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September 25, 2003 - 13,400 subscribers
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Michigan Tax Practitioners Comment on Second IRS White Paper on Future of Determ. Letters Program (PDF)
17 pages; special thanks to Charles M. Lax of Maddin, Hauser, Wartell, Roth & Heller (Southfield, Mich.) for emailing a copy of these comments to BenefitsLink. Excerpt: "The Survey indicated that 72% of the respondents rejected the annual amendment requirement ... In rating the current determination letter process, 78% of all respondents indicated they 'are or were satisfied with the determination letter process during the GUST compliance period.'" (State Bar of Michigan, Section of Taxation, Employee Benefits Committee)
Changes Discussed in Accounting for Pension Fund Obligations
Excerpt: "The board that writes accounting rules for American business discussed changes yesterday that could wipe out much of the financial incentive for companies to convert to cash-balance pension plans." (New York Times; one-time registration required)
Univ. of California To Appeal Decision on Pension Fund Disclosure of Venture Capital Investments
Excerpt: "The University of California said on Wednesday it would appeal a state appeals court decision that it disclose the financial performance of its venture capital investments made on behalf of retirees. The decision comes amid a wider debate about how much detail public agencies in California should be required to disclose about such investments, an issue that pits advocates for transparency against venture capitalists who say they rely on confidentiality to do business." (Reuters)
Employee Ownership Update for September 24
NCEO Executive Director Corey Rosen discusses the National Employee Savings and Trust Equity Guarantee Act, which was just passed by the Senate Finance Committee. Among other things, the Act affects 401(k) diversification; the use of ESOP distributions to repay S corporation ESOP loans; and the taxation of stock options, restricted stock, ESPPs, and other equity compensation arrangements. (National Center for Employee Ownership)
Overview: Tax Lien on Chapter 13 Debtor's Pension Was Not Secured Claim Against Bankruptcy Estate
Excerpt: "An IRS tax lien imposed on the pension of a Chapter 13 debtor prior to filing for bankruptcy was not a secured claim against the bankruptcy estate because a debtor's interest in the ERISA-qualified plan is statutorily excluded from the estate, according to a U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco (CA-9). The IRS tax lien could, however, be enforced outside the bankruptcy estate at another time." (CCH News and Information Library)
Should Philly's DROP be Dropped?
Excerpt: "Mayor Street has indicated that a retirement program for municipal workers is costing the city too much and should probably be killed." (The Philadelphia Daily News)
Panel Hears Complaints About Laws That Cut Retirement Checks
Excerpt: "The laws are the government pension offset, which reduces an individual's survivor benefit under Social Security by two-thirds of the amount of the public pension, and the windfall elimination provision, which reduces Social Security for retirees who also receive a government pension." (Washington Post)
Retirement Planning Takes More Than Guesswork
Excerpt: "Together, we'll walk through the process. By the time we are done, I hope you will have an answer for that most important and elusive of financial questions: How much do I need to save to retire?" (Humberto Cruz on Sun-Sentinel.com)
Yale Strike Wins Gains for Workers
Excerpt: "Going into the strike, Yale offered a 1.25 percent multiplier on the pension funds, compared to the 1.95 percent multiplier demanded by the unions. The contract has settled for a 1.5 percent multiplier for those who earn up to $30,000, 1.4 percent multiplier for the next $25,000, and a 1.3 percent multiplier for those earning over $55,000." (Socialist Worker Online)
Illinois Woman Indicted; Allegation of Embezzlement of $3.6 Million from Pension Plan
Excerpt: "[Evelyn] Lopez is charged with stealing money over an eight-year period from pension plans of employees at Aldridge Electric Inc. in Libertyville. Lopez was formerly the company's payroll administrator and manager of the company's Profit Sharing 401(k) Plan Trust, where she had access to the company's pension plan for non-union employees." (Mundelein [Ill.] Review)
Opinion: The Shame of Mutual Funds
Excerpt: "While most of them are probably clean, dozens of others earn big bucks through tricks that siphon profits away from trusting small investors." (Jane Bryant Quinn on MSNBC.com)
Your Retirement Plan Could Make the Mutual Fund Scandal Suddenly Much More Relevant
Excerpt: "In the past week, I have talked to any number of 401(k) plan administrators and benefits coordinators. If their benefits package currently offers funds from the affected groups, they all see themselves making a change in the near future. The thinking runs this way: 'If there is a hint of scandal at these fund firms and I do not kick them out of the plan, then when the next problem occurs, employees will be suing me for not protecting them.'" (Boston Globe)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Grasso to Get $57.7 Million in Severance Pay
Excerpt: "Former New York Stock Exchange head Richard Grasso structured his departure as a 'termination,' entitling him to $57.7 million for deferred pay and severance payments, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday." (USA Today)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Health & Welfare Associate
for Towers Perrin
in GA, MA, TX
Actuarial Associate-Retirement
for Towers Perrin
in GA, MA, NY
Senior Benefits Administrator
for Access Retirement Services, LLC
in TN
Extraordinary & Fun Defined Benefit Consulting Opportunities in So. Calif.
for Louis Kravitz & Associates, Inc.
in CA
Employee Benefits Consultant
for Plante & Moran, PLLC
in MI
Retirement Plan Specialist
for CORBCO, Inc.
in MA
Newly Posted Conferences
(Post Yours!)
National LTCi Producers Summit
in LA
November 16, 2003
LTCi Sales Strategies magazine
Cash Balance Plans and Age Discrimination
in CA
October 16, 2003
Western Pension & Benefits Conference - Orange County Chapter
October BeneFEST
in MA
October 22, 2003
Massachusetts Association of Health Underwriters
Newly Posted Press Releases
(Post Yours!)
412iCompany offers new "guaranteed" Pension Plans.
(The412iCompany)
CD's and Handouts Available for Distance Learning Seminars
(International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)
Deferral.com online services selected by Retirement Capital Group for new ISOP® Plan Program
(Deferral.com, Inc.)
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Search BenefitsLink
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research
- Employee Benefits Library
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