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October 14, 2003 - 13,400 subscribers
Today's sponsor: Thompson Publishing Group, Inc.
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“Complying With the Wage-Hour Requirements of the Service Contract Act” A 90-Minute Interactive Audio Conference – Thursday, October 23, 2003 * 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time During this 90-minute interactive presentation, employment law attorneys Dan Abrahams and Shlomo Katz will address the basic requirements of the SCA, to include: prevailing wages, fringe benefits, conformances, the Successor Contractor rule and price adjustments. They will also discuss how the SCA can/should affect contractors’ proposals to the government, and more. Register today!
(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
How Should Plan Fiduciaries Respond to Current Investigations of Mutual Fund Practices? (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "This overview (which is not intended as legal advice for any particular situation) highlights important points that should be kept in mind by fiduciaries of ERISA retirement plans, where plan assets are invested in funds of companies that have been implicated in this investigation. Plans not subject to ERISA (such as state or local governmental plans) that are subject to state law fiduciary duty rules similar to those of ERISA, may also find this discussion relevant." (Gardner Carton & Douglas)
Opinion: Fund-Trading Inquiry Highlights Cracks in 401(k)s
Excerpt: "The probe into trading abuses of mutual fund shares has touched a nerve in another part of the savings and investment system. The investigation shows us worrisome trouble spots in 401(k) plans and other employer-sponsored retirement savings programs, which have grown faster over the past couple of decades than regulators' ability to keep up." (Chet Currier on Bloomberg.com)
Treasury's Benefits Counsel Highlights Hot Pension Issues
Excerpt: "In highlighting pending legislation, [William] Sweetnam paid particular attention to provisions in several bills that determine funding requirements for employer-sponsored pension plans, as well as executive compensation issues. Sweetnam also outlined planned regulatory guidance for the upcoming year." (CCH Tax Newsletter)
Text of EBSA Assistant Secretary's Recent Speech to Profit Sharing/401(k) Council of America
Ann L. Combs, September 12, 2003. Excerpt: "The President's proposal to create Employer Retirement Savings Accounts ... addresses the number one concern we hear from small business about 401(k)s and other retirement savings plans-- they are too complicated.... [W]e want to work closely with the benefits community to minimize any negative effects. But we cannot continue to leave 50% of the workforce without an employer-sponsored plan and without adequate tax-favored alternatives ..." (Profit Sharing/401(k) Council of America)
Motivating Retirement Planning: Problems and Solutions (PDF)
17 pages; working paper. Excerpt: "This chapter examines the theory to understand why automatic enrollment has a good chance of overcoming the natural impediments to wise decisions about retirement investments." (Gary Selnow, temporarily made available online by the Pension Research Council)
Overview: House Overwhelmingly Passes Act to Replace 30-Year Treasury Bond Interest Rate
10/13/2003. Excerpt: "The bill would replace the current 30-year Treasury bond interest rate with a blend of corporate bond index rates for two years through 2005." (RIA Tax News)
New Hope for Troubled Retirement Plans
Excerpt: "[S]ome pension consultants ... say that regardless of how the cash-balance controversy ultimately plays out in the courts and possibly in Congress, improved strategies for managing defined-benefits plans may give that old concept new life. They also tout an ingenious new model that would combine some of the most desirable features of traditional pensions and defined contribution, a plan that is dependent on whether the federal government can be persuaded to make it legal." (Workforce.com; one-time registration required)
S&P Fires Volley In Accounting Board's Pension Proposal
Excerpt: "A proposal to beef up corporate pension reporting could actually make it harder to detect changes in the health of retirement plans, according to the ratings agency Standard & Poor's." (Dow Jones/AP via SFGate.com)
Overview: Enron Officials, Plan Committees to Face Fiduciary Duty Claims by Enron Employees
Excerpt: "A class action complaint alleging breach of fiduciary duty under ERISA, and negligence and civil conspiracy under Texas state law, filed on behalf of participants in Enron's three pension plans and on behalf of Enron employees who received 'phantom stock' as compensation may proceed on most counts, according to a U.S. District Court in Texas." (CCH News and Information Library)
Deadline Coming Up for Inherited IRA Beneficiaries
Excerpt: "A special planning opportunity for beneficiaries of inherited IRAs will be expiring soon. It comes from an exception built into the final required minimum distribution (RMD) regulations adopted in 2002. Beneficiaries who opted into the 5-year rule, whether by accident or on purpose may, if the IRA allows it, switch to a lifetime payout, provided they take the proper steps before December 31, 2003." (National Underwriter's TaxFacts fx)
IRA Losses Aren't Easy Deductions
Excerpt: "You may be able to claim the loss as a deduction on your return, but it isn't easy. You must go through a few hoops first. Here, in general, is how it works: ..." (The Providence Journal; one-time registration required)
Helping Employees Build Savings
Excerpt: "Young workers don't always understand the importance of socking away money for tomorrow." (Workforce.com; one-time registration required)
It's Never Too Late To Start Saving For Retirement
Excerpt: "Our column today is for the 'late savers,' people pushing 50 and older who realize now they should have started earlier to save for retirement." (Diane Lade and H. Cruz on Sun-Sentinel.com)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Text of Corrections to Final Golden Parachute Regulations (PDF)
1 page. (Internal Revenue Service)
Overview: IRS Finalizes Split-Dollar Regulations; Time for Action on Existing Arrangements (PDF)
2 pages. (Seyfarth Shaw LLP)
Changes Loom In Exec Pay
Excerpt: "The headlines of the bust have created momentum for expensing options; option backers are now fighting a losing battle against it.... Kirk Maldonado, an attorney with the Denver office of Sherman & Howard, believes companies will begin to have serious discussions about what exact goals they want to meet and how those goals will drive compensation." (Rocky Mountain News)
Audio Excerpt: CEO Pay Hikes Outpace Economic Gains
Excerpt: "Despite two years of corporate scandals and lackluster results, CEO pay continues to rise. A new survey shows overall compensation for top business executives rising by more than 5 percent this year, prompting many experts to call for more distance between CEOs and their boards. NPR's Jack Speer reports." (National Public Radio)
Who'll Sit at the Boomers' Desks?
Excerpt: "[T]he current level of unemployment, which has economists and politicians in a lather, is likely to be the real anomaly. Conditions in the late 90's may have been a reflection of job markets to come. And they are coming very quickly." (New York Times; one-time registration required)
Rising Stocks Give New Life To Old Options
Excerpt: "Stock option riches -- which fueled one of the biggest bursts of U.S. wealth ever -- are back. They're just not as big.... Brokers say employees aren't waiting for the value of their options to double or triple anymore." (USA Today)
Opinion: Unmarried America
Excerpt: "Say good-bye to the traditional family. Here's how the new demographics will change business and society.... As the reality of unmarried America sinks in, CEOs, politicians, and judges will be challenged to design benefits, structure taxes, and develop retirement models that more fairly match the changing population." (Business Week)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Fresno, CA TPA Firm
in CA
Benefits Manager
for Guardian Industries Corp.
in MI
Retirement Plan Specialist
for Diversified Investment Advisors
in MI
401(k) Administrator
for Caribbean Pension Consultants, Inc.
in FL
Employee Benefits Account Manager
for Corporate Benefit Advisors, Inc.
in NC
Newly Posted Webcasts
(Post Yours!)
Health FSAs and Over-the Counter Drugs
on October 21, 2003
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America, LLC (EBIA)
Health FSAs and Over-the-Counter Drugs
on October 22, 2003
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America, LLC (EBIA)
Newly Posted Conferences
(Post Yours!)
Negotiating 401(k) Plan Fees
in ALL STATES
November 10, 2003
IOMA
BUSY, BUSY, BUSY - SUMMER REGULATORY GUIDANCE FROM IRS, DOL, AND OTHERS
in AZ
October 16, 2003
Western Pension & Benefits Conference - Phoenix Chapter
Movers and Shakers: Newly Posted Announcements of Promotions and New Personnel
(Post Yours!)
Loren Busby (Virtual Benefits Corporation)
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