| BenefitsLink Retirement Plans Newsletter |   |
October 6, 2006
Today's sponsor: EBG Systems, Inc.
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| Presented By: Manny Garcia & Ted Miraski - Oct 16 - 1pm |
| The Pension Protection Act now allows us to ignore the 25% limit on combined DB/DC plans as long as the profit sharing contribution does not exceed 6% of pay. Therefore, adding a cash balance plan to a 401(k)/Profit Sharing plan now provides significant design opportunities.
This web cast will not only explain the basics of cash balance plans, but also the intricacies of cross-testing the CB/DC combo plan. |
| (Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor) |
Overview: Fiduciary Liability Relief for Investments in 'Qualified Default Investment Alternatives' (PDF)
5 pages. (Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP)
Overview: Lawsuits Assert that Fee Information Was Not Adequately Disclosed to Plan Participants
Excerpt: "In a series of seven class action lawsuits filed on September 11, 2006, plaintiffs' attorneys launched an all-out assault on the fee structure employed by most 401(k) plans. These cases challenge investment-related fees paid by plans to service providers, including revenue sharing arrangements between plans, mutual funds, and recordkeepers." (BNA Tax Management)
Managing Your 401(k) Plan: Choosing Providers and Advisers
Excerpt: "While selecting or monitoring a 401(k) service provider can seem overwhelming and complicated, plan sponsors are better equipped than ever. Massive provider consolidation means fewer, better choices as the remaining competitors pour significant resources into people, technology and services." (Employee Benefit News)
Court Throws Out Chicago Tribune Fiduciary Breach Case
Excerpt: "Because the effect of an advertising scandal on the Tribune Company's bottom line was minimal, those running two of its 401(k) plans did not breach their fiduciary duties by not dropping a company stock plan investment option, a judge has ruled." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
Overview of the Notice, Reporting and Disclosure Requirements under the Pension Protection Act (PDF)
8 pages. Excerpt: "For example, under the PPA, benefit statements containing specified information will have to be provided regularly to participants in all pension plans (not only on request as under current law). Also, with respect to the reporting rules for defined benefit plans, additional information will be required, but the summary annual report requirements that previously existed will be repealed." (Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP)
New York State Public Workers Get the Eighth-Highest Pension Benefit, a National Study Concludes
Excerpt: "Workers for state and local governments and school districts collected an average pension of $23,891 in 2005, or about 16 percent above the national average, according to the study released yesterday by The Public Policy Institute of New York State. That's the research arm of the Business Council of New York State." (New York Post)
Union Groups Examine New Models for Retirement Plans (PDF)
Pages 5-6 of 6 pages. Excerpt: "The September 4, 2006, issue of Pensions & Investments magazine featured an article regarding two union groups, AFL-CIO and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), who are developing separate hybrid retirement plan models." (Gabriel Roeder Smith & Company)
Opinion: Big Labor and Hybrid Pension Plans
Excerpt: "Commentators on the pension scene view it as highly significant that these major unions, traditional supporters of DB plans, are looking at models that, while preserving some elements of those plans, aim to expand the role of DCs in building atop the Social Security floor to provide retirement income at an adequate 'replacement' level. In this lexicon, adequacy translates to 70% of pre-retirement income." (BNA Pension & Benefits Blog)
The Basics of Saving and Investing: Investor Education 2020 Guide
Excerpt: "The Basics of Saving and Investing: Investor Education 2020 guide is an investor education and protection teaching guide. It was developed for high school teachers, however its content lends itself to all kinds of investor education and protection initiatives including college courses, work place education, after school programs, seminars for adults and seniors, etc." (Investor Protection Trust)
Sharp Rise in Legal Work Expected Following the Recent Passage of Pension Reform Law
Excerpt: "Specifically, lawyers in tax, trusts and estates, and employee benefits anticipate that the law, called the Pension Protection Act of 2006, could bring more legal work from employers looking to overhaul the retirement plans they offer to employees.' (The National Law Journal via Law.com)
Overview: Landmark Ruling and New Pension Act Validate Legality of Hybrids
Excerpt: "Two recent monumental developments in the pensions industry could result in a radical shift in how retirement benefits are managed, with the possibility that a surge in cash balance conversions could occur. First, a U.S. appeals court ruling in early August paved the way for cash balance, or hybrid, plans to operate without legal constraint." (Employee Benefit News)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Overview: IRS Extension of Compliance Deadline for New Deferred Compensation Rules
Excerpt: "Bowing to the inevitable, the IRS has acknowledged that it will not be able to issue final regulations under Internal Revenue Code ยง409A in time for taxpayers to comply by December 31, 2006, and has extended the compliance deadline to December 31, 2007." (Seyfarth Shaw LLP)
Overview: Deferred Comp Plan, Section 409A, Compliance Period Extended until December 31, 2007 (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "Extended Good Faith Compliance: Plans adopted on or before December 31, 2007 will not be deemed to violate Section 409A so long as such plans are (a) operated in 'reasonable, good faith compliance' with the provisions of Section 409A and applicable guidance issued prior to January 1, 2008 and (b) amended before January 1, 2008 to conform to the provisions of Section 409A and the final regulations." (Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP)
Overview: Treasury Extension of Transition Relief under Section 409A (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "A nonqualified plan maintained pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement in effect on October 3, 2004 is not required to comply with section 409A until December 31, 2009 or, if earlier, the date on which the collective bargaining agreement terminates (without regard to any extensions made after October 3, 2004)." (Miller & Chevalier Chartered)
Overview: IRS Extension of Transition Period under Section 409A (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "According to the Notice, the IRS is attempting to finalize the proposed regulations by the end of 2006 and the regulations will not be effective until January 1, 2008. Compliance with the proposed or final regulations is not required for good faith compliance prior to 2008. However, compliance with the proposed or final regulations will be deemed good faith compliance." (Groom Law Group)
Interview: Advice from an HR Pro
Excerpt: "EBN Associate Editor Leah Carlson Shepherd recently interviewed [HR veteran Elizabeth Ann Bulos] to get her perspective on the challenges in HR and the best approaches to plan design, communication and cost containment." (Employee Benefit News)
Overview of Tax Issues Related to Discounted Stock Options (PDF)
6 pages. (Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP)
Newly Posted Events
2006 Fall Tour: IRA Essentials
in Maryland on November 9, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
2006 Fall Tour: IRA Essentials
in Kansas on November 16, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
2006 Fall Tour: IRA Update: A seminar for serious IRA professionals
in Maryland on November 10, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
2006 Fall Tour: IRA Update: A seminar for serious IRA professionals
in Kansas on November 17, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: Establishing IRAs and IRA Amendments
Nationwide on November 14, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: Introduction to 401(k) Plans
Nationwide on November 16, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: Introduction to Qualified Retirement Plans
Nationwide on November 14, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: Introduction to Roth 401(k)
Nationwide on November 9, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: IRA Beneficiary Distributions
Nationwide on November 16, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: IRA Compliance
Nationwide on November 9, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: IRA Reporting (A)
Nationwide on November 28, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: IRA Reporting (B)
Nationwide on November 28, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: IRA Required Minimum Distributions
Nationwide on November 7, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Web/Telephone Seminar: Roth IRA Distributions
Nationwide on November 2, 2006
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Newly Posted Press Releases
PSCA Releases 49th Annual Survey of Profit Sharing and 401(k) Plans
(Profit Sharing/401(k) Council of America (PSCA))
U.S. Labor Department Launches Interactive Web site to Help Employers Comply with Health Benefit Laws
(U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA))
Delta Settles With Retirees on Benefit Changes
(Delta Air Lines Retirement Committee)
Start of Employee Benefits 'Open Enrollment' Season Opens the Door on Tax Savings for American Workers
(Visa USA)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
401(k) / Defined Contribution Administrator
for Pension Investors Corporation
in FL
Senior Retirement Plan Consultant
for Invesmart, Inc.
in TX
Retirement Services Associate
for Lenox Advisors, Inc.
in NY
Small Business Consultant
for Louis Kravitz & Associates
in CA
Actuary
for Westchester NY Consulting Firm
in NY
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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