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

March 23, 2005
Today's sponsor: www.ftwilliam.com

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

Register for our free on-line demo!
www.ftwilliam.com offers the employee benefits professional the
highest quality plan documents and forms at highly competitive
prices. Plan documents on a per document basis are only $50/adoption
agreement, or $100/volume submitter document (including cross testing).
An annual subscription to all documents is only $1,500. The Form
5500 package and the IRS/PBGC form package are only $250 each.
Prices include access for five concurrent users.

(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Overview: IRS Issues Final 401(k) and 401(m) Regulations (PDF)
7 pages. Excerpt: "These rules affect 401(k) plans. They also affect other types of defined contribution plans, including 403(b) plans, that accept employee post-tax contributions or employer matching contributions. In addition, they apply to defined benefit plans that accept voluntary employee post-tax contributions." (Prudential Retirement)

Overview: DOL Proposes Orphan Retirement Plan Rules
Excerpt: "The Department of Labor has announced new rules for dealing with 'orphaned' retirement plans, or plans which have been abandoned by their sponsors. The rules are limited to individual account plans; defined benefit plans cannot use these rules even if the plan is not under the aegis of the PBGC. The proposed rules address four specific aspects of orphaned plans: ...." (SunGard Corbel)

Overview: Roth - 401(k) and 403(b) Provisions of EGTRRA
Excerpt: "When Congress enacted 'Roth 401(k)' and 'Roth 403(b)' provisions in 2001 as part of the EGTRRA legislation, practitioners gave little notice because the 2006 effective date of the provisions seemed an eternity away. Now, however, these Roth contribution provisions, will be effective in less than nine months." (SunGard Corbel)

Angry Workers Sue Employers Over 401(k) Losses, Alleging Neglect of Fiduciary Duties
Excerpt: "Lawsuits continue to mount as retirement plan investors accuse employers of neglecting fiduciary duties. Last week, Colchester, Conn.-based Scott + Scott reports bringing a case against General Motors on behalf of workers who participated in the automaker's 401(k) and other retirement plans since March 17, 1999." (BenefitNews Connect)

Are 401(k) Advisers Plan Fiduciaries?
Excerpt: "A soon-to-be-released survey of individual advisers to 401 (k) plans shows that while a majority view themselves as fiduciaries, many doubt their broker-dealers see it that way. Industry experts say there is a gap between the opinions of broker-dealer registered representatives who are trying to meet the demands of plan sponsors and the opinions of their own home offices, which fear lawsuits because of fiduciary liability." (Investment News)

Coming Soon . . . The Roth 401(k) (PDF)
5 pages. Excerpt: "EGTRRA included a sweeping set of changes to the rules governing pension plans, 401(k) plans, and other defined contribution plans. Included in these changes was the addition of a new section of the Internal Revenue Code – section 402A – that provides for Roth IRA-style contributions to 401(k) plans, but without the restrictions that limit contributions to individuals with income below the IRA compensation limits." (The Groom Law Group)

So Now We Can Terminate a 403(b) Plan, But How Do We Do It?
Excerpt: "In order for an employer sponsoring a 403(b) plan using a pooled format to terminate its plan and file a final Form 5500, the employer must complete the following steps: ...." (SunGard Corbel)

Resolving Problems in Pension Plan Funding (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "Companies today are facing a number of challenges to their pension plans, including declining interest rates, funding shortfalls, pension regulation and legislation, and a quickly aging workforce. Beleaguered companies are exploring or already implementing strategies to mitigate the cost and volatility of their pension plans. This article explores some of these issues and potential solutions such as asset liability modeling and immunization strategies." (Compensation & Benefits Review via Aon Corporation)

Overview: DOL Issues Regulations on Annual Multiemployer Plan Funding Status Notices (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "The DOL has proposed regulations that would require a multiemployer defined benefit plan to send an annual notice to participants, each labor organization representing participants, each contributing employer, and the PBGC indicating the funding status of the plan." (Mellon Financial Corporation)

Overview: Requirement to Provide Statements to New Employees Not Covered by Social Security (PDF)
1 page. Excerpt: "The Social Security Protection Act of 2004 requires state and local government employers to provide a statement to employees hired on or after January 1, 2005, whose jobs are not covered by Social Security. This statement explains how a pension provided by the employer could affect their future Social Security benefits." (Prudential Retirement)

Reinventing Retirement: Leisure-Work Combo Has Fans, May Get Boost If Laws Change
Excerpt: "Older Americans are reinventing retirement. As they do, they're prompting federal regulators and human resources departments to change the rules. 'More people are trying some combination of retirement and work,' says human resources consultant Barbara O'Neal. 'Retirement used to be 'all or nothing' – you were either retired or employed,' says Dallas human resources consultant Barbara O'Neal. Now, 'more people are trying some combination of retirement and work.'" (The Dallas Morning News; one-time registration required)

The Price of Pension Protection in the United Kingdom (PDF)
Excerpt: "The cost to private pension schemes of pension regulation and protection is becoming apparent with the publication of the government's proposals for the amount of the levies to be paid from 1 April 2005. New levies will fund the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) and pay for its administration, while the existing general levy is to be doubled to pay for the new Pensions Regulator, the Pensions Ombudsman and the Pensions Advisory Service (OPAS)." (Towers Perrin)

Technical Tip: Application of Anti-Cutback Rule to Plan Mergers
Excerpt: "Are changes in benefits or options that occur as a result of a plan merger treated as a plan amendment for purposes of the anti-cutback rule of Code section 411(d)(6)?" (Reish Luftman Reicher & Cohen)

Overview: Revised Schedule SSA Reporting Requirements
Excerpt: "As practitioners ready themselves for the 2004 Form 5500 filing season, they should be aware of changes to Schedule SSA and its instructions that will impose significant new burdens on both plan sponsors and practitioners." (SunGard Corbel)

Overview: IRS Releases Final Version of Form 8891 -- the RRSP/RRIF Information Return
Excerpt: "The United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently issued the official version of Form 8891, 'U.S. Information Return for Beneficiaries of Certain Canadian Registered Retirement Plans.'" (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)

Watson Wyatt Insider: Special Edition on Social Security, March 2005
Excerpt: "The purpose of this special edition of Watson Wyatt Insider is to give our readers a better understanding of some of the issues behind the debate now evolving." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)

Opinion: Against the Grain - Social Security Reality, and Why Employers Should Care
Excerpt: "Problem, crisis, whatever you want to call it, why should employers care about Social Security funding? Simply because the combination of a shrinking labor pool, the low savings rate and lack of preparation for retirement combined with the cost of fixing Social Security is going to mean higher taxes, more competition for workers (higher wages) and changing retirement patterns, all with major implications for the workforce of the future.' (Richard D. Quinn via Employee Benefit News)

Opinion: Is Social Security a Retirement Plan or an Insurance Program?
Excerpt: "In his recent article 'Blocking Move,' Jonathan Chait recently made a case for obstructing Social Security reform. Although Chait displays some honesty bordering on cynicism (more on that here), his case rests heavily on the idea that (1) reformers want to dismantle the entire Social Security system; (2) reformers are overselling the likely return on personal accounts; and (3) Social Security was intended to be 'social insurance,' not an investment program. Let's take these in order." (The American Spectator)

Battle Ahead Over Social Security Trustees' Report
Excerpt: "Both sides in the pitched battle over Social Security are getting ready to argue over a whole new set of numbers -- the annual assessment of when Social Security and Medicare will go broke. Even before the report was released Wednesday, critics complained that the administration might try to fudge the numbers." (AP via The New York Times; one-time registration required)

Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Mgmt Alert Revised with Correction: FASB Finalizes Accounting Rules for Equity-Based Compensation (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "In the Management Alert on FASB Accounting Rules for Equity-Based Compensation that was published on March 8, 2005, it has come to our attention that there was an error in the /Alert/ that would have lead the reader to believe the awards issued prior to the effective date would never incur a charge to earnings. This is, in fact, /not/the case. The portion of awards that vest on or after the effective date of FAS 123 will give rise to a charge to earnings." (Seyfarth Shaw LLP)

More Help Wanted: Older Workers, with Lower Turnover and Training Costs, Please Apply
Excerpt: "After years of encouraging workers to take early retirement as a way to cut jobs, a growing number of companies are hunting for older workers because they have lower turnover rates and, in many cases, better work performance. .... Conventional wisdom has long held that workers become more costly as they grow older, with more medical problems and more missed workdays. But 'overall costs are not much different based on the age of employees,' said Dan Smith, senior vice president ....'" (The New York Times; one-time registration required)

Recent Guidance of Interest to Employee Benefit Plan Service Providers and Administrators (PDF)
8 pages. Excerpt: "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.' Finally, the DOL's most recent advisory opinion clarifies the information that must be disclosed on Schedule A to the annual report for employee benefit plans (Form 5500)." (Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP)

Benefits Briefs, March 2005: Legal Developments Affecting Employee Benefits (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "In this issue: Automatic IRA rollover rules; DOL guidance on the fiduciary responsibilities of directed trustees; A DOL believer -- The WorldCom case; Court upholds IRS in taxing employee/plaintiff on attorneys's fees; Equitable relief versus legal relief; IRS to employees -- Everything's taxable." (Nixon Peabody LLP)

2004 –- The Year in Review: Executive Compensation Regulatory Framework Dramatically Altered (PDF)
11 pages. Excerpt: "Executive compensation reform and regulation continued to be front-page news in 2004, with developments closely watched by the U.S (if not the entire global) business community. The passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in 2002 opened the floodgates of executive-compensation reform, with a torrent of far-reaching actions in 2004, as well as 2003, leaving the regulatory landscape dramatically changed." (Frederic W. Cook & Co., Inc.)

Newly Posted Events

401(k) Plan Loans, QDROs, and Hardship Withdrawals
Nationwide on April 7, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

401(k) Plans
in Illinois on April 26, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

401(k) Plans
in Minnesota on May 10, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

All-Day ERISA Seminar with Sal Tripodi, Esq
in Florida on April 19, 2005
presented by ASPPA Benefits Council of South Florida

Annual Spring Conference
in Arizona on May 3, 2005
presented by Western Pension & Benefits Conference - Phoenix Chapter

Benefits & Pitfalls of Sponsoring Retirement Plans Investing in Employer Securities
in New York on April 7, 2005
presented by The Association of the Bar of the City of New York

Cafeteria Plans
in Illinois on April 27, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

Cafeteria Plans
in Minnesota on May 11, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

COBRA Compliance for Group Health Plans
in Illinois on April 29, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

COBRA Compliance for Group Health Plans
in Minnesota on May 13, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

ERISA Compliance for Health & Welfare Plans
in Illinois on April 28, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

ERISA Compliance for Health & Welfare Plans
in Minnesota on May 12, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

HIPAA Portability, Privacy & Security
in Illinois on April 29, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

HSAs, HRAs, & Consumer-Driven Health Care
in Illinois on April 28, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

HSAs, HRAs, & Consumer-Driven Health Care
in Minnesota on May 12, 2005
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)

Managed Care Formulary and Pharmaceutical Benefit Management Under E-Prescribing
Nationwide on March 24, 2005
presented by Health Resources Online

Newly Posted Press Releases

Benefit Software Inc. Provides Personalized Employee Benefits Statement Service
(Benefit Software Inc.)

ACLI Urges Presidential Tax Panel To Promote Americans’ Retirement Security With Incentives
(American Council of Life Insurers)

TBG Financial Provides Personal Rate Of Return Analytics Powered By dailyVest
(Metrics Partners)

Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Post a Help Wanted Ad

Pension Administrator
for G.M. Pensions, Inc. in the San Diego Area
in CA

Special Markets Field Director, #500629
for John Hancock
in MA

Contract Development Analyst
for Transamerica
in CA

Client Services Specialist - Rotational
for ICMA-RC
in DC

Benefits Compliance Manager
for Hewitt Associates
in IL, WI

Balance Forward Operations Manager
for EMJAY/Great-West
in WI

Defined Contribution Plan Administrator
for New York Life Investment management RPS
in MA

Defined Benefit Plan Administrator
for New York Life Investment Management RPS
in MA

Marketing Project Mgr (4-6 month contract)
for New York Life Investment Management RPS
in MA

Analyst / Junior Consultant
for Gildner & Associates, Inc.
in AZ

Senior Quality Analyst
for Great-West Healthcare
in KS

Product Implementation Project Manager
for Transamerica
in CA

Web Interface Design Specialists (OmniPlus/Pyramid)
for Peak Technology Group
in ANY STATE



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: