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July 22, 2003 - 13,277 subscribers
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Analysis: ERIC Proposal in Portman-Cardin Bill Advances but Political Dispute Clouds Future
Excerpt: "The long-awaited new bill reduces the $230 billion H.R. 1776 to a bill of $50 billion over ten years. A preliminary review of the bill follows. Provisions of interest to major employers in what has been dubbed 'Portman-Cardin lite' include: ..." (ERISA Industry Committee)

Opinion: Portman-Cardin Bill Is Unsound Policy That Digs the Nation's Fiscal Hole Deeper
Excerpt: "As with earlier Portman-Cardin bills, this measure includes both promising and problematic provisions. Most of the provisions that involve the largest revenue losses, however, represent problematic policy.... [T]hese provisions would make the deficits still larger, primarily by providing additional tax subsidies to high-income individuals. Moreover, most of those individuals would likely save without the new tax breaks ..." (Center on Budget Policies and Priorities)

PSCA Provides 401(k) Day 'Tools' for Employers
Excerpt: "The materials below are available for free download, and may be customized and used in your company's 401(k) Day program. For information on how to set up a 401(k) Day program at your company, please read the 401(k) Day Action Plan." (Profit Sharing/401k Council of America; one-time registration required)

Computer Problems with New Daily Val System Shake Federal Employees' Faith in Thrift Savings Plan
Excerpt: "Numerous federal workers say they have submitted loan and withdrawal requests that have been delayed by TSP computer woes.... Tom Trabucco, the TSP spokesman, said the system can handle 50,000 transactions an hour, about 20 percent more than the old system." (Washington Post)

Workers' Pension Fight Drags On; ESOP Went Sour for Ohio Manufacturer
Excerpt: "Within nine months of employee ownership, Electro-Jet reneged on its financial obligations to the plan.... In a federal lawsuit filed on behalf of the rank-and-file employees in 1994, Covington lawyer Judith Boyers Gee named three other Electro-Jet officers, U.S. Bank, the lawyer for the profit-sharing plan and the company that appraised Electro-Jet on the eve of its sale." (The Cincinnati Enquirer)

Spotting 'Taxbergs' In the Fog; Prepare To Pass the S Corporation ESOP Anti-Abuse Test
Excerpt: "Due to the perceived abuse inherent in S corporation ESOPs, Congress reacted with changes to the Code as part of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA). Anti-abuse provisions which were added in the form of new Code section 409(p) now float in the path of every S corporation ESOP." (Chang, Ruthenberg & Long PC)

Overview of Final Section 457 Regulations
Excerpt: "One of the more controversial aspects of the proposed regulations was its rule for coordinating IRC section 457(f) and section 83.... The final regulations retain the coordination rule, which provides that section 457(f) applies if the date on which there is no substantial risk of forfeiture with respect to the compensation deferred precedes the date on which there is a transfer of property to which section 83 applies. But the final regulations do [include a clarification:] ..." (Deloitte & Touche Human Capital Advisory Services)

'Retire In Place' Program for Fairfax County, Virginia Teachers Might End
Excerpt: "Under a program aimed at preventing teacher shortages, hundreds of veteran Fairfax County educators have seen their annual salaries hover around six figures in the past few years as they retired on the job." (Washington Post)

IRS Finalizes Regs on QJSA Notices Provided by Defined Benefit Plans After Annuity Starting Dates
Excerpt: "The final regs (a) allow the QJSA explanation to be provided by defined benefit plans on or after the annuity starting date, (b) define how payments are made in the case of a retroactive annuity starting date, and (c) set conditions for the use of retroactive annuity starting dates. The final regs apply to plan years beginning after 2003." (RIA Tax News)

An Overview of the Revised Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System
Excerpt: "EPCRS, otherwise known as the IRS 'voluntary compliance' programs, is on its deceptive surface a seemingly orderly set of processes which can be used by plan sponsors to 'fix' retirement plans with operational and other qualification problems. Learning, using, and mastering these programs is another challenge indeed." (Chang, Ruthenberg & Long PC)

Overview: IRS Does a Reversion Reversal!
Excerpt: "Others maintained that the transfer had to be at least 25% and that transfers of more than 25% should not create a problem. The IRS has just issued Rev. Rul. 2003-85 on this topic.... The only other IRS utterance on this issue was PLR 200212035 where the IRS reached the opposite result!" (Chang, Ruthenberg & Long)


Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Spring 2003 Issue of NBER Bulletin on Aging and Health (PDF)
4 pages. Articles include 'The Effect of New Drugs on Longevity,' 'Health Insurance Subsidies, Coverage, and Costs' and 'Marriage Penalties in Social Security Problems." (National Bureau of Economic Research)

Overview: IRS Proposes New Regs for ISOs and Employee Stock Purchase Plans (PDF)
Excerpt: "The new rules (i) specify that ISOs may only be granted from a plan that states the maximum number of shares that may be granted for all stock-based awards under the plan, (ii) modify the definition of corporate transaction and specify that ISOs assumed in a corporate transaction must be granted by the buyer from a plan that satisfies the ISO requirements ..." (Frederic W. Cook & Co., Inc.)


Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Post a Help Wanted Ad

DC Plan Service Consultant Administrator
for Career Consulting Services, Inc.
in IN
Newly Posted Conferences
(Post Yours!)

Introduction to Qualified Plans One-Day Seminar
in MO
August 22, 2003
Kansas City Chapter of ISCEBS

Indiana Health Care Benefits Forum
in IN
August 19, 2003
Central Indiana Chapter of ISCEBS (International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists)

Spring and Summer 2003 bring New Guidance for Benefit Plans
in ALL STATES
July 29, 2003
Winston & Strawn
Newly Posted Press Releases
(Post Yours!)

Ceridian Adds State Street Research To Its Tier One List Of Mutual Funds
(Ceridian)

Wright & Co. Aligns with ARAG Group
(ARAG Group)

New Labor Department Web Site Can Help Millions Find Valuable Information On Health Benefits
(U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration)


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