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Continuing Ed Material for IRS EP Personnel: Defined Benefit Floor-Offset Arrangements and Other Plan Designs (PDF)

74 pages; dated Summer 2013. "At the end of this chapter, you will be able to: [1] Explain how floor-offset plans operate, including cash balance plans; [2] Determine if the floor-offset plan language is correct; [3] Determine if a floor-offset plan satisfies coverage and meaningful benefit requirements; and [4] Understand the top-heavy rules."

Continuing Ed Material for IRS EP Personnel: Defined Benefit Plans - Schedule SB (Form 5500) and Related Schedules (PDF)

46 pages; dated Winter FY2014. "Documents that assist in the examination of a defined benefit plan are the: [1] Form 5500, Form 5 500-EZ, Form 5500-SF; [2] Schedule SB attachment to the Form 5500; and [3] Actuarial Valuation Report. These documents are used by the examiner in conjunction with personnel records, trust account statements, and other source information in the proper determination of the plan's mini mum funding requirement, deductible contribution, benefits paid and actuarial valuation. This chapter describes potential audit issues that may be detected during the analysis of the Schedule SB (Form 5500)."

SAG-AFTRA Health Plan Settles Lawsuit Led by Ed Asner

"As part of the agreement, SAG-AFTRA will pay $15 million to older members of SAG-AFTRA who lost their coverage in the guild's health plan due to changes made in 2020 that raised the amount of annual earnings required to qualify for the plan and removing members' ability to count residuals towards that earnings threshold."

Older Higher Ed Faculty Confident in Their Retirement Savings, But Few Have Taken Action to Plan Income Strategy

"Eight in 10 (82 percent) pre-retiree faculty members (age 55+) are confident they will have enough money to live comfortably in retirement, only 17 percent have taken action to create a retirement income plan. This lack of planning could result in faculty members nearing the common retirement age of 65 being less inclined to retire, as well as unprepared for long-term expenses and turning their assets into regular income. The promising news: They recognize the need for guidance."

Continuing Ed Material for IRS EP Personnel: Overview of Hybrid Plans (Cash Balance and Pension Equity Plans) (PDF)

54 pages, dated 2013. Excerpt: "At the end of this chapter ... you will be able to: [1] Define a hybrid plan. [2] Identify the primary features and requirements of a cash balance plan and a pension equity plan. [3] Explain the 'A plus B' method. [4] Define principal and interest credits. [5] Explain the interest crediting standards for cash balance plans, including the market rate and the preservation of capital requirements. [6] Calculate the hypothetical account balance when given a plan formula. [7] Calculate the accrued benefit. [8] Explain the similarly situated employee requirement. [9] Explain the special vesting rule for cash balance plans. [10] Explain the present value of the accrued benefit for cash balance plans. [11] Determine if the plan complies with the 133-1/3% rule."

EDS ERISA Litigation Update and Comments

Excerpt: As reported on The ERISA Blog, the District Court for the Eastern District of Texas rejected a proposed settlement in the EDS litigation because it was not in the best in interest of the class members. Under the proposed settlement, the class members would only receive two or three cents on the dollar of their losses. So the court concluded that a reasonable class member would rather risk litigation rather than accept such a discounted settlement.

IRS Employee Plans News, Special Edition, May 2009 (PDF)

2 pages. Excerpt: The proposed regulations allow an employer that suffers a substantial business hardship to amend its plan to reduce or suspend the plan's safe harbor nonelective contributions if all the following requirements are satisfied: [1] the plan is amended prior to the end of the plan year to reduce or suspend the safe harbor nonelective contributions; [2] the plan as amended, provides that the ADP test (and ACP test if applicable to the plan) will be satisfied for the entire plan year in which the safe harbor nonelective contributions are reduced or suspended; [3] all eligible employees must be given a 'supplemental notice' that explains the reduction or suspension of future safe harbor nonelective contributions and its consequences, the procedures for changing employee elections and the effective date of the amendment .... [three more conditions not shown here -- ed.]

A Great Loss to Our Industry: Ed Salyers, RIP

"Ed will be fondly remembered by many in the NTSA, as well as by teachers and administrators who attended ASBO meetings over the years. He never missed an ASBO, whether it was during his tenure with the IRS, or later as a guest speaker."

IRS Employee Plans News: Digital Form 15315, Annual Certification for Multiemployer Defined Benefit Plans

"The IRS Employee Plans recently digitalized Form 15315 to allow you to electronically report the actuarial certification of a multiemployer defined benefit plan's funding status. The Mobile Friendly Forms webpage has a glitch that won't allow you to enter a date beyond Dec. 31, 2025, or plan numbers beginning with 0; for example, 002. Note: The IRS is now accepting Form 15315 certifications by mail, fax or email."

Continuing Ed Material for IRS EP Personnel: Plan Terminations (PDF)

103 pages; dated Winter FY2014. "At the end of this chapter, you should be able to: [1] Determine and verify the date of termination for defined contribution and defined benefit plans (both covered and non-covered PBGC plans), the timeliness of a determination application, and the permanency requirements for plans. [2] List the accelerated vesting requirements (complete, partial, complete discontinuance). [3] Verify trust asset information. [4] Determine the funding obligations under IRC 412. [5] List the consequences and procedures for plans that are underfunded or overfunded. [6] List the prohibited transaction and unrelated business taxable income rules and determine how such rules protect the interests of plan participants. [7] Determine the continuing 401(a) compliance requirements for plans to remain qualified, including how specialists verify which prior law changes a plan must be amended for."

Ed Asner's SAG-AFTRA Health Plan Lawsuit Likely to Keep Moving Forward

"Just a day after Ed Asner's death at 91-years-old, it seems a lawsuit he [led] against the SAG-AFTRA Health Fund will survive a motion to dismiss filed by the plan and its trustees.... The suit said 'draconian' changes were made amid the COVID-19 pandemic causing premiums to skyrocket and medical coverage to stripped from elderly guild members.... U.S. District Judge Christina A. Snyder on [August 30] ... [issued] a tentative ruling to the parties that would allow the claims to proceed." [Asner v. The SAG-AFTRA Health Fund, No. 20-10914 (C.D. Cal. Aug. 30, 2021)]

House Ed and Workforce Chair Calls on DOL to Rescind Fiduciary Rule, MHPAEA Regs

"[T]he chairman of the House Education and Workforce Committee called for the Secretary to 'rescind or withdraw' the fiduciary rule finalized under the Biden administration.... Chairman Walberg's letter to Secretary Chavez-DeRemer also urged her [to] rescind or withdraw the requirements under the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act ... He said the Committee also strongly supports the creation of association health plans (AHPs) through the enactment of the Association Health Plans Act and DOL's rulemaking on AHPs."

Comprehensive Directory of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) News for Employee Benefit Plans

BenefitsLink presents a cumulative directory of Official guidance issued by IRS, DOL, HHS and other federal agencies Laws and bills from federal, state and local governments. Analysis and explanations published online by law firms, consulting firms and others. Benefits-related items from popular news media and trade publications. Use the checkboxes and buttons at the top of the directory to narrow the view to either Retirement or Health & Welfare Plans, or to to one or more of the listed types of items. This directory is updated each day as new items are added.

Higher Ed Institutions Now Have More Options with the New HRA Regs

"The new regulations help universities by allowing them to use Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRAs) to reimburse health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket health expenses for students in conjunction with any kind of individual health insurance, including fully insured student health coverage and individual health insurance purchased by students on or off a health insurance exchange."

The Guy Who Quit Goldman Sachs in a New York Times Op-Ed Now Wants to Fix Your 401(k)

"Last month, [Greg] Smith joined Blooom, an Overland Park, Kansas-based firm ... [and] will serve as the firm's president.... Blooom's main offering is a service that, for $15 a month, will take control of your 401(k) and manage it for you. (The fee drops to $1 a month for 401(k) accounts of less than $20,000.) The company uses a computer program to devise an asset allocation (bonds vs. stocks, for example) for each of its clients. It then looks at the investment options in your 401(k) plan, deciphers what they are, and separates those choices into categories. Blooom then, essentially, picks out the fund in each category with the lowest fees and puts your money there. Blooom's investing algorithm doesn't seem to take into account how those particular investments have performed."

2013 Continuing Ed Material for IRS EP Personnel: Plan Qualification Changes, 2009 Cumulative List (PDF)

47 pages, dated 2013. Excerpt: "This chapter summarizes certain requirements on the 2009 Cumulative List. Some topics were chosen because they were not covered in prior CPEs, even though these topics were listed on older Cumulative Lists. Other topics were chosen if they were recent changes, such as being listed on the 2008 or 2009 Cumulative List."

2013 Continuing Ed Material for IRS EP Personnel: Plan Qualification, Recent Updates to the Cumulative List (2010-2011) (PDF)

18 pages, dated 2013. Excerpt: "This breakout topic is intended to introduce the new items that first appear on the 2010 and 2011 [Cumulative Lists (CLs)]. For each item, we will list: [1] Its Code section in the order it appears on the CLs, [2] Whether the item is an interim (required) or discretionary (optional) amendment, [3] Whether or not the plan must adopt an interim amendment, [4] The amendment's effective and due dates, and [5] A description of its related law change or guidance."

2013 Continuing Ed Material for IRS EP Personnel: Plan Qualification, Rev. Proc. 2007-44 (PDF)

67 pages, dated 2013. Excerpt: "At the end of this chapter, you will be able to: [1] Describe the remedial amendment concepts, [2] Describe the remedial amendment period (RAP), [3] Identify the remedial amendment cycles (RAC) for both individually designed and pre-approved plans, [4] Identify when an interim amendment is required, and [5] Describe on cycle and off cycle determination letter filings."

Continuing Ed Material for IRS EP Personnel: Section 401(k) and(m) -- ADP/ACP Tests, Correction Methods under EPCRS (PDF)

59 pages, dated 2013. Excerpt: "At the end of this lesson, you should be able to: [1] Determine whether an employer correctly applied the ADP/ACP test. [2] Determine whether an employer timely corrected for an ADP/ACP test failure. [3] State the correction methods under Rev. Proc. 2008-50 when a plan does not timely correct for failing the ADP/ACP test. [4] Determine whether the employer made the correct Qualified Non-elective Contributions (QNECs)/Qualified Matching Contributions (QMACs) under Rev. Proc. 2008-50. [5] Determine whether the employer properly applied the one-to-one correction method. [6] Determine whether the employer properly coordinated multiple failures under a section 401(k) plan."

Continuing Ed Material for IRS EP Personnel: Compensation Definition under Qualified Retirement Plans (PDF)

50 pages; dated Summer 2013. Excerpt: "Compensation is used for many different purposes in qualified retirement plans. In this chapter, we will describe and compare the different definitions of compensation that are required or permitted to be used for various plan purposes. The chapter will also provide helpful examples which will show how we apply these definitions and safe harbors during an audit or determination review."