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March 22, 2005
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Immerse Yourself in ERISA Title 1 Issues April 25 - 26, 2005 * Washington, DC Get the latest regulatory and legislative updates on ERISA at "The DOL Speaks 2005 Employee Benefits Conference." Every session will feature both public and private sector speakers presenting their unique perspective on Title 1 issues. Featured Speaker: U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao
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Offering vs. Choice in 401(k) Plan: Equity Exposure and Number of Funds (PDF)
48 pages. Excerpt: "Records of more than half a million participants in more than six hundred 401(k) pension plans indicate that participants tend to use a small number of funds: The number of participants using a given number of funds peaks at three funds and declines after more than three funds. Participants tend to allocate their contributions evenly across the funds they use, with the tendency weakening with the number of funds used. (September 2004 draft)" (Columbia Business School)
Florida's State Pension Plan Is Tops Among the 50 States, According to Wilshire Associates Study
Excerpt: "A report from the investment advisory company titled 'State Retirement Systems: Funding Levels and Asset Allocation' found the Florida retirement system's pension plan has the highest valuation of assets to liabilities, or 'funded ratio,' among state pension systems." (Orlando Business Journal via bizjournals.com; one-time registration required)
Opinion: Budget Process the Wrong Place for Setting Pension Policy
Excerpt: "Action Requested: Urge members of the Senate and House of Representatives to reject elements of the budget resolution – especially the House budget resolution – that would increase PBGC premiums by billions of dollars over the next five years. Such an increase would cripple attempts to reform the defined benefit pension funding regime." (American Benefits Council)
Overview: New Rollover Rules Effective March 28, 2005, Require Action by Employers
Excerpt: "A change in the law governing tax-qualified retirement plans requires that a plan automatically rollover certain mandatory benefit distributions." (Jackson Lewis LLP)
457(f) Plans Need Review, or Participants May Pay High Price
Excerpt: "Future IRS guidance may address the interaction between Internal Revenue Code Sections 457(f) and 409A, but it is unclear when any guidance will be issued. Employers should immediately consider the implications of the new law on their 457(f) plans (and all other deferred compensation plans subject to the new law), watch for further guidance, and amend or terminate their plans by December 31, 2005 if necessary." (Faegre & Benson LLP)
Overview: IRS Issues Proposed Roth 401(k) Regulations (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "On March 2, 2005, the Internal Revenue Service ('IRS') published proposed amendments to the regulations under Internal Revenue Code ('Code') sections 401(k) and (m) addressing the requirements for designated Roth contributions to cash or deferred arrangements under Code section 401(k)." (Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP)
Element of Forthcoming Medicare Trustees' Report Could Spell Trouble for Future Beneficiaries
Excerpt: "Last year's trustees' report projected that the 45-percent level will be reached in 2012. If this projection remains unchanged in the forthcoming trustees' report, the trigger date ... will come two years from now when the trustees issue their 2007 report. If the forthcoming Trustees' report projects that the 45-percent level will be reached in a year before 2012, the trigger date could be reached a year from now." (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)
A Look at the Pension Plans of North America's Four Major Pro Sports Leagues
The article compares the retirement plans of Major League Baseball, the NBA, the NFL, and the NHL. (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; one-time registration required)
Accounting for Korean Retirement Plans -- Change Awaits Around the Corner ... (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "It is a busy time for reviewing retirement benefits in Korea – Korea's new Employee Retirement Savings Act (ERSA) has just passed. And now, the accounting standards which measure Korean companies' retirement benefit costs and liabilities are under review, and may soon change." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)
Social Security: Is It Really a Crisis? Transcript of a March 15, 2005, Debate in New York City (PDF)
24 pages. The debate featured Paul Krugman, author and New York Times Columnist, Michael Tanner, director of Health and Welfare Studies, Cato Institute, and Joshua Micah Marshall, investigative journalist and blogger, Talkingpointsmemo.com and was held at the New York Society for Ethical Culture. (The Century Foundation)
March 18, 2005, Statement of ICI Submitted to the President's Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform
Excerpt: "This statement addresses the tax system's unnecessary complexities and burdens from the perspective of over 90 million individuals who invest in mutual funds directly, through retirement savings vehicles such as IRAs and 401(k)s, and through education savings vehicles such as Section 529 savings plans." (Investment Company Institute)
A Question of Language: It's 'Private' vs. 'Personal' in Social Security Debate
Excerpt: "In the Social Security debate, one of the most ferocious struggles is over language, whether President Bush is proposing to create 'personal' or 'private' accounts in the program, whether he is really proposing the 'privatization' of Social Security." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Survey: Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance Costs Exceed Estimates -- Companies Question Cost vs. Benefit
Excerpt: "Public companies have had to dig even deeper than previously estimated to pay the costs of complying with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, according to a just-completed survey by Financial Executives International (FEI). [A Powerpoint presentation is available at the target page.]" (Financial Executives International)
Overview: FAS 123(R): Expensing Stock Options
Excerpt: "In December, the Financial Accounting Standards Board adopted a new accounting standard, requiring the expensing of all stock options that will take effect by the middle of 2005. Under prior rules, if certain criteria are met, then only footnote disclosure (and not expensing) is required." (Chicago Consulting Actuaries, LLC)
Overview: Recent Guidance of Interest to Employee Benefit Plan Service Providers and Administrators (PDF)
8 pages. Excerpt: "During recent weeks, both the Securities and Exchange Commission ... and the Department of Labor ... have issued important guidance affecting plan service providers and administrators. The SEC's final regulations on redemption fees indirectly impose requirements on plan intermediaries, including plan administrators. Proposed regulations and a prohibited transaction class exemption issued by the DOL provide a solution to the dilemma of what to do with an 'abandoned plan.'" (Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP)
Employers Confront Growing Confusion over Partner Benefits
Excerpt: "Some states are extending employment law mandates to cover same-sex partners (and spouses), while others and the federal government enact prohibitions. Juxtaposed against each other, these two trends add up to confusion about what's legally required, what's optional, and what employers and benefit providers should be doing. Here are questions to ask as you analyze your benefit plans." (Society for Human Resource Management)
Executive MBA Programs Expect More Corporate Support as Economy Recovers
Excerpt: "Over the past four years, fewer employees got a fully paid ride to executive MBA programs from their companies, according to the Executive MBA Council. But as the economy recovers, some observers predict employers will offer more tailored educational perks, and workers will have access to additional executive programs." (Employee Benefit News)
Expatriate Administration: New Realities and HR Challenges
Excerpt: "In the past, many expatriate assignments were ... sought-after. Expatriates were usually assigned to relatively stable, desirable locations, received generous allowances, and often were viewed as receiving high-visibility training for corporate advancement. Now, ... due to a convergence of trends that is forcing human resource professionals to re-examine their expatriate administration so that these assignments continue to be viewed as beneficial by both the corporation and employees." (BenefitNews.com)
Companies Cut Stock Plans for Rank-And-File Workers
Excerpt: "One of the last big perks for rank-and-file workers in Silicon Valley is on the chopping block. Technology companies -- including titans Hewlett-Packard, Oracle and Microsoft -- are cutting back or eliminating popular plans that allow workers to buy company stock at a hefty discount. The cutbacks in employee stock purchase plans, known as ESPPs, signal that companies are giving up hope Congress will block new accounting rules that will force them to deduct the cost of stock ...." (The Mercury News)
Newly Posted Events
401(k) Plan Workshop
in California on April 29, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in Missouri on April 29, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in Washington on May 4, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in New Mexico on May 6, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in Pennsylvania on May 6, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in California on May 6, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in Georgia on May 13, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in Colorado on May 13, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in Texas on May 13, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in Minnesota on May 13, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
401(k) Plan Workshop
in Nebraska on May 13, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Health Insurance & Group Insurance Sales Executive
for Alliance Benefit Group of Kansas City, Inc.
in IA, KS, MN, MO
Plan Consultant/Senior Administrator
for Boyce & Associates, Inc.
in AZ
Financial Administrator: Institutional Retirement Plan Services
for The Vanguard Group
in PA
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Valley Forge Consulting Corp
in PA
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