What's New - 3/96

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Previous Month ~ March 1996 ~ Following Month

3/31: Cafeteria Plans -- Beyond Lime Jello, a complete but brief introduction to cafeteria plans by attorney Kathleen Meagher

3/30: Receive a free automatic alert via e-mail whenever a new press release is posted on the Press Releases Web page published by the Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration!

3/30: Receive a free automatic alert via e-mail whenever something new is posted on the What's New in PBGC page on the PBGC's web site!

3/24: PBGC Technical Update 96-3: a set of questions and answers on the annual financial and actuarial information that must be filed with the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation by companies with large underfunding, waivers or funding violations (under section 4010 of ERISA). The first filings are due April 15, for calendar-year controlled groups and controlled groups with mixed fiscal years.

3/22: Supreme Court opinion issued March 19 rules that an employer, acting as fiduciary of its benefit plans, violated ERISA by tricking the participants to transfer to another company that went belly-up, thereby losing their benefits under the employer's welfare plan; Court decided that the participants had standing to bring an action against the fiduciary under ERISA section 502(a)(3) for appropriate equitable relief. Previously many commentators thought the Court's decision in Massachusetts Mutual v. Russell precluded such individual relief, and that only a plan could bring an action against a fiduciary for damages caused to the plan. Three justices (Thomas, O'Connor and Scalia) filed a dissenting opinion. (Thanks to Blair Brininger for passing along this news!)

3/17: The American Society of Pension Actuaries released on March 15 comments to the Internal Revenue Service on the IRS proposed examination guidelines on required minimum distributions and defined benefit pension plan limits. The guidelines are designed to aid IRS revenue agents in auditing pension and profit sharing plans in these areas.

3/17: The American Society of Pension Actuaries announced on March 14 that it has submitted proposals to the Internal Revenue Service for a correction program that permits ineligible employers who have adopted 403(b) plans to preserve the benefits for their employees. (Such programs legally can be adopted only by public schools and "501(c)(3)" tax- exempt entities.)

3/15: Receive a free automatic alert via e-mail whenever the BenefitsLink What's New page is updated!

3/15: Receive a free automatic alert via e-mail whenever a new ad appears on the BenefitsLink Jobs Available (Benefits Help Wanted) page!

3/15: Receive a free automatic alert via e-mail whenever a new issue of the Reish & Luftman Report on Retirement Plans of Tax-Exempt Organizations is published on BenefitsLink!

3/14: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation Web Site is up and running at http://www.pbgc.gov/.

3/13: DOL issues information letter that says an employer that participates in the IRS' "TVC" program to voluntarily fix employee-only 403(b) contribution problems doesn't automatically cause the contribution arrangement to become a Title I ERISA "plan." (Thanks to Fred Reish of the Reish & Luftman law firm for this contribution!)

3/11: Examine a splendid new publication, Blair Brininger, P.C. February 1996 ERISA Newsletter, from a Houston ERISA litigation attorney

3/7: Proposed Class Exemption to Permit the Restoration of Delinquent Participant Contributions to Plans, from U.S. Department of Labor (3/7/96)

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