Demosthenes

As an option, If you work with the vendor, they'll help you set up reference marks in the margins that will tell the folder/stuffers how many pages for this participatnt's statement. Requires a bit more versatile reporting tool than a simple "convert to pdf" application. Most vendors will point you to a reporting package that is compatible with thier print/mail faciliaty. word of caution, to make it economical, statement volumes need to be fairly high.

A quick search of recent news articles has turned up the following list of companies that have suspended their ER match. Sears http://www.businessinsurance.com/cgi-bin/n...05&id=14914 Motorola http://www.wsbt.com/news/local/37071614.html Starbucks http://www.wsbt.com/news/local/37071614.html Fed Ex http://www.wsbt.com/news/local/37071614.html GM http://www.wsbt.com/news/local/37071614.html Ford http://www.wsbt.com/news/local/37071614.html NCR http://www.wsbt.com/news/local/37071614.html GateHouse Media http://www.planadviser.com/investing/article.php/3436 Denver Post http://www.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/...29/daily19.html Eastman Kodak http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/21/your-mon...1retire.html?hp Resorts International http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/21/your-mon...1retire.html?hp Unisys http://www.usnews.com/blogs/planning-to-re...401k-match.html Is this just media hype, some high profile companies that make for a good sound byte or half column article, or are folks seeing the same thing in their practices? Trying to determine if the trend is widespread enough to justify an attempt to study and quantify the effects of reduced in flows on various market sectors. I'm also wondering how many of these Companies eliminated DB plans and swapped in a 401(k) or enhanced 401(k) plan, in order to soften the blow.

A quick Google; Worrell Enterprises looks to have been a family publishing operation with a number of newspaper outlet. A cursory search indicates that Worrell Enterprises was acquired by Media General in two pieces, one in 1986, another in 1995. Media General (NYSE:MEG) is still alive and kicking.

I have seen TPA's sign Letters of intent with Mutual Fund Companies whereby the Mutual Fund Company waives loads if the TPA places X$ in the fund in Y time, usually $1.0m in one year. It can be part of a sub accounting agreement with the fund company or a separate letter agreement. The problem is that if the TPA doesn't hit the minimum deposit level, the loads are applied retroactively. Not a pretty sight

Couple of quick thoughts, Method - straight purchase or earn out? I'd go with an earn out that way the current owners have an incentive to work for a smooth transition. Quality of receivables - age of receivables and likelihood of actually collecting is far more important that their appearance on the balance sheet. Letters of intent - are minimums to qualify for no load purchases unsatisfied? How long does the grace period run and how likely is it that you will meet the minimums?

Looks like a blatant ploy by the broker to get in front of a lot of prospects in a captive audience setting. Flame away if you like but IMHO the insurance agent is trying to direct sell to the participants and make the employer foot the bill for the appointments.

So, the sales rep proposes that you separate your group into a high and low risk group with separate coverages. The high risk group gets better coverage, the low risk group presumably gets equivalent coverage and yet your overall costs decline? Nice trick, I'd like to know how it's done too. As far as being non-discriminatory, it may be ERISA non-discriminatory by design but who is likely to end up in the high risk group? Older workers, overweight workers, black workers, anyone with a statistically larger chance of becoming a claimant. ERISA may not be your only worry, the bad PR could be a nightmare.

It may be that the plan is using an accounting method sometimes known as unitized or equivalent share accounting. If that's the case, the fund is actually a mix of shares and cash which buys and sells units based on a unit value that fluctuates based on the change in share price and value of any uninvested cash. The nuts and bolts of unitized accounting are too long for a message board but your Plan Administrator or Schwab should be able to provide explanations and illustrations. Although this method of accounting has become less common as recordkeeping and trading systems have become more sophisticated, it is still used and can have the advantage of lower administrative costs. The most visible disadvantage is the one your already seeing, the unit value and share price are not equal to one another and it's difficult for participants to track changes in value.

http://www.irs.gov/retirement/article/0,,id=111397,00.html Terminating a SEP If the time comes when a SEP no longer suits the purposes of your business, consult with your financial institution partner to determine if another type of retirement plan (or, perhaps, no plan at all) might better suit your needs. To terminate a SEP, notify the financial institution that you chose to handle the SEP that you will no longer be making contributions and that you want to terminate the contract or agreement with it. It is a good idea to notify your employees that the plan has been discontinued. You do not need to give any notice to the IRS that the SEP has been terminated

This is a related party sale and IMHO does constitute a wash sale, see http://www.fairmark.com/capgain/wash/related.htm "The tax law doesn't allow you to claim a loss when you sell stock (or anything else) to a family member, or to an entity controlled by you or your family (such as a corporation, partnership or trust). This rule may apply if you try to avoid the wash sale rule by purchasing replacement stock in an IRA, or having your spouse buy replacement property. The result can be worse than if the wash sale rule applied." Section 9(a)(1)(A) and Rule 10b-5 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 For the purpose of creating a false or misleading appearance of active trading in any security registered on a national securities exchange, or a false or misleading appearance with respect to the market for any such security, (A) to effect any transaction in such security which involves no change in the beneficial ownership thereof http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p550.pdf

If this is a defined contribution plan where you have made a loan of the participant's vested interest to the participant, the operation of the loans after default, and the impact of that loan on the remaining vested balance, indicates a serious defect in the Plan's operation. My advice is to engage ERISA counsel immediately.

If I'm reading this correctly, you are contending that the accruing interest is absorbing the participants remaining dollar balance? e.g Participant has a 10k balance, takes a 5k loan, still has 5k in cash in the plan. They then terminate. Interetst on the loan accrues at 10%/year. In 10 years the loan now has 5k principle, 5k in accrued interest. 5k in accrued interest wipes out 5k in remaining cash. Is that the theory?

If she is an independant contractor, then she is no longer an employee and has, in fact, separated from service. She has terminated her employment. The key determinant is whether or not the independant contractor rules apply. Payment by 1099 is certainly a good sign, a W-2 by the Employer would be a bad sign. The IRS has devoted a lot of effort to defining employees. common law employees, and contractors. Here's a basic primer http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/articl...d=99921,00.html But, the employer has to make that call. I'd request that the employer certify that this individual has terminated employment and have the employer request the distribution. Employee versus Contractor is a snake pit, it's been abused by every industry out there and the IRS finds it ripe for manipulation. Having been a Contractor for about the last 3 years (really, really really! Different companies, assignments and everything!!!), I've seen a lot of variation and I can say that the former employee who sits in the same desk doing the same job as a contractor, is least likely to pass the sniff test from the IRS. But again, the employer is the one crawling out on that limb.

Couple of starter locations. National Center for Employee Ownership http://www.nceo.org/ Financial Accounting Standards Board http://www.fasb.org/ Search for Employee Stock Option Plans If you really want the nuts and guts, you may have to go to the paid services, but this will at least give you a flavor P.S. Are you in the Northeast or did you make the transition to the South?

Just looking for some opinions; Assume it's web delivered, encrypted, all the neccessary permissions can be obtained etc. If there was a company capable of providing an electronic feed of Self Directed Brokerage Account info, how much demand would there be for that product? Would it be something you'd be willing to pay for or would it result in a fee reduction to the Plan Sponsor? Would it give a registered rep an advantage in the market, either because of advantageous pricing or just because it makes broker A better to work with than broker B?