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April 14, 2003 - 13,053 subscribers
Today's sponsor: Actuarial Systems Corporation
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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)
Overview of New Portman-Cardin Pension Bill (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "On April 11, Representatives Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) introduced The Pension Preservation and Savings Expansion Act of 2003 (H.R. 1776). Some of the highlights of the Bill are outlined below." (Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP)
Overview: IRS Issues Final 204(h) Regulations
Excerpt: "The final regulations generally are applicable to amendments with an effective date after September 1, 2003. Transition rules apply to amendments enacted between the June 7, 2001, effective date of the EGTRRA changes and the regulatory applicability date." (SunGard Corbel)
American Academy of Actuaries Calls for Social Security Decisions (PDF)
1 page; press release. Excerpt: "The American Academy of Actuaries today gave an actuarial analysis of the 2003 Social Security Trustees Report. Members of the Academy's Committee on Social Insurance reported that the viability of the system could be extended if decisions are soon made to reinforce the trust fund. But they warned that inaction could have severe consequences on the nation's safety net for retirees." (American Academy of Actuaries)
FASB to Look at Pension Accounting
Excerpt: "[M]embers of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) are expected to begin crafting a plan for improving corporate pension-plan disclosure under FAS 87. According to Dow Jones Business Wire, the standards-setting body will reportedly discuss whether companies should be required to disclose more information about their pension assets and their methods of forecasting market returns on assets." (CFO.com)
U.S. Workers' Pension Funds Are Backsliding
Excerpt: "Two new studies released by the nonprofit Employee Benefit Research Institute provide national evidence that the overall retirement system is under new strains from corporate bankruptcies, higher unemployment, shrinking portfolios, and fewer workers participating in voluntary retirement plans such as 401(k)s." (Gannett News Service via GreenvilleOnline.com)
Employee Ownership Update for April 11, 2003
NCEO Executive Director Corey Rosen discusses the Enron report from the Joint Tax Committee of Congress, which recommends a reduced reliance on company stock in retirement plans along with some specific proposals. It is not clear whether the report means to include not only 401(k) plans but also ESOPs. Rosen also discusses the resurgence of employee ownership in the airline industry. (National Center for Employee Ownership)
Questions and Answers About the Federal Government's Thrift Savings Plan
Excerpt: "One of the Thrift Savings Plan's twice-annual open seasons begins Tuesday, giving civil service, postal and military participants a chance to adjust their contributions. Some of them may need to do just that." (Washington Post)
More Employees in DC Plans as Private Employers Shift Away from DB Plans
Excerpt: "The government's Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., which insures traditional pensions in the event the employer fails and leaves the plan underfunded, covered 114,400 such plans in 1985. In 2001, the figure was down to 35,200." (Washington Post)
Tough Sell: Lighten Up On Employer Stock in Retirement Account
Excerpt: "Investing heavily in any one stock is risky on its own, but the strategy is even more dangerous when investors put large portions of retirement money in the same company that pays their weekly salary, bonus and benefits." (The Wall Street Journal via SFGate.com)
Commentary: the 401(k) Plan is Losing Altitude
Excerpt: "Only recently hailed as Wall Street's great democratizer and the fuel for the working man and woman's retirement dreams, the 401(k) today is being waylaid by a combination of market forces, a slumping economy, and rising investor frustration. It doesn't help, either, that a growing number of companies have been cutting back on their matching contributions to the plans." (U.S. News)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Commentary: CEO Pay-- Have CEOs No Shame?
Excerpt: "FORTUNE asked Equilar, an independent provider of compensation data, to analyze CEO compensation at 100 of the largest companies that had filed proxy statements for 2002. Their findings? Average CEO compensation dropped 23% in 2002, to $15.7 million, but that's mostly because the pay of a few mega-earners fell significantly. A more telling number--median compensation, or what the middle-of-the-road CEO earned--actually rose 14%, to $13.2 million." (Fortune.com)
The Latest Way to Hide Millions: CEO Pensions
Excerpt: "Think CEO pay is out of control? Wait till you see what these guys get when they retire." (Fortune.com)
The Pension Chasm Between Top Execs and Rank-and-File
Excerpt: "As workers' pensions are eroding, employees, shareholders, unions and legislators are focusing new attention on the many ways top executives' retirement packages outshine those of their employees." (Washington Post)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
401k Plan Specialist
for ADP TotalSource in Miami, FL
in FL
Benefits Consultant - 401(k)
for AARP
in DC
Trust Relationship Officer
for First Virginia Banks, Inc.
in VA
Health Fund Administrator
for Benefit Fund Office
in CT
Specialist/hwConnect
for Towers Perrin
in NY
Newly Posted Press Releases
(Post Yours!)
SunGard Corbel Adds Recurring Rebalance Transactions and DB 412(i) Plans to Relius Administration Software
(SunGard Corbel)
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- Employee Benefits Library
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