If you'd like to STOP this newsletter, just click on this link: STOP sending this newsletter to me
BenefitsLink
Retirement Plans
Newsletter
To BenefitsLink home page Fill your job openings fast by advertising on BenefitsLink

January 27, 2005
Today's sponsor: BeneCom Associates, LLC

(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)

BeneCom Associates, LLC, for one-stop benefit communications

Since 1992, BeneCom has produced benefit communications,
including enrollment materials, SPDs, benefit statements,
newsletters and more, for companies large and small,
nationwide. So if you've been looking for an independent
benefit communications specialist, look no further. Click
above for more information, or give us a call
at (860) 674-2626, Ext. 11.  We're here to help.

(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Text of Proposed Revised Regs Concerning Disclosure of Relative Values of Optional Forms of Benefit (PDF)
15 pages. Excerpt: "This document contains proposed regulations that would revise final regulations that were issued on December 17, 2003, under section 417(a)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code concerning content requirements applicable to explanations of qualified joint and survivor annuities and qualified preretirement survivor annuities payable under certain retirement plans." (Internal Revenue Service)

Advice Coaxes 401(k) Participants to Save More, According to Study on Participant Behavior
Excerpt: "Investors who received personalized 401(k) advice last year boosted their savings and frequently opted for managed accounts, a study of participant behavior by Schwab Corporate Services shows." (BenefitNews Connect)

Individual 401(k) Plans Beginning to Catch on with Self-Employed and Small Business Owners
Excerpt: "Known by various names such as solo 401(k)s, self-employed 401(k)s and individual 401(k)s, these plans combine the best elements of profit sharing and traditional 401(k) plans to offer a double dose of tax savings. First available in 2002 but becoming more popular only now, these plans are designed for self-employed individuals or small-business owners with no employees other than their spouses." (Humberto Cruz via South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

Overview: Required Minimum Distribution -- Distribution Period Following Death of the Participant
Excerpt: "The determination of the required minimum distribution (RMD) following the death of the participant is dependent on three factors: whether the participant dies before or after the required beginning date (RBD), the participant's designated beneficiary (or, if there is a designated beneficiary), and the plan (or IRA) terms." (SunGard Corbel)

IRA Tax Forms: An Individual's Responsibility
Excerpt: "Have you ever wondered what an IRA owner's IRS reporting requirements might be? Are these requirements an extension of the reports an IRA custodian/trustee provides? An individual reports the majority of his/her traditional IRA and Roth IRA activity on his/her federal income tax return, generally IRS Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return." (Bankers Systems, Inc.)

Chile's Retirees Find Shortfall in Private Plan
Excerpt: "Under the Chilean program ... the promise was that such investments, by helping to spur economic growth and generating higher returns, would deliver monthly pension benefits larger than what the traditional system could offer. But now that the first generation of workers to depend on the new system is beginning to retire, Chileans are finding that it is falling far short of what was originally advertised under the authoritarian government of Gen. Augusto Pinochet." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)

Uncovering and Understanding Hidden Fees in Qualified Retirement Plans
Excerpt: "Modern fee structures, as they relate to qualified retirement plans, are a relatively new phenomena, having been developed over the last thirty years. The objective of this paper is to explore the five specific types of fees that are frequently considered to be 'hidden' because of their difficulty in being recognized, quantified and monitored. It will also address their historical genesis and development, significance to a retirement plan's overall operational structure, ...." (401khelpcenter.com)

Privatization Fix for Social Security Is Worse than Doing Nothing
Excerpt: "In December 2001, a Bush Administration commission introduced three possible plans for privatizing the existing federal Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program, commonly referred to as Social Security. Plan 2 is the model that Bush Administration officials have consistently favored in public discussions. Contrary to administration rhetoric that action taken now will protect younger workers when they retire, Plan 2 would leave younger workers worse off than if ...." (The Economic Policy Institute)

Audio: Middle-Aged Americans Weigh Social Security Options
Excerpt: "In the second of three reports on how different generations view Social Security, NPR's John Ydstie talks with middle-age Americans about a system that's been a bedrock of U.S. retirement -- and politics -- since its creation." (All Things Considered via National Public Radio)

Opinion: Ten Myths about Social Security
Excerpt: "The current debate over privatizing Social Security has been marred by numerous myths perpetuated by both privatization's advocates and the media. The Century Foundation looks at 10 commonly accepted assertions and points out why each has little to do with reality." (The Century Foundation)


Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Opinion: Bush Plan Poses Tough 'Safety Net' Questions for Workers Who Become Disabled
Excerpt: "If individual investment accounts become an integral part of Social Security, as President Bush is proposing, what will happen to workers who become disabled before they retire?" (The New York Times; one-time registration required)

Pennsylvania to Address Taxation of Nonqualified Deferred Compensation
Excerpt: "The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue has recently withdrawn PIT Policy No. 112. This notice, which was issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue last December, required employers to begin withholding on elective deferrals under nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements effective April 1, 2005." (Buchanan Ingersoll PC)

Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide Updated January 25, 2005
Excerpt: "Hewitt's Federal Legislation Quick Guide provides short updates on federal legislation that is currently under active consideration by Congress or has recently been enacted into law regarding health and welfare benefit plans, retirement plans, and human resources and employment law." (Hewitt Associates)


Newly Posted Events

HIPAA Portability for Beginners
Nationwide on January 13, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

Section 409A - New Rules for Executive and Deferred Compensation
Nationwide on February 3, 2005
presented by Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP


Newly Posted Press Releases

Plan Sponsor Forum 2005: Digging deeper with the right tools; A workshop for 401(k) Fiduciaries
(Caterpillar Investment Management Ltd.)


Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Post a Help Wanted Ad

Pension Administrator
for The Nolan Company
in KS

Internal Sales-Special Markets
for TRANSAMERICA
in CA

Payroll and Benefits Manager
for San Francisco Ballet
in CA

Internal Sales Associate
for American Express Tax & Business Services
in IL

Benefits Administrator
for Symetra Financial
in WA

Vice President of Consultant Relations
for CitiStreet - A State Street and Citigroup company
in FL, MA

Retirement Plan Administrator
for Locally owned Third Party Administration Firm
in OK

Benefits Service Representative
for Phelps Dodge Corporation
in AZ

Institutional Trust & Custody Relationship Manager
for U.S. Bank
in CA

Sr. Implementation Consultant
for AIG VALIC
in TX




Handy Links:

Copyright 2005 BenefitsLink.com, Inc.; except that you may reprint this newsletter in full (including this sentence) without obtaining our permission.

Published by:

BenefitsLink.com, Inc.
https://benefitslink.com/about.html
1298 Minnesota Avenue, Suite H
Winter Park FL 32789
(407) 644-4146
Fax: (407) 644-2151

Editor and Publisher: David Rhett Baker, J.D.

Housekeeping: