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August 11, 2006
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(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Congress Approves Legislation to Clarify Source Tax Law
Excerpt: "The source tax law enacted in 1996 prohibits states from taxing the retirement income of former residents. However, at least one state held that the 1996 law did not apply to former partners. So, the House and the Senate approved legislation clarifying that the law does apply to the retirement income of former partners." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)

H.R. 4 Side-by-Side Comparison Focusing on the Many ERISA Fiduciary Changes in the Pension Legislation (PDF)
19 pages. Title: Summary Comparison and Analysis of Current Law with the Fiduciary and Prohibited Transaction Provisions of the Pension Protection Act (H.R. 4) (Groom Law Group)

H.R. 4 Side-by-Side Comparison on Current Law and Single-Employer Pension Reforms (PDF)
35 pages. Title: Summary Comparison of Current Law And the Principal Provisions of the Pension Protection Act (H.R. 4): Single-Employer Pension Funding Reforms and Cash Balance Provisions (Groom Law Group)

H.R. 4 Side-by-Side Comparison of Current Law and DC, IRA, and Governmental Plan Reforms (PDF)
25 pages. Title: Summary Comparison of Current Law and the Principal Provisions of the Pension Protection Act (H.R. 4): Changes Primarily Affecting Defined Contribution Plans, IRAs, Governmental and Tax-Exempt Employer Plans, and Insurance Programs (Groom Law Group)

The New Framework for Supplementary Pensions in Italy
Excerpt: "The Italian Pension Fund supervisory authority, COVIP, recently issued guidelines on the regulatory structure for supplementary pensions. This move, presaged in the legislative decree no. 252 of 5 December 2005 (hereafter referred to as the Decree), gives detailed information on the new scenario that will come into existence as from 1 January 2008." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)

New Pension Legislation will Significantly Change U.S. Pension and IRA Investments
Excerpt: "The Pension Act is also significant for the financial services industry and private equity investors because it includes various provisions designed to facilitate the investment of plan assets subject to the U.S. Employee Retirement Income Security Act ('ERISA'). This Alert focuses solely on the investment-related aspects of the Pension Act . . . ." (Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP)

PPA Of 2006 Part V: Pension-Related Revenue Provisions
Excerpt: "This fifth in a series of articles examines pension-related revenue provisions of the Pension Protection Act (PPA) of 2006. Subtitle A of Title VIII of the PPA of 2006 increases the deduction limit for single-employer defined benefit plans. Under current law, in general, employers can deduct contributions that fund defined benefit plans up to 100% of the plan's current liability. Contributions in excess of that limit are subject to a 10% excise tax." (Spencer's Benefits Reports)

Memorandum Re: Comprehensive Pension Reform Finally Arrives (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "H.R. 4 arguably marks the most sweeping changes to the pension laws since the enactment of ERISA. Nearly 800 pages of the 900-page bill amend the tax and ERISA provisions for retirement programs." (Groom Law Group)

Overview: Pension Reform Bill Sent to President for His Signature
Excerpt: " A complete analysis of the bill and its provisions is beyond the scope of this Technical Update. However, practitioners and plan sponsors should be aware of some of the more important provisions included in the bill." (SunGard Corbel LLC)

Overview: Pension Reform and Much, Much More
Excerpt: "The new statute will dramatically change the funding landscape for defined benefit retirement plans. However, its reach extends well beyond just defined benefit plans. In fact, the PPA introduces new rules for defined contribution plans . . ., validates the legality of cash balance and other hybrid pension plans, imposes new disclosure and reporting requirements, and makes permanent the expiring EGTRRA retirement plan enhancements. In short, there is something here for everybody." (Nixon Peabody LLP)

Despite Increased 401(k) Participation, Deloitte Survey Finds Room for Improvement
Excerpt: "The survey also uncovered notable spikes in time-based lifestyle funds, auto-enrollment and step-up programs as respondents revealed numerous changes in plan design to help improve ease of use, flexibility and versatility for employees." (CCH Pension and Benefits)

Texas Lawmakers Ponder Need for Quarterly Public Pension Reports
Excerpt: "Two Texas lawmakers are studying whether to require Lone Star State public pension systems to report their financial conditions more frequently as a way to keep better track of those that may be ailing." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)

Substandard Annuities Report Released
Excerpt: "Jointly sponsored by LIMRA International and the Society of Actuaries' Product Development Section and the Committee on Life Insurance Research in collaboration with Ernst & Young, this report describes substandard annuity products and discusses the market opportunity for them, the associated risk management issues, and the issues companies address when competing in this market." (Society of Actuaries)

Court Rules Plan's Recognition of Former Distributions Invalid
Excerpt: "In Miller v. Xerox, a district court ruled that in coordinating earlier distributions with later benefit accruals in a defined benefit floor offset plan, Xerox's plan had violated ERISA." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)

Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Paginated Table of Contents for H.R. 4 Prepared by ERIC (PDF)
6 pages. (The ERISA Industry Committee)

Comments: Medill on the Scope of Equitable Relief under ERISA Section 502(a)(3)
Excerpt: "This Article reviews the state of federal law concerning equitable remedies under Section 502(a)(3) of ERISA and developes a statutory and policy-based theory to address what is appropriate equitable relief for the six categories of defendants and related claims that are possible under Section 502(a)(3). [The post includes a link to the article as published on the Social Science Research Network: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=921587.]" (Workplace Prof Blog)

President Remains Eager to Cut Entitlement Spending
Excerpt: "The new Treasury secretary, former Goldman Sachs chief Henry M. Paulson Jr., has made it clear that a major reason he took the job is to tackle the rising cost of government health and Social Security spending, which he described last week as 'the biggest economic issue facing our country.'" (The Washington Post; one-time registration required)

Court Says USERRA Doesn't Preclude Workplace Arbitration
Excerpt: "A federal appellate court ruled employer arbitration policies may be used to settle employee complaints including potential violations of laws barring discrimination against military service members." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)

Newly Posted Events

Cross-Tested Plan Workshop - Design and Testing
in California on August 30, 2006
presented by SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plan Workshop - Design and Testing
in Ohio on September 12, 2006
presented by SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plan Workshop - Design and Testing
in Colorado on September 13, 2006
presented by SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plan Workshop - Design and Testing
in Washington on September 13, 2006
presented by SunGard Corbel

Pension Protection Act of 2006 IRA Webinar Miniseries
Nationwide on August 15, 2006
presented by Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions, LLC

Pension Protection Act of 2006 Overview Webinar
Nationwide on August 16, 2006
presented by Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions, LLC

Pension Protection Act of 2006 Qualified Plans Webinar Miniseries
Nationwide on August 15, 2006
presented by Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions, LLC

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plans - Design and Administration
in California on August 31, 2006
presented by SunGard Corbel

The Pension Protection Act and What It Means To You
Nationwide on August 29, 2006
presented by SunGard Corbel

Newly Posted Press Releases

New Temporary Address for Certain Hand-Delivered Documents
(Internal Revenue Service (IRS))

Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Post a Help Wanted Ad

401(k) Defined Contribution Administrator
for The Heritage Group LLC
in NY

Qualified Plan Administrator
for Well Established Third Party Administration Firm
in PA

Tele Sale Professionals (Inside Sale - Business to Business)
for Corporate Synergies Group, Inc.
in NJ

Defined Benefits Administrator
for Polycomp Administrative Services (Roseville)
in CA

Benefit Consultant (Sales Agent)
for Corporate Synergies Group, Inc.
in NJ

Licensing & Commission Analyst
for Corporate Synergies Group, Inc.
in NJ

Securities Compliance Analyst
for Great-West
in CO

Pension Plan Operations Manager
for Chicago Third Party Administration Firm
in IL

Retirement Plan Administrator
for Retirement Plan Services, Inc.
in NC

Pension Implementation Analyst (DB)
for Milliman, Inc.
in TX

Corporate Compensation Analyst
for Harrah's Entertainment
in NV

Relationship Manager - Retirement Services
for The Retirement Advantage, Inc.
in ANY STATE

Regional Retirement Sales
for The Retirement Advantage, Inc.
in AZ, CA, CO, FL, IA, IL, IN, MA, MN, MO, NY, TX

Manager, Investment Communications
for Calvert
in MD

Plan Administration Manager
for RSM McGladrey Retirement Resources
in IL

Compliance Specialist
for MassMutual Financial Group
in MA

Marketing Associate - Request For Proposal Coordinator
for CitiStreet
in NJ



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