| The BenefitsLink Newsletter - Retirement Plans Edition |  |
May 23, 2001
Today's sponsor: EBIA's 401(k) Plans Manual (click)
Written by employee benefits attorneys, this manual for employers, administrators and advisors includes a clear explanation of applicable legal requirements, expert analysis of "gray" compliance issues, numerous Q&As and examples to help illustrate how the rules work, plan administration tips, charts and tables, sample plan documents and forms and the full text of relevant statutes, regulations, legislative history other official documents.
N.J. Court Appoints Independent Fiduciary To Manage Abandoned Washington, D.C. Pension Fund
Press release. Excerpt: "The International Brotherhood of Law Enforcement and Security Officers (IBLESO) in New York City was a labor union representing security guards until it ceased operations in 1987.... The pension plan has been 'orphaned' since 1987 after the criminal conviction of trustees Ivan Forde and Naomi Garnett that year.... Replacement trustees were never appointed to manage and operate the pension plan." (U.S. Department of Labor)
North Carolina State Employees To Announce Lawsuit Over Pension Funds
Excerpt: "North Carolina's largest state employees group plans to sue the state over Gov. Mike Easley's decision to withhold $151 million from pension funds.... Easley pulled the contributions to help meet a projected $850 million shortfall in state spending. The shortfall is largely the result of slowing tax collections in the softening economy." (MSNBC.com)
Overview: IRS Eases Rules for Retirement Account Distributions
Excerpt: "In January of this year, the IRS issued new, and somewhat less complicated rules, for those situations. Be aware of the several significant changes made to the rules. We will highlight those we think are the most important." (Reish Luftman McDaniel & Reicher)
Survey: Nearly One-Third of Job Changers Cash Out of Retirement Plans, Losing Billions
Press release from Putnam Investments. Excerpt: "Thirty percent of investors who faced a choice about a balance in their retirement plan said they took a cash payment over other options, like rolling over the money into an individual retirement account (IRA). Among investors 18 to 34 years old, 39 percent took the cash option." (Business Wire)
Dogged Fight by Democrats Delays Tax Bill
Excerpt: "Lacking the votes to block the $1.35 trillion tax cut moving through Congress, Democrats in the Senate delayed its passage today to make their argument one final time that the plan is fiscally irresponsible and excessively tilted to the wealthy. Democrats offered dozens of amendments, all defeated, gumming up what Republicans had hoped would be a quick path to passage for the tax measure." (New York Times; free registration required)
GOP Senator May Switch Parties
Excerpt: "Republican Sen. James Jeffords of Vermont, a moderate in a party of conservatives, controls the balance of power in the 50-50 Senate as he considers a switch that would hand control to the Democrats and crimp President Bush's ability to pass his agenda." (Associated Press, via Yahoo! News)
Retirement Planning: a Penny Saved is Not Enough
Excerpt: "Retirement dreams of playing golf all day or driving across the country in a Winnebago may remain just that--dreams--for millions of Americans. Many people ages 50 and over are not saving enough money and will have to continue working to support themselves after they reach the traditional retirement age, suggests a study by the nation's largest group representing retirees." (Boston Globe)
Big Swings Can Lower Your Investment Return
Excerpt: "The reality is that smooth returns win. Volatile returns lose. The more volatile your return, the harder it will be for you to have a good long term return. At its worst, statistical types even have a gruesome phrase for what happens: variance sink." (Scott Burns)
Opinion: Rev. Jesse's Bully Pulpit -- Your Pension?
Excerpt: "Do you want to put your retirement in the hands of the Rev. Jesse Jackson? You may not have a choice. The current issue of Barron's says the cleric is lobbying behind closed doors to get his cronies a fat share of pension-fund business." (New York Post)
American Banker Puts Reputations on the Line
Press release. Excerpt: "Among the top 40 rated institutions, no commercial bank appears until No. 20-ranked Fifth Third Bank. The results of the first Financial Services Reputation Quotient (FSRQ) study, jointly developed by American Banker, the Reputation Institute, and Harris Interactive, were released today by American Banker." (PRNewswire via Yahoo! Finance)
2000 Annual Report of Mutual Fund Trade Association is Published (PDF)
52 pages. Excerpt: "... in some respects, ERISA has not kept pace with changes in our retirement system or the financial markets. For this reason, we encourage Congress to modernize ERISA to ensure that retirement plan participants are able to obtain the services they need ... For instance, plan participants should be able to readily obtain the assistance they need in managing their growing 401(k) plan investments." (Investment Company Institute)
New from EBRI: Social Security: Not All Reform Approaches Are Equal
This study examines various traditional Social Security reforms that achieve a zero actuarial balance over the standard 75-year evaluation period and a reform that is similar to the one proposed by Reps. Archer and Shaw. Using the capabilities of SSASIM, a policy simulation model, each reform's 75-year actuarial balance is projected in both deterministic and stochastic modes. (Employee Benefit Research Institute)
Opinion: Exodus CEO Helps Separate 'Men From the Boys'
Excerpt: "Since [Ellen Hancock] became CEO [of Exodus Communications Inc.] in 1998, the Santa Clara, California-based Internet services provider has delivered shareholders a total return almost eight times better than that of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index." (Graef Crystal, on Bloomberg.com)
Census 2000 Data Shows Characteristics of National Population (PDF)
Excerpt: "This Bulletin notes key findings of interest to employers and other sponsors of benefit plans." (The Segal Company)
It Pays to Take Stock of Private Employers Before Accepting Stock Options
Excerpt: "Small private companies have a high failure rate. In fact, about 90% fail within the first five years for reasons ranging from bad management to competition, poor timing, insufficient capital and incompetent execution. Therefore, before accepting a job at a small company (most of which are also private companies), be realistic. Don't think it will be a smooth ride. Most likely, it will be a roller coaster. But if things work out, the upside can be huge." (CareerJournal.com)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings (Post Yours!)
| Employee Benefits Consultant | for Fidelity Investments in KY, OH |
| Benefits Analyst | for Safeway Inc. in CA |
| Retirement Plan Coordinator | for CBIZ Benefits and Insurance Services, Inc. in PA |
Newly Posted Press Releases
| VPA, INC. OFFERS ONLINE ABSENCE AND DISABILITY MANAGEMENT SERVICE CAPABILITIES WITH VPAWEB (VPA, Inc.) |
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