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| July 25, 2007 |
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FAB 2007-02 on ERISA Coverage Of IRC § 403(b) Tax-Sheltered Annuity Programs
Excerpt: "Issue: How do the Department of the Treasury/Internal Revenue Service regulations governing Internal Revenue Code § 403(b) tax-sheltered annuity programs affect the status of such programs under the Department of Labor's safe harbor regulation at 29 C.F.R. § 2510.3-2(f)?" (Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor)
The Employer 'Get Wise Guide' for the New 403(b) Regs
Excerpt: "New 403(b) regulations which will go into effect January 1, 2009 offer employers a unique opportunity to drastically improve the quality and cost of their 403(b) retirement plan. [This target page] is an employer guide for capitalizing on this opportunity to create a plan worthy of your most important asset: your employees." (403bwise.com)
IRS Guide to Information on IRC 403(b) Tax-Sheltered Annuity Plans
Excerpt: "A 403(b) tax-sheltered annuity (TSA) plan is a retirement plan offered by public schools and certain tax-exempt organizations." (Internal Revenue Service)
Overview: Final 403(b) Regulations
Excerpt: "Assuming no changes are made before the projected publication date of July 26th and based on a review of the Preamble, here are what appear to be the highlights, with a focus on elements that will affect employers and the marketplace most directly." (403(b)-457 Plans Blog)
EBSA Says 403(b) Programs Not Necessarily ERISA Plans
Excerpt: "A day after the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released the final version of its 403(b) rules, the Department of Labor (DoL) said . . . that the plans can be set up so they are exempt from the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Text of Mutual Fund Trade Association Comments on Plan Investments Fee and Expense Disclosure
Excerpt: "The attached Policy Statement affirms that support and contains a chronology of the Institute's three decades of efforts to improve disclosure. In crafting 401(k) plan participant disclosure requirements, the Department should give priority attention to the following: . . . Fees and expenses are only one piece of necessary information. While the fees associated with a plan's investment options are an important factor participants should consider in making investment decisions, no participant should decide whether to contribute to the plan or allocate his or her account based solely on fees." (Investment Company Institute)
Opinion: When a Simpler 401(k) Is Just Dumb
Excerpt: "Many companies have pruned the number of investment options in their plans to keep workers from feeling overwhelmed by too much choice. . . . Meanwhile, other companies have loaded up their plans with a slew of target-date funds . . . while shrinking the variety of other funds. But simple isn't always better. In paring choices, companies may be reducing workers' ability to diversify their assets, leaving them exposed to the downdrafts that sometimes roil stocks and bonds . . . ." (The Wall Street Journal Online)
Research Report: 401(k) Participants' Awareness and Understanding of Fees
Excerpt: "Even though they maintain that fees are an important consideration in their investment decisions, most 401(k) plan participants say they lack basic knowledge concerning them." (AARP)
PSCA Comments on Fee and Expense Disclosure to Participants in Individual Account Plans (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "For plan sponsors, increased fee disclosure to participants will result in new requirements and additional costs that will be passed on to employees. That is why it is critical to balance the value of increased disclosure against the benefit." (Profit Sharing / 401k Council of America)
Working Paper: Winners and Losers - 401(k) Trading and Portfolio Performance
Excerpt: "Few previous studies have explored how individuals manage their defined contribution (DC) pension plan assets, even though such plans constitute an increasingly important component of retirement wealth. Using a unique new dataset on over one million active 401(k) plan participants in a wide range of plans, we assess the impact of trading on investment performance in DC plans." (University of Michigan Retirement Research Center)
Inter-Trade Group Letter on Fee and Expense Disclosures to Participants in Individual Account Plans (PDF)
Excerpt: "The undersigned twelve organizations representing both employer sponsors of defined contribution retirement plans as well as the financial institutions that provide services to such plans respectfully submit the attached joint recommendations in response to the [DOL's] Request for Information . . . regarding fee and expense disclosures to participants in individual account plans . . . ." (American Benefits Council)
Retirement Associations Submit Fee Disclosure Recommendations to DOL
Excerpt: "Twelve associations that represent employers who sponsor 401(k) plans submitted recommendations to the Department of Labor [yesterday] on how to improve fee disclosure to participants. The 7-page letter is meant to be a reference tool with respect to the Department's ongoing project under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act's Section 408(b)(2) on fee disclosure." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Financial Research Corporation Research Helps Managers in Growing DC Market
Excerpt: "A new study from Financial Research Corporation (FRC) provides investment-only defined contribution (IODC) asset managers with advice and information on the growing market." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Overview of Court Case: Former Employees Can Sue Retirement Plans
Excerpt: "The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit decided a case that preserves the right of former employees, including retirees, to sue their retirement plans even if they have already taken full distributions from the plan. The case is Harzewski v. Guidant Corporation . . . ." (Pension Rights Center)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Overview: IRS to Publish Section 457 Guidance (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "In general, this guidance project would apply certain concepts developed in the Section 409A regulations to counterpart provisions of Section 457. Any comments on the anticipated guidance or related issues are requested by October 15, 2007." (Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP)
Note: IRS Asks for Comments on Section 457 Guidance
Excerpt: "In Notice 2007-62 the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announce the intent to issue guidance under section 457 . . . concerning the definitions of a bona fide severance pay plan under section 457(e)(11) and substantial risk of forfeiture under section 457(f)(1)(B)." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)
Incentive Stock Awards Could Lead to Unethical Behavior, According to a Recently Released Study
Excerpt: "In an article published in the May/June 2007 issue of Organization Science, the study's two authors -- Philip Bromiley and Jared Harris -- report that an analysis of financial restatements found that incentive stock offered to executives as a part of their compensation increased the risk of company officials misrepresenting financial outcomes to rig share prices." (Human Resource Executive Online; free registration required)
SEC Proposes Registration Exemption for Certain Issuers of Compensatory Employee Stock Options
Excerpt: "The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is proposing to exempt private, non-reporting issuers of compensatory employee stock options from registration requirements." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)
Firms Move to Regional Customization of Global Long-Term Incentive Plans
Excerpt: "Many U.S. multinational companies are significantly decreasing the size of their equity awards to executives outside the U.S. in a shift from traditional policies granting the same award levels to U.S. and non-U.S. executives, according to new Towers Perrin research." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Newly Posted Events
Defined Contribution West Coast Conference - 10th Annual
in California on October 7, 2007
presented by Pensions & Investments
Health and Welfare Benefit Plans: Responding to Change
in Virginia on October 15, 2007
presented by ABA Joint Committee on Employee Benefits
Section 409A Deferred Compensation Plans: Problem Solving and Document Drafting
in Pennsylvania on August 30, 2007
presented by ALI-ABA (American Law Institute-American Bar Association)
Section 409A Deferred Compensation Plans: Problem Solving and Document Drafting - Webcast
Nationwide on August 30, 2007
presented by ALI-ABA (American Law Institute-American Bar Association)
The 5th Annual 412(i) Summit
in Illinois on August 1, 2007
presented by Executive Benefits Design Group
Understanding the Final 403(b) Regulations
Nationwide on August 2, 2007
presented by Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions, LLC
Newly Posted Press Releases
Employee Benefits Security Administration Releases Field Assistance Bulletin On Tax Sheltered Annuity Programs
U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)
ERIC and 11 Other Trade Associations Support Improved 401(k) Disclosure in Submission to Labor Department
ERIC (ERISA Industry Committee)
Twelve Trade Associations Support Improved 401(k) Disclosure in Submission to Labor Department
American Bankers Association
Fidelity's Annual 401(K) Report Shows Significant Impact Of Auto Solutions In Preparing Workers To Retire Successfully
Fidelity Investments
Synergy Software Technologies and the National Council on Aging Integrate SAMS and BenefitsCheckUp
National Council on Aging (NCOA)
Kenexa Research Institute Finds That When It Comes to Work/Life Balance, Men and Women Are Not Created Equal
Kenexa Corporation
Helping Boomers Realize Their Retirement Dreams: Announcing Baby Boomer Retirement Preparedness Week: August 6-10
Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
(Post a Job | View All Jobs)
Pension Administrator
for Benefit Strategies, Inc.
in CA
OmniPlus Consultants
for Chesapeake Benefit Partners
in ANY STATE
Compliance Analyst
for The Newport Group
in FL
ERISA Attorney
for Growing two-attorney law firm in Dallas, TX
in TX
Retirement Plan Administrator I
for Law Offices of R. David Danziger, P.C.
in PA
401(k) Technical Services Specialist
for Innovative Pension
in CA
New Business Account Manager
for Standard Insurance Company
in PA
Writer - Policy Issues
for The ERISA Industry Committee
in DC
ERISA Attorney
for Medium Sized Employee Benefits 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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