the employer to another entity." (Roy Harmon III via Health Plan Law)

[Official Guidance] Text of Rev. Proc. 2009-43: Revocation of Elections by Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans to Freeze Funded Status under section 204 of WRERA (PDF)
5 pages. Excerpt: "Section II of this revenue procedure sets forth . . . circumstances [in addition to those in Notice 2009-42] in which the Service will automatically approve a request to revoke a section 204 election. Section III sets forth the procedures for submitting a request for automatic approval of revocation of a section 204 election. Section IV addresses other requests for approval to revoke a section 204 election." (Internal Revenue Service)

Cost Management Strategies for Multiemployer Health Funds During Sustained Economic Downturns (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "As the nation awaits national health care reform, trustees of multiemployer health funds are facing immediate and longer term challenges related to the still distressed economy. Utilization patterns may change in some ways that increase costs in the short term and in other ways that compromise participants' health over time. As expenditures rise and continued low levels of employment lead to reductions in overall contributions, health funds may be depleted. This NewsLetter is devoted to steps that trustees can take now to ensure that plan costs stay within budgets by looking carefully at cost sharing, plan design and vendor performance." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

[Official Guidance] Typeset Version in Federal Register: DOL (EBSA) Proposed Regs on Civil Penalty Rules for Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans That Fail to Take Corrective Funding Action (PDF)
5 pages. Excerpt: "This document contains a proposed regulation that, upon adoption, would establish procedures relating to the assessment of civil penalties by the Department of Labor under section 502(c)(8) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA or the Act). Under section 502(c)(8) of ERISA, which was added by the Pension Protection Act of 2006, the Secretary of Labor is granted authority to assess civil penalties not to exceed $1,100 per day against any plan sponsor of a multiemployer plan for certain violations of section 305 of ERISA. The regulation would affect multiemployer plans that are in either endangered or critical status." (Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor)

[Guidance Overview] EBSA Proposes Civil Penalty for Multiemployer Pension Plans that Fail to Correct Funding
Excerpt: "The Employee Benefit Security Administration (EBSA ) issued a News Release today, which proposes civil penalty rules for multiemployer defined benefit pension plans that fail to take corrective funding action under ERISA Section 502(c)(8) . . . ." (Workplace Prof Blog)

[Official Guidance] Text of DOL (EBSA) Proposed Regs on Civil Penalty Rules for Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans That Fail to Take Corrective Funding Action (PDF)
19 pages. A typeset version will be published in the September 4, 2009 Federal Register. The attached version was submitted today at 8:45 a.m. by the EBSA to the Electronic Public Inspection Desk of the National Archives. (Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor)

[Guidance Overview] EBSA Proposes Regulations on Civil Penalty Rules for Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans That Fail to Take Corrective Funding Action
Excerpt: "The PPA amended ERISA and the Internal Revenue Code to require those plans certified to be in endangered or critical status to adopt a funding improvement plan or a rehabilitation plan within 240 days from the required date of the certification. PPA also gave the Labor Department authority to assess civil monetary penalties of up to $1,100 per day against plan sponsors that fail to timely adopt funding improvement or rehabilitation plans. The proposed regulation sets forth the administrative procedures for assessing and contesting such penalties." (Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor)

[Guidance Overview] New Form 5500 Reporting Requirements for 2008 Plan Year for Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans (PDF)
2 page chart. (Milliman)

Pension Insurance Data Book 2008 (PDF)
122 pages. Excerpt: "This edition of the Pension Insurance Data Book contains one short article describing the characteristics of plans that PBGC newly insured during 2006. The edition also contains two new tables, inserted at tables S-36 and S-37, that show the number of hardfrozendefined plans insured by PBGC and the number of participants in these plans." (Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation)

Pomeroy Continues Filling Out Defined Benefit Funding Package Proposal
Excerpt: "A long-in-the-making package of pension reform legislation from U.S. Representative Earl Pomeroy (D-North Dakota) continues to move toward formal introduction when Congress reconvenes in September. Pomeroy on Thursday released the latest version of the bills collectively designed to help defined benefit pension plans continue to weather the funding issues arising out of the economic downturn, according to a news release from his office. Pomery included suggestions from various interested parties with whom he consulted after initially releasing the suggested bills in June 2009 (see Pomeroy Shares Pension Funding Reform Thoughts). The proposals cover both single-employer and Taft-Hartley plans. [The article provides summaries of both TITLE I -- Single Employer Plans Legislation and TITLE II -- Multiemployer Plans Legislation.]" (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)

Options for Troubled Multiemployer Pension Plans in a Post-PPA World (PDF)
Excerpt: "Over the past two years, multiemployer pension plans have been challenged from two directions -- they have had to learn to function under a very different set of funding rules under the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA)i while grappling with sharp investment losses and a severeeconomic slowdown. As a consequence, many trustees find themselves fighting an uphill battle to stabilize their multiemployer plans. This article focuses on the tools available to address the serious financial problems facing multiemployer pension plans now." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans via Groom Law Group)

Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 Bill Bails Out Union Pension Plans, Too
Excerpt: "Section 164 of the Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 provides that the government pay 80 cents on the dollar to corporate and union insurance plans for claims between $15,000 and $90,000 for retirees age 55 to 64. Union health insurance funds only have about 30 cents available to cover each dollar of anticipated claims, according to the Lewin Group and other research outfits." (The Examiner)

Important New Online Official Survey Asks How the New Retirement Plan IRS Determination Letter Process is Working, How It Might Be Improved
An IRS advisory council is studying the retirement plan document determination letter process. A new online survey form asks for the views of employers, benefits attorneys, third-party administrators, consultants, providers of master & prototype documents, and other stakeholders. In 2005 the IRS radically changed the determination letter process by creating 5-year and 6-year cycles for amending and filing individually designed, volume submitter, and M&P retirement plan documents. Further changes were made in 2007. The advisory council wants to know how the process is working and how it might be improved, including the process for making required amendments or restatements. To learn more or take the survey now, click on the following address or copy and paste it into your web browser: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=EL2r2msS3KJI07X_2fq67w6w_3d_3d (IRS Advisory Committee on Tax Exempt and Government Entities (TE/GE))

[Guidance Overview] Multiple Employer Plans: The Platinum Standard
Excerpt: "The acceptance by a full-scope ERISA section 3(21) fiduciary of [the] duties with respect to a qualified retirement plan such as a 401(k) plan is the gold standard of delegation of fiduciary responsibility (and liability) by a plan sponsor because it encompasses all other fiduciary duties. The only liability retained by the sponsor in these circumstances would be a residual oversight monitoring duty. . . . But what if a plan sponsor could jettison even its residual oversight monitoring duty of the full-scope ERISA section 3(21) named fiduciary? That kind of power would represent the platinum standard of delegation of fiduciary responsibility (and liability) by a plan sponsor. In fact, ERISA allows a plan sponsor to do exactly that. A plan sponsor can do so by joining a multiple employer plan (MEP) pursuant to section 413(c) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC)." (Morningstar, Inc.)

National Football League Says Retirees Don't Face Benefits Cut
Excerpt: "The National Football League and the players union are a long way from agreeing on a new collective bargaining agreement. One problem: they cannot even agree on what will happen if there isn't one. For weeks, DeMaurice Smith, the executive director of the union, has said that if the league plays without a salary cap in 2010 -- which looks increasingly likely unless a deal is completed by March -- the benefits and pension payments that the owners make to retired players could be slashed. . . . The league added that Smith had never raised the issue in conversations with Commissioner Roger Goodell. 'Simply put, those claims have no basis in fact,' Goodell wrote. 'The facts are that since at least the fall of 2007, the owners have consistently agreed and planned that they will not reduce the funding for pension or disability benefits for retired players.'" (The New York Times; free registration required)

[Opinion] Another Taxpayer Donation to GM and the Auto Workers Union
Excerpt: "Welcome to the General Motors bailout, part three -- or is it four, or five? It's hard to keep up, but this week the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation took over the pension liabilities of Delphi, the auto-parts spinoff of GM that has been working its way through Chapter 11 since 2005. As with the previous taxpayer rescues, this one includes a special favor for the United Auto Workers. Under the agreement, the PBGC will assume some $6.2 billion in pension liabilities from Delphi, including both hourly and salaried employees. That's the second biggest pension bailout in PBGC history, and it takes billions of liabilities off the books for GM. As Delphi's former parent, GM had agreed to take responsibility for billions of dollars of Delphi's pension obligations to its hourly employees." (The Wall Street Journal)

Union Pensions in the Red: Labor Chiefs Are Doing Better Than the Workers
Excerpt: "We've all read about underfunded corporate pensions, but here's an unreported story: Union pensions are even more in the red, and it's one reason union chiefs are so eager to rig organizing rules to gain more dues-paying members. Only last week, the country's largest union local re-opened the contract for its 145,000 members two years early and gave up raises and reduced retirement benefits for future hires. The SEIU's United Healthcare Workers East struck this unusual deal so employers could instead plug a gaping pension hole." (The Wall Street Journal)

Two 'Big Picture' Pension Policy Issues of Interest to IRS Addressed by Seventh Circuit During 2009 Spring Term (PDF)
Excerpt: "In March, the court decided Contilli v. Local 705, Int'l Bhd. of Teamsters Pension Fund, 559 F.3d 720 (7th Cir. 2009) (Easterbrook, J.). In July, the court decided Fry v. Exelon Corporation Cash Balance Plan, 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 14395 (7th Cir. 2009) (Easterbrook, J.). Contilli was a clear win for the IRS. Fry a resounding loss." (Ivins, Phillips & Barker)

Feds Say Adviser Embezzled from Union Pension Funds
Excerpt: "The president of AA Capital Partners embezzled $24 million from union pension funds, federal prosecutors say. John Orecchio siphoned $24 million from the $169 million he controlled for five pension funds, according to the criminal information. Orecchio allegedly embezzled the money from 2002 to 2006, as investment manager at AA Capital. He and AA Capital had control over the unions' ERISA plans and 'full discretion over the investment and re-investment of funds,' prosecutors said." (Courthouse News Service)

Summer 2009 Report of Results from Segal Study of Multiemployer Defined Contribution Plans (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "This survey summarizes the results of that study, which reflects information for just under 140 funds, all but two of which are Segal clients. The study sample represents 9 percent of all multiemployer plans. Key survey findings include: An overwhelming majority of the DC plans in the study (82 percent) are companions to DB plans sponsored by the same unions and contributing employers for the same active workers. Although trustees direct investments for more than half of the DC plans in the study (58 percent), a large percentage of the plans (42 percent) allow participant-directed investments. A large majority of the multiemployer plans in the study (83 percent) offer payment options in addition to lump sums at retirement." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

[Guidance Overview] Time is Near for Additional Reporting for Multiemployer Pension Plans Under PPA (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "The new reporting requirements for multiemployer pension plans added by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA) are effective for 2008 plan years. Thus, the additional information required to be reported on the Form 5500 must be provided by July 31, 2009 for a calendar year plan. Additional disclosures are also required to be provided to employers and union representatives. Affected pension funds need to assess whether they have the needed information and can meet the impending deadline, or need to apply for an extension for filing Form 5500." (Buck Consultants)

EBSA Soliciting Comments Concerning Information Collection for Three Multiemployer PTEs
Excerpt: "The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is soliciting comments concerning the information collections incorporated in three related prohibited transaction class exemptions (PTEs) that apply to certain transactions involving collectively bargained multiple employer and multiemployer plans. Written comment are due on or before September 4, 2009. This request covers information collections contained in three related prohibited transaction class exemptions: PTE 76?1, PTE 77?10 and PTE 78?6. All three of these exemptions cover transactions that were recognized by the Department of Labor as being well-established, reasonable and customary transactions in which collectively bargained multiple employer plans (principally, multiemployer plans, but also including other collectively bargained multiple employer plans) frequently engage in order to carry out their purposes." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)

Noteworthy Developments of Interest to Sponsors of Multiemployer Health Plans (PDF)
1 page. This trend report provides a brief look at: Recent developments in health care and the multiemployer marketplace. Data including consumer price index (CPI) and Segal health trends. Context for what's happening to health plans. Share information on what other Segal multiemployer plans are doing. (The Segal Group, Inc.)

[Guidance Overview] WRERA for the Multiemployer Actuary (PDF)
Pages 1, 7-8 of 8 pages. Excerpt: "[The Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 (WRERA)] was signed into law on Dec. 23, 2008, and pension actuaries who practice in the multiemployer world have been analyzing and dissecting it raw for the past few months. . . . WRERA's provisions for multiemployer pension plans allow them some relief from PPA's rules -- but only for 2009 plan years. This relief will give multiemployer plans more time to recover from the market declines incurred in 2008. One of the most important changes was to allow trustees to elect to have the plan's funded status for plan years that begin during the period Oct. 1, 2008, through Sept. 30, 2009, be the same as the plan's funded status for the prior plan year." (American Academy of Actuaries)

GASB Issues Guidance on Multi-Employer OPEB Plans
Excerpt: "The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) has issued an exposure draft of a proposed statement that addresses issues related to the use of the alternative measurement method and the frequency and timing of measurements by employers that participate in agent multiple-employer other postemployment benefit (OPEB) plans. The proposed Statement would amend paragraphs 33 - 35 of Statement No. 45, Accounting and Financial Reporting by Employers for Postemployment Benefits Other Than Pensions, to permit an agent employer that has an individual-employer OPEB plan with fewer than 100 total plan members to use the alternative measurement method, at its option, regardless of the number of total plan members in the agent multiple-employer OPEB plan in which it participates." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)

Results from Survey of Calendar-Year Plans' 2009 Zone Status and Freeze Elections, Spring 2009 (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "The market downturn has had a dramatic impact on the zone status of multiemployer pension plans. The [survey] found that, compared to one year earlier, many more plans are now in the red zone and the yellow zone while the number of plans in the green zone has dropped precipitously. In addition, the survey found that the average PPA'06 funded percentage for calendar-year plans declined. The survey also reports the number of calendar-year plans that elected to freeze their zone status, as allowed by the Worker, Retiree and Employer Recovery Act of 2008." (The Segal Group, Inc.)

Cautions To Employers Considering a Multiemployer Plan
Excerpt: "Are you a small employer that has been faced with the possibility of participating in a multiemployer plan for your union employees? If so, before you sign up, you should carefully consider the pros and cons (especially cons!) of such a plan." (Chang, Ruthenberg & Long)

[Guidance Overview] Office of Labor Management Standards Extends Comment Period for Proposed Regulations on LM-2 and LM-3 Forms
Excerpt: "The regulations were issued on April 21, 2009 and orginally, the comment period was scheduled to end on May 21, 2009. The new deadline is June 22, 2009. The notice of proposed rulemaking proposes to withdraw a rule published in the Federal Register on January 21, 2009, pertaining to the filing by labor organizations of the Form LM-2, an annual financial report required by the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959, as amended (LMRDA)." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Provision of WRERA Funding Relief Election Procedures (PDF)
5 pages. Excerpt: "These developments affect sponsors of and participants in qualified multiemployer defined benefit plans. They do not affect single-employer plans, multiple employer plans, governmental plans or church plans that do not elect to be covered by ERISA ('non-electing church plans'). . . . On December 23, 2008, President Bush signed into law the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 (WRERA). In response to the current economic crisis, WRERA provides welcome funding relief for multiemployer plans. For plan years beginning on or after October 1, 2008, and before October 1, 2009, WRERA allows plans to temporarily freeze their funding status based on the prior year's actuarial certification. In addition, the sponsor of a multiemployer plan may elect for a plan year beginning in 2008 or 2009 to extend the plan's applicable funding improvement plan or rehabilitation plan by three years.The IRS recently issued Notice 2009-31 to provide guidance relating to the elections offered under WRERA." (Prudential Retirement)

[Official Guidance] Text of 'IRS Retirement News for Employers' -- Spring 2009 Edition (PDF)
14 pages. Excerpt: "The EP Team Audit (Large Case Program) web pages have been updated to include: EPTA Trends and Tips (now organized according to plan type): Common Trends Across All Plan Types; Multiemployer Plan Trends; 401(k) Plan Trends; Defined Benefit Plan Trends; 403(b) Tax-Sheltered Annuity Plan, 457 Plan and Governmental Plan Trends; 'EPTA Trends and Tips' includes links to videos on the EPTA program and on finding, fixing and avoiding plan errors; Internal Controls Questionnaire - Examples of questions asked by EP examiners to understand the system procedures and internal controls; Taxpayer Documentation Guide - This guide, developed by EPTA agents and outside practitioners, provides a comprehensive list of documents that need to be made available for examination." (Internal Revenue Service)

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