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July 29, 2005
Today's sponsor: NCEO

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NCEO publications in the BenefitsLink Bookstore!

The National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO), a nonprofit membership and research organization that provides information on broad-based employee stock plans, now has over a dozen of its most popular publications available for purchase in the BenefitsLink bookstore. Topics range from employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) to stock options to employee stock purchase plans (ESPPs).

(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)

Some Employers Linking Employee Health Insurance Premiums to Health Screening Programs
Excerpt: "As more employers require employees to take greater financial responsibility for their own health care as part of the consumerism movement, some employers are going even further, tying employees' premium contributions to their participation ... in health risk appraisals and in come cases, to improvements in health status." (Business Insurance via Workforce Management; one-time registration required)

Wisconsin Governor Vetoes Health Savings Account Tax Break Bill
Excerpt: "Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle vetoed provisions included in a budget measure that would have given tax breaks to health savings accounts (HSAs) linked to high-deductible health plans. According to a Business Insurance report, the provisions would have made individual's contributions to their HSAs tax deductible and employer contributions exempt from state taxable income." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)

Los Angeles County Doctors Win Suit on Benefits Revocation
Excerpt: "A state appellate court panel has ruled that the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors violated California law when it revoked cafeteria benefit plans for about 600 county physicians -- leaving the possibility county government owes the doctors millions of dollars, officials said Thursday." (Los Angeles Daily News)

State Health Care Mandates Make Some Political Progress, but Opposition Stops Laws
Excerpt: "As their budgets are hammered by rising health care costs and the rolls of government-sponsored programs swell, states want more employers to provide medical insurance to workers. But the fiscal motivation is only slowly yielding political results. Lawmakers in 11 state legislatures this year proposed bills that would mandate employer-paid health care." (Workforce Management; one-time registration required)

Opinion: Municipalities Tally Retirees' Health Care Costs
Excerpt: "A new accounting requirement is going to force U.S. state and local governments to figure out how much they are spending on 'Other Post-Employment Benefits' and list it in their comprehensive annual financial statements. Those 'other costs' are the health-related benefits, things like medical care and pres.cription drugs, that some municipalities provide to retired employees in addition to their pensions. Such costs are now covered on a pay-as-you-go basis." (Bloomberg News)

How Good is Canadian Health Care? 2005 Report -- International Comparison of Health Care Systems (PDF)
66 pages. Excerpt: "The study is strictly comparative and examines a wide number of factors for the member countries of the OECD in arriving at the answers to the questions posed. In this study, we primarily compare Can.ada to other countries that also have universal access, publicly funded, health care systems." (The Fraser Institute)

Study Shows Americans Need Better Health Care Information
Excerpt: "While Americans are apparently agreeable to becoming more active in their own health care, they need more education on the issue to make better treatment choices, a new study found. A Great-West Healthcare news release about the company's Consumer Attitudes Toward Health Care study said the research found that 63% of respondents who themselves or a close family member received treatment for a serious health issue in the past two years, did not know the size of the bill until ...." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)

Overview: Medicare Part D -- Employer Options and Key Considerations
Excerpt: "To encourage the private sector to continue offering these benefits, the government has given employers a number of options for providing pres.cription drug coverage to their Medicare-eligible retirees: ...." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)

Health Savings Account Info Center
Excerpt: "Designed for consumers, employers, insurance agents and brokers, public policy professionals and members of the media, the HSA Info Center offers many resources to provide answers to your HSA questions." (Council for Affordable Health Insurance)

Overview: Employee Control of an Health Savings Account -- HSA Guidebook Part 3
Excerpt: "The third of [a] seven-part HSA series takes a closer look at the tax treatment of permissible HSA contributions." (Chicago Consulting Actuaries, LLC)


Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Overview: Interim Relief for Federal Credit Union 457 Plans (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "In Notice 2005-58, the Internal Revenue Service provided, pending further guidance, relief for section 457 plans maintained by federal credit unions. The status of those plans had been called into question by PLR 200430013, which ruled that, as an instrumentality of the federal government, a federal credit union was not an 'eligible employer' under section 457(e)(1) and its nonqualified deferred compensation plan was not a section 457(b) 'eligible plan.'" (Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP)

Overview: IRS Clarifies Corporate Deduction Limit for Executives' Personal Aircraft Use
Excerpt: "Companies may deduct up to the amount included in the executive's income under the Standard Industry Fare Level formula ..., rather than the much higher actual cost ... of operating the aircraft. Recently issued Notice 2005-45 provides detailed guidance on the methodology for determining the allowable expense." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)

Cox's Nomination as SEC Chair May Affect Executive Compensation Initiatives
Excerpt: "[The] nomination of [Rep.] Christopher Cox (R-California) to succeed [the] outgoing Securities and Exchange Commission ... chairman ... could affect the future of important SEC executive compensation initiatives. One of Representative Cox's first pivotal decisions will be whether to try to block or further delay the expensing of stock options as required by Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) 123(R), which was released by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) last year." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)

IASB Publishes Convergence Proposals on the Accounting for Liabilities and Restructuring Costs
Excerpt: "The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has published for public comment proposed amendments to IAS 37 Provisions, Contingent Liabilities and Contingent Assets (to be retitled Non-financial Liabilities) and complementary limited amendments to IAS 19 Employee Benefits." (Accounting Education)

Milliman Global Employee Benefits -- A June 2005 Update (PDF)
12 pages. Contents include articles on the 2004 Pension Reform Act in Nigeria; Taking Stock of Option Expensing in the United States; and, the Pensions Act 2004 in the United Kingdom. (Milliman)

Oregon Senator Suggests Executive Compensation Limits for Companies with Underfunded Plans
Excerpt: "A statement on [U.S.] Senator Ron Wyden's Web site said the provision would prohibit companies from giving executives deferred compensation - or retirement funds held in accounts outside of the same program used for all other company employees - if the company's pension plan is less than 80% funded." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)

Overview: Proposed Regulations for Electronic Transmission of Employee Benefit Information
Excerpt: "The proposed regulations (which will not go into effect until they are adopted as final regulations) reflect the provisions of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, commonly referred to as E-SIGN. E-SIGN set forth special protections for consumers that apply when a statute, regulation, or other rule of law requires that consumer information relating to a transaction, be provided or made available in writing." (Winston & Strawn LLP)

Overview: Expanding Use of Electronic Media for Benefit Plans Communications (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "The Internal Revenue Service has proposed regulations that would set standards for electronic communications for a broad range of employee benefit plans, including qualified plans, 403(b) arrangements, health plans and other types of plans. The regulations would establish rules for the use of electronic media by employers to send notices to plan participants or by participants to make elections under plans, including qualified joint and survivor annuity elections." (Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP)

Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide Updated as of July 26, 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)

Labor Department Offers New Spanish-Language Compliance Assistance Resources
Excerpt: "The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the availability of two Spanish-language compliance assistance resources designed to help members of the Hispanic community understand and comply with federal employment laws and regulations." (U.S. Department of Labor)


Newly Posted Events

Live Webinar- Bond Issues for ESOP Companies
Nationwide on October 19, 2005
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership

Live Webinar- Communicating Your ESOP
Nationwide on November 22, 2005
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership

Live Webinar- Equity Compensation for Closely Held Private Corporations
Nationwide on September 21, 2005
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership

Live Webinar- ESOPs as a Business Transition Tool
Nationwide on October 4, 2005
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership

Live Webinar- Floating Rate Notes as an ESOP Investment Choice
Nationwide on September 15, 2005
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership

Live Webinar- Handling the Repurchase Obligation
Nationwide on December 6, 2005
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership

Live Webinar- Is an ESOP Right for You?
Nationwide on December 13, 2005
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership

Live Webinar- Keeping Your ESOP Culture Alive: Communications, Participation and Plan Design Issues
Nationwide on November 8, 2005
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership

Live Webinar- S Corporation ESOPs
Nationwide on September 20, 2005
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership


Newly Posted Press Releases

PBGC Pays Pensions At Amcast Industrial Corporation
(Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC))

NCQA's Quality Compass (R) Goes Online For 2005; Three-Year Trended Data Now Available
(NCQA)

HRmarketer.com Reports Continued Optimism on Human Capital Marketplace
(HRmarketer.com)


Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Post a Help Wanted Ad

ERISA Consultant
for BISYS Retirement Services
in MN

Administrator/Operations Manager
for Alliance Benefit Group of New England
in NH

Regional Vice President - Northern California
for BISYS Retirement Services
in CA

Regional Vice President - Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina
for BISYS Retirement Services
in NC

Retirement Plan Coordinator
for American Funds, a part of the Capital Group Companies, Inc
in TX

Senior Analyst, Heathcare Pricing and Underwriting
for Gevity
in FL

Employee Benefits Attorney: Practice Leader (945 BW)
for Marvel Consultants, Inc.
in DC

Equity Stock Compensation Analyst (75K 10% Bonus)
for Praxis Search LLC (search Firm)
in IL

Senior DC Plan Administrator
for Berlin Ramos & Company
in DC, MD, VA

401(k) Field Consultant
for 1st GLOBAL
in TX

Senior Benefit Analyst
for Stanford University
in CA

Sr. Benefits Specialist
for Southern Company
in GA




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