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February 16, 2004 - 13,655 subscribers
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ASC - QUALITY SOFTWARE FOR THE PENSION INDUSTRY FOR OVER 20 YEARS ASC provides complete automation for the pension office, including: DC/401(k) and DB administration and valuation systems, sophisticated Compliance Testing, DV Direct Daily Valuation, Advanced Information Manager Database (AIM), and Single-Step Processing. All ASC Technical Support Members were experienced Pension Administrators or Actuaries before joining ASC-- and most have been with ASC for over 10 years.
(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
A 401(k) Picks a Mutual Fund. Who Gets a Perk?
Excerpt: "Federal and state regulators have begun to investigate whether mutual funds are being included in 401(k) retirement plans for the wrong reasons. Instead of selecting funds because they are the best available, regulators say, some consultants and plan administrators may be choosing them because of hidden financial incentives." (New York Times; one-time registration required)
Opinion: New Light on Hidden Fees
Excerpt: "Some fees really pay for bribes (and you thought your financial counselor had your best interests at heart when picking funds. Cough, choke)." (Jane Bryant Quinn on MSNBC)
One-Page Chart Comparing House and Senate Pension Interest Rate Legislation (PDF)
Comparison of the provisions of House-passed H.R. 3108 and the Senate-passed H.R. 3108. (Benefits Group of Davis and Hartman LLP for the American Benefits Council)
Background and Talking Points on Pension Interest Rate Issue (PDF)
2 pages. (American Benefits Council)
Text of Updated Coalition Letter to Congress On 30 Year Treasury Pension Funding Relief
Excerpt: "On behalf of the thousands of employers that we represent and millions of their employees, we strongly urge you to act, as soon as possible, on final legislation to replace the defunct 30-year Treasury bond interest rate used for pension calculations with a long-term, high quality corporate bond rate. This interest rate issue is a problem that ... will continue to impede our nation's economic recovery and threaten the retirement security of millions of American workers." (ERISA Industry Committee)
The (K)oncept Plan: Designing Defined Contribution Plans That Work for Employees
Excerpt: "[W]e will discuss numerous commitment devices that can be used to help people behave in a way that is conducive to their long-term financial security. There are many heuristic tools (short cuts) that can be employed to finesse participants into actions they acknowledge are desirable but seem unwilling to take." (Steve Lansing on 401kHelpCenter.com)
Another Question is Answered in the Davis-Bacon Act Q&A Column
How soon after salary deduction occurs must an employer send an employee's contributions and the company's match to the plan's custodian or trustee? (BenefitsLink.com)
Another Question is Answered in the Estate Planning for IRAs Q&A Column
Does your response change to Q&A 2 if we use the word 'transfer' rather than 'rollover'? If the non-spouse beneficiary wants to transfer the IRA to another financial institution, the tax law seems to allow this. Also, if the non-spouse beneficiary elects to stretch out distributions from the inherited IRA over his lifetime, does the election eliminate the ability to make such transfers? (BenefitsLink.com)
Cooper v. IBM Cash Balance Plan Case Developments
Excerpt: "Judge Patrick Murphy has issued a Memorandum and Order in the case of Cooper v. IBM Personal Pension Plan and IBM Corporation. The Memorandum and Order grants plaintiffs' motion to strike defendants' attempt to assert 'an affirmative defense out of time, or, in the alternative, to compel discovery and for extension of time.'" (Attorney B. Janell Grenier on BenefitsBlog)
Social Security Bill Passes House, Heads for White House
Excerpt: "There are 3 key provisions in the bill that impact public employees: 1. Closes the last day of employment provision that allows a non-covered worker to work one day under Social Security and avoid the Government Pension Offset (GPO) provision. The new provision, which become effective July 1, 2004, would require an individual to work for 5 years under Social Security to avoid the GPO. There are transition rules for those within 5 years of retirement." (National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems)
Illinois to Push Early Retirements for State Workers
Excerpt: "The new incentive program is designed to induce up to 2,000 workers to leave the payroll at an estimated annual savings of up to $25 million, administration sources said. They pledged that Blagojevich's program would be far more modest and manageable than one designed by his predecessor that was laden with so many giveaways that about 11,000 workers took advantage of it when only about 5,000 to 6,000 were expected to." (Chicago Tribune; one-time registration required)
Pension Fund Deals Probed in Philadelphia
Excerpt: "Philadelphia's pension fund, while struggling to find enough cash for its future retirees, handed millions in investments to politically wired firms linked to lawyer Ronald A. White, an Inquirer review has found. Several were hired even after consultants warned they had a history of poor performance, the review shows." (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
Overview: Impact of Plan Restatements on EGTRRA Good-Faith Amendments
Excerpt: "The IRS has concluded that a GUST plan restatement should not be treated by IRS as superseding a previously adopted EGTRRA plan amendment that is not incorporated or reflected in the restatement, provided the plan is operated in a manner consistent with the EGTRRA plan amendment." (SunGard Corbel)
Resolving the Lost Participant Problem
Excerpt: "After many years of ignoring the issue, the IRS, DOL and Congress have provided some options to assist administrators in dealing with lost participants. In addition, practitioners and companies have designed other methods. The following explanation discusses the various methods available ..." (SunGard Corbel)
Washington Post Early Retirement Program Means Loss of '1,000 Years of Journalistic Experience'
Excerpt: "To compensate for the drain of institutional memory - Michael Getler, The Post's ombudsman, has calculated the loss at about 1,000 years of 'cumulative journalistic experience' - the newspaper has had to make accommodations, some of which have prompted double-takes among reporters and readers." (New York Times; one-time registration required)
Americans' Future Retirement Security: Implications of the EBRI-ERF Retirement Security Model
Excerpt: "[F]or the median individual in birth cohorts on the verge of retirement there is little possibility of them saving enough to supplement the simulated retirement wealth to provide adequate retirement income to meet basic needs. However, younger-birth cohorts would benefit from the increased years of contributions and would have savings targets that are feasible for most groups.' Full text available for purchase at http://www.ebri.org/store/ebriib.htm (Employee Benefit Research Institute)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Yale Law Professor Discusses Potential Legal Issues Arising from Same-Sex Marriage
Excerpt: "The news that g.ay and l.esbian couples will be able to apply for marriage licenses and legally marry in Massachusetts starting in May raises important and largely unresolved legal questions about the rights of states to formulate their own family law policies versus their conflicting obligations to recognize legal relationships entered into in other states." (Washington Post)
What the Democratic Candidates Are Saying About Executive Compensation (PDF)
3 pages. (HR Policy Association)
Talking Federal Tax Simplicity, But Building a Maze
Excerpt: "As Chris Bergin, the chief executive of Tax Analysts Inc., the nonprofit publisher of Tax Notes, put it, 'Instead of tearing the income tax out by its roots, Congress has been watering and fertilizing it.' For decades, Congress has used the tax code to engineer social goals and hand out favors, a trend that accelerated during the Clinton administration and became supercharged during the administration of George W. Bush ..." (New York Times; one-time registration required)
Newly Posted Events
401(k) Plan & Form 5500 Workshops - UPDATE
Nationwide on February 13, 2004
presented by SunGard Corbel
Top Heavy Rules - A Modern Prospective
Nationwide on March 16, 2004
presented by SunGard Corbel
Dental Benefit Summit
in Georgia on March 17, 2004
presented by Institute for International Research
9th Annual Medicaid Drug Rebate Program
in Colorado on September 2, 2004
presented by Institute for International Research
Customer Service and Claims Management for Health Insurers
in Florida on March 29, 2004
presented by Institute for International Research
Obesity Management: Prevention, Treatment and Coverage Strategies for Health Plans and Employers
in Texas on May 19, 2004
presented by Institute for International Research
WEB Benefits Solutions Conference - Controlling Costs in an Ever-changing Legislative and Regulatory Environment
in Virginia on April 22, 2004
presented by Worldwide Employee Benefits Network (WEB)
Overview of Form 5500 eSeminar
Nationwide on April 6, 2004
presented by McKay Hochman
Newly Posted Press Releases
Benefit Advisors Network Adds Medical Director
(Benefit Advisors Network)
SPARK Institute Comments Against SEC’S “Hard” 4 PM Close Proposal, Suggests Alternative
(SPARK Institute)
Snowbarger Named PBGC Acting Executive Director
(U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Public Affairs, Washington, D.C.)
Cynthia R. Marotz Joins Firm as Financial Advisor
(Allen & Company of Florida)
RxEOB And Pharmacy BenefitDirect Partner To Integrate Consumer-Directed Software Into A Common Pharmacy Benefit Management Platform
(RxEOB and Pharmacy BenefitDirect)
Movers and Shakers: Newly Posted Announcements of Promotions and New Personnel
(Post Yours!)
Cynthia R. Marotz (Allen & Company of Florida)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
ERISA Pension Analyst / Paralegal / Plan Administrator
for Retirement Plan Administration and ERISA Specialists
in IL
Account Executive
for Transamerica
in CA
Compensation Program Manager
for Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
in WA
Employee Benefits Attorney
for Graydon Head & Ritchey LLP
in OH
Defined Contribution Plan Administrator
for MK Consulting, Inc.
in ALL STATES
Senior Actuarial Analyst
for Invesmart, Inc.
in OH
Enrolled Actuary
for Invesmart, Inc.
in OH
Defined Benefit Calculation Analyst
for Diversified Investment Advisors
in ALL STATES
Defined Contribution Salesperson
for CitiStreet
in MA
Employee Benefits - Account Manager
for Litchfield Insurance Group
in CT
Client Service Representative
for TPA Firm in Southeastern MI
in MI
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