| BenefitsLink Retirement Plans Newsletter |   |
January 16, 2007
Sponsored by: International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| International Foundation Expands Global Benefits and Compensation Educational Offerings |
| Globalization of nearly all industries is heating up, and the International Foundation is ready with more educational opportunities. The popular Certificate in Global Benefits Management program will be offered three times in 2007, covering the East and West coasts, as well as central U.S. The new Certificate in BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) global course zeros in on what it takes to attract, retain and engage employees in countries experiencing exponential growth. Sign up today, as these courses sell out quickly! |
Cash Balance Moratorium Plans in Cycle 'A' Have January 31, 2007 Deadline for Determination Letters (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt from January 16, 2007 'Special Edition' of the 'Employee Plans News' from IRS: 'This special edition of the Employee Plans News confirms that cash balance moratorium plans that are in Cycle A must be submitted for determination letters by January 31, 2007, in accordance with Rev. Proc. 2005-66. The Cycle A determination letter application will be reviewed at the same time and by the same person that is assigned the cash balance moratorium plan." (Internal Revenue Service)
Shedding Light on 401(k) Fees
Excerpt: "At the center of the controversy is a practice known as revenue sharing. That's when an investment company shares some of what it earns with plan administrators, record keepers and other service providers. Some forms of revenue sharing bear an unsettling similarity to kickbacks." (Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine)
Opinion: Workers in the Dark on 401(k) Fees
Excerpt: "Employers should know more about the fees their workers pay. A clearer, stricter law from Congress requiring more disclosure of fees from mutual fund and investment companies would help 401(k) participants make better choices." (San Antonio Express-News)
401(k) Statements Now Come with a Word of Advice
Excerpt: "A little-noticed provision of the new pension law requires that traditional 401(k) account statements include, starting in 2007, advice about the need to diversify your portfolio and avoid loading up on your company's stock." (USA TODAY)
Overview on Hardships, Non-Spouse Beneficiary Rollovers, Vesting, and Distribution Notice Periods
Excerpt: "In [Notice 2007-7], the IRS provides guidance in Q/A format regarding several provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA). . . . [EBIA highlights] four issues that affect 401(k) plans." (Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc.)
Opinion: A Pension Crisis Solution -- The Liability ß (Beta) Portfolio! (PDF)
8 pages. Excerpt: "Pension funds should be regulated in the same manner Life Insurance companies are guided. This would require pension assets to be managed in a way that is in the best interests of the true objective of the pension plan. Stringent insurance regulations require an ALM focus using bonds as the core asset (matching or funding asset)." (Ryan ALM, Inc.)
American Benefit Council Letter to Treasury Regarding PPA Smoothing and Averaging Rules (PDF)
11 pages. Excerpt: "This letter addresses [Congressional intent with respect to the PPA] as well as two further points: (1) the mechanics of smoothing in the context of the new funding rules, and (2) an analysis of why the Congressional reports cited below constitute legislative history with respect to the PPA." (American Benefits Council)
Overview: IRS Notice 2007-7 Providing Guidance on Provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006
Excerpt: "The guidance addresses a number of issues, including interest rate assumptions for lump sum distributions, hardship distributions, early distributions to public safety employees, rollovers for nonspouse beneficiaries, and distributions for accident or health insurance for public safety officers." (Ice Miller LLP)
California Public Employee Pensions Costing Billions Per Year and Growing Fast
Excerpt: "California taxpayers forked out $10.2 billion for public employee pensions in 2003-04 and are likely to face even greater liability in future years, according to a study released Monday. The study prepared for the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association by the Center for Government Analysis at Newport Beach analyzed 130 public pension systems statewide and found taxpayer outlays doubled from 1997-98 to 2003-04." (Long Beach Press Telegram)
How Employment Agreements and Settlements of Employment Disputes May Affect Pension Benefits
Excerpt: "The Federal Circuits have generally held that ERISA prohibits waivers of claims to vested pension benefits." (NYSBA Labor & Employment Newsletter via Social Science Research Network)
Overview: Rollovers to IRAs Now Possible for Plan Beneficiaries
Excerpt: "The government agencies are continuing to issue guidance with respect to provisions of the Pension Protection Act enacted this past summer. IRS Notice 2007-7 includes guidance on the new rules allowing beneficiaries, other than surviving spouses, to make rollovers of plan distributions from qualified plans to IRAs. These rules became effective January 1, 2007." (Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP)
Employee Ownership Update for January 12
NCEO Executive Director Corey Rosen discusses the final S corporation ESOP anti-abuse regulations, a new study showing a continued decline in stock option use, a new study on what are called ESOPs in Japan, and a new ESOP reference book. (National Center for Employee Ownership)
Florida Public Pension Plan Accuses ING of Revenue Sharing Fraud
Excerpt: "According to Bloomberg, the retirement plan set up for the employees of the Orange County (Florida) Sheriff's Office claims that ING falsely characterized the payments as reimbursement for services provided to the mutual funds." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Hewitt Global Retirement Update, January 2007 (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "[Hewitt's] Global Retirement Update summarizes recent legislative developments and trends related to retirement and financial management and highlights recently passed and pending legislation that may require employers to take action to comply with new rules or review existing plans." (Hewitt Associates)
The Effect of Default Options on Retirement Savings
Excerpt: "Household savings decisions are of great interest to policy makers, as they affect not only the household's well-being but also asset markets and the rate of economic growth. One of the most widely-used models of savings behavior, the life cycle model, predicts that people will accumulate assets during their working years and spend them during retirement. Yet the data indicate that many elderly keep large amounts of assets until very late in life." (National Bureau of Economic Research)
Overview: IRS 2007 Schedule of Employee Plan User Fees
Excerpt: "The newly-issued fee schedule contains no increases in user fees for 2007." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)
PBGC Reminds Plan Administrators that Mandatory Electronic Premium Filing Begins in 2007
Excerpt: "PBGC's online application, My Plan Administration Account (My PAA), is the prescribed method for electronically submitting premium filings and payments to the PBGC." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)
Overview: Determination Letters & Transitional Guidance for Cash Balance & Pension Equity Plans (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "IRS will begin processing the 1,200 pending determination letter and examination cases on cash balance and other hybrid plans. IRS Notice 2007-6 offers basic principles that will be considered in the review of these plans along with transitional Pension Protection Act (PPA) guidance on the minimum vesting standards requirements and the accrual requirements for post-June 29, 2005 conversions." (Aon Consulting)
Commentary: A Must-Read for Benefits Lawyers
Excerpt: "All benefits lawyers who do plan drafting or review plan documents will want to carefully read and digest this opinion written by Seventh Circuit Judge Richard Posner: 'Call, et al. v. American Management Pension Plan.'" (Attorney B. Janell Grenier via BenefitsBlog.com)
Opinion: Watch Out for a New Attack on Social Security
Excerpt: "Examining the diatribe about the selfishness of the baby boomers in Robert Samuelson's op-ed column in Tuesday's Washington Post reveals the simmering anger of the right over the whole notion of government responsibility for its citizens' well-being." (The Century Foundation)
Behavioral Finance & Retirement Plan Contributions: How Participants Behave & Prescriptive Solutions (PDF)
20 pages. Excerpt: "Enactment of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 shows that Congress has endorsed the use of behavioral economics to lead individuals to make better decisions about retirement planning, according to [this] report by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute . . . ." (Employee Benefit Research Institute)
Bill Introduced to Cancel Pension Benefits of Congressmen Convicted of Serious Ethics Offenses
Excerpt: "The Congressional Pension Accountability Act, or 'The Duke Cunningham Act', introduced by Senators Ken Salazar (D-Colorado) and John Kerry (D-Massachusetts), targets the so-called 'culture of corruption' in Washington by canceling taxpayer-funded pension benefits to Members of Congress who are convicted of serious ethics offenses - crimes such as bribery or conspiracy." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Sponsored by: 401khelpcenter.com, LLC
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| 401(k) Communication that's a Takeaway, not a Throwaway |
| Are you a 401(k) plan sponsor who is looking for a cost-effective -- or simply effective -- way to get your employees to appreciate their plan? Are your 401(k) statement inserts and handouts at employee meetings being recycled rather than read? Are you a TPA who is looking for a value-added service to promote to employers? Click above to find out how to help employees find the money to save in their accounts. |
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Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Text: List of Expiring Federal Tax Provisions 2006-2020 (PDF)
31 pages. Excerpt: "This document, prepared by the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation, provides a listing of Federal tax provisions (other than those providing time-limited transition relief after the repeal of an underlying rule) that are currently scheduled to expire in 2006-2020 (with references to the applicable section of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or other applicable law)." (U.S. House of Representatives, Joint Committee on Taxation)
The 2007 State Political Climate (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "The . . . table summarizes the political climate in each state as the 2006 legislative sessions come to a close and the 2007 legislative sessions begin." (Hewitt Associates)
Phantom Stock Provides Key Employee with a Benefit Equivalent to Being a Part Owner in the Business
Excerpt: "For family businesses and other closely-held companies it is a common problem for the family owners to compensate fairly and motivate essential, nonfamily key employees. A phantom stock plan is an excellent way to give employees an opportunity to share in the family business' success and give them a stake in the business." (Intelligencer Journal via Lancaster Newspapers)
Opinion: Age 65 and Not Ready or Able to Go
Excerpt: "Here's the harsh reality for those of us who have become worker-capitalists, responsible for funding our own retirement: We can't afford to stop working at normal retirement age." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
Newly Posted Events
401(k) Testing for the 2006 Plan Year -- What You Need To Know!
Nationwide on January 23, 2007
presented by American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA)
Cafeteria Plan Election Changes -- When to Say "Yes" and When to Say "No"
Nationwide on February 8, 2007
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)
Health and Productivity Programs for a Winning Strategy
in District of Columbia on February 27, 2007
presented by Capital Chapter ISCEBS
Newly Posted Press Releases
PBGC Assumes Pension Plan Of Foss Manufacturing Co.
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)
Major Employers See Medicare Bill as Missed
ERIC (ERISA Industry Committee)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Pension Consultants/Administrators
for Northern NJ Mid-Size Pension Consulting Firm
in NJ
Pension Administrator
for Advantage Benefits Consultants, Inc.
in CT
Plan Services Consultant
for American United Life Insurance, a OneAmerica financial partner
in IN
Senior Due Diligence Analyst
for Vanguard
in PA
Retirement Plan Administrator
for MVP Plan Administrators, Inc.
in NC
Retirement Services Representative - Pittsburgh Pension Office
for Securian Financial Group
in PA
Attorney
for Alston & Bird LLP
in DC
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Padgett, Stratemann & Co., L.L.P.
in TX
Retirement Plan Consultant
for Cassidy Retirement Group
in MA
Corporate Counsel III
for Charles Schwab
in CA
Pension Plan Administrator
for Susquehanna Bancshares, Inc.
in DE
Daily Valued Plan Administrator
for Leggette Actuaries, Inc.
in TX
Supervisor (Benefits Administration - Health and Welfare) - JP25899-JN
for Southern California Edison
in CA
Plan Administrator
for Profit Planners, LLC (Des Plaines, IL)
in IL
Pension Administrator
for Lurie Besikof Lapidus & Company, LLP
in MN
401(k) Plan Administrator
for Pollard & Associates, Inc.
in MD
Assistant Pension Administrator
for Pollard & Associates, Inc.
in MD
Defined Contribution Asst
for Standard Insurance Company
in OR
Defined Contribution Analyst II
for Standard Insurance Company
in OR
Health & Welfare Actuarial - Managing Consultant
for The Savitz Organization
in PA
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Retirement Plan Services, Inc.
in NC
Senior Actuary
for IPA Northeast, LLC
in NJ
Plan Review and Enrollment/Communications Specialist
for Pension Specialists, Inc.
in CA
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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