BenefitsLink |   |
| September 21, 2007 |
| Here are the Web's best new links about compliance and cost aspects of plan operation, design and policy. |
Today's sponsor is ASPPA
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| ASPPA's Annual Conference, October 21-24, 2007 |
| Be a part of it all at ASPPA's Annual Conference this year. Join over 1,500 retirement professionals, choose from over 60 workshops, attend numerous networking opportunities and participate in ASPPA's bi-annual march to the hill. All this and more await you at the Hilton Washington, October 21-24, 2007. Register Now. |
New Compliance Rules; News
EEOC Accuses Baltimore County of Age DiscriminationExcerpt: "The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) claims the Baltimore County government makes older employees pay more for their pensions by illegally forcing some older workers to contribute at a higher rate." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
GM and UAW Reportedly Talk About Replacing Pension with 401(k)
Excerpt: "As contract negotiations continue, it's no surprise that one of the things on the table is freezing the automaker's traditional pension plan for new hourly hires." (Workforce Management; free registration required)
U.S. Sen. Baucus Seeks to Pare Back Airline Pension Break
Excerpt: "A pension funding break successfully sought by American Airlines earlier this year would be pared back under legislation introduced [yesterday] by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont." (CNNMoney.com)
Adviser Firm on Pensions Is Rebuked
Excerpt: "Federal securities regulators have issued a cease-and-desist order against a large pension consulting firm, Callan Associates, for failing to tell its clients that it had an outside business relationship that could affect the investment advice it gave." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Compliance Rule Summaries/Analysis/Filed Comments
Overview: Fiduciary Standards for Selection of Annuity Providers for DB and Individual Account Plans (PDF)3 pages. Excerpt: "The Department of Labor has issued an interim final rule limiting the application of its Interpretive Bulletin 95-1 to the selection of annuity providers for defined benefit plans. Concurrently, the DOL issued proposed regulations providing a safe harbor for the selection of annuity providers for individual account plans." (Buck Consultants)
Overview: IRS Recommends Fixes for 'Orphan Plans'
Excerpt: "In its Summer 2007 edition of Retirement News for Employers, the IRS has provided employers with solutions under the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS) for correcting common mistakes made with regard to 'orphan plans.' The IRS has also suggested actions that can be taken to prevent a plan from becoming an orphan plan." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)
Overview: IRS Announces Temporary Halt to Determination Letter Process
Excerpt: "The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced . . . it will temporarily stop taking applications from pre-approved defined contribution plans for determination letters on December 18, 2007." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Trends; Surveys; Research
The Economics of Providing 401(k) Plans: Services, Fees, and Expenses, 2006 (PDF)24 pages. Excerpt: "Providing and maintaining 401(k) plans require employers to obtain a variety of administrative, participant-focused, regulatory, and compliance services. All of these services involve costs. Generally, the plan sponsor and the plan participants share these costs." (Investment Company Institute)
Working Paper: Is Retirement Being Remade? Developments in Labor Market Patterns at Older Ages
Excerpt: "This chapter investigates non-traditional work and retirement patterns among older individuals in the Health and Retirement Study. We first review the evidence on retirements that initially involve bridge jobs or some form of partial retirement. We then focus our analysis on retirement reversals in which individuals resume or increase work activity following a period of retirement. . . . We explore the characteristics of the individuals who make these types of transitions." (Pension Research Council; registration required to download fulltext of paper)
Fewer Defined Benefit Plans Are Frozen by Fortune 1,000 Companies in 2007
Excerpt: "From Spencer's Benefits Reports: The percentage of Fortune 1,000 companies that began freezing new benefit accruals in their defined benefit plans dropped from 7% in 2006 to 4% in 2007, according to a study recently conducted by Watson Wyatt." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)
Testimony Before Working Group on Fiduciary Responsibilities Update and Revenue Sharing on behalf of CIKR (PDF)
15 pages. Excerpt: "[The Coalition of Independent 401(k) Recordkeepers (CIKR)]applauds the Council's leadership in examining the changes to the fiduciary responsibility rules affecting both defined benefit and defined contribution plans under the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA) and analysis of revenue sharing issues. I will focus my testimony today on the fiduciary issues surrounding revenue sharing, current revenue sharing practices and preliminary recommendations to the Department of Labor . . . ." (American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries)
Pension Tension Mounts in Massachusetts As Taxpayers Hand $100G-Plus Payouts to 85 Retirees
Excerpt: "The number of annual six-figure payouts has skyrocketed by nearly 50 percent in the past two years alone - from 57 in 2005 to 85 - and some of those fat checks are going to golden oldies as young as 47 years old, state records show. Eight of those retirees are former state police officials who are 55 or younger, including Reed Hillman, the GOP's 2006 candidate for lieutenant governor." (The Boston Herald)
Hispanics Age 65 and Older: Sources of Retirement Income in 2005
Excerpt: "Hispanics age 65 and older represented 6.6 percent of the total 65 and older population. This portion is projected to increase to 17 percent in 2050. What are the sources of retirement income for this group, and how do they compare with the retirement income sources of all older persons?" (AARP)
ERISA Class Action Settlement Clearinghouse
Excerpt: "Fiduciary Counselors has launched ERISAsettlements.com, a new website with information on what ERISA plans need to do with respect to class action settlements under ERISA or securities laws. The site includes information on past ERISA settlements, to help plan fiduciaries and litigators evaluate future settlements. . . . The SEC has established 'Fair Funds' to distribute money obtained in settlement of the mutual fund trading scandals." (Fiduciary Counselors Inc.)
Policy; Opinion; Advocacy
Democratic Presidential Hopeful Sen. Joe Biden Has Put Forth His Plan to Help Americans Save for RetirementExcerpt: "An announcement on Biden's campaign Web site says the Delaware Senator is proposing to crack down on executives who get bonuses while companies walk away from employee pensions, to require employers that do not provide retirement plans to allow employees to make direct deductions into Individual Retirement Accounts, and to make retirement plans more portable by automatically rolling over 401(k) plans." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
American Benefits Council Letters to Treasury/Congress Regarding Asset Smoothing for Defined Benefit Plan Funding Purposes (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "It is our understanding that Treasury is considering the publication of guidance that would effectively eliminate smoothing of assets as a viable option. The PPA used the term 'averaging' with respect to asset valuation. We understand that the guidance under consideration may state that averaging is not the same as smoothing, but rather is something very different. The form of averaging under consideration by Treasury would systematically undervalue assets by a very significant amount, thus artificially inflating funding obligations." (American Benefits Council)
Reish Testimony Before the Working Group on Fiduciary Responsibilities Update and Revenue Sharing Practices (PDF)
Written Comments for Testimony of C. Frederick Reish, Reish Luftman Reicher & Cohen, Prepared by C. Frederick Reish and Stephanie L. Bennett, Before the 2007 U.S. Department of Labor Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefits Plans, the Working Group on Fiduciary Responsibilities Update and Revenue Sharing Practices, in Washington, DC on September 20, 2007. (Reish Luftman Reicher & Cohen via BenefitsLink.com)
Best Resources on IRA Information Highlighted by Alliance for Investor Education
Excerpt: "The nonprofit Alliance for Investor Education (AIE) is spotlighting seven of the best available IRA resources for investors planning how to invest for retirement." (Alliance for Investor Education)
Statement for Investment Company Institute before Working Group on Fiduciary Responsibilities and Revenue Sharing Practices
Excerpt: "The Institute's testimony today focuses on why plans may choose to obtain both investment and administrative services through a single service provider and how to meet a plan sponsor's need for information in entering into and monitoring these service arrangements." (Investment Company Institute)
Testimony on behalf of the American Benefits Council at the Hearing on Fiduciary Responsibilities Update and Revenue Sharing (PDF)
6 pages. Testimony of Allison Klausner, Assistant General Counsel - Benefits, Honeywell International Inc., on behalf of the American Benefits Council at the Hearing on Fiduciary Responsibilities Update and Revenue Sharing, Working Group on Fiduciary Responsibilities Update and Revenue Sharing Practices of the ERISA Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans, U.S. Department of Labor, in Washington, DC on September 20, 2007. (American Benefits Council)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
409A Compliance: What You Need to Do by December 31
Excerpt: "[T]he IRS recently issued Notice 2007-78 which purportedly extends the deadline for plan amendments to comply with Code Section 409A until December 31, 2008. However, the extension is subject to so many conditions and requirements that still must be satisfied by December 31, 2007, many employers may decide they are better off trying to fully comply by the original December 31, 2007 deadline." (Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP)
Newly Posted Events
ERISA Litigation Issues Conference
in District of Columbia on November 29, 2007
presented by BNA, Inc.
Newly Posted Press Releases
CitiStreet Enhances Service for Managed Accounts
CitiStreet
Military Families Need More Flexibility to Care for Injured Veterans, Witnesses Tells Labor Subcommittee
U.S. House Education and Labor Committee
NAPFA and Hueler Companies Partner to Provide Fee-Only Advisors Access to Low Cost, High Quality Retirement Income Products via the Income Solutions® Platform
National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA)
CIKR Testifies on Revenue Sharing Issues Before DOL
Council of Independent 401(k) Recordkeepers (CIKR)
Deere Changes Health Benefits For Some Retirees
Deere & Company
The Standard Announces Fee Education Campaign for Retirement Plan Participants
The Standard
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
(Post a Job | View All Jobs |
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401(k)/Defined Contribution Valuation Processor
for National Retirement Services, Inc.
in CA, NC
Director, International Benefits
for 20th Century Fox
in CA
ERISA Attorney
for Growing two-attorney law firm in Dallas, TX
in TX
Executive Compensation Sr. Manager
for Deloitte
in IL, TX
DC Administrative Assistant
for Transamerica Retirement Services
in CA
In House ERISA/Employee Benefits Counsel
for National Financial Partners
in NY
Corporate Trainer
for ICMA-RC
in DC
Financial Services Client Services Specialist
for ICMA-RC
in DC
Assistant Administrator
for BenefitStreet, Inc.
in CA
Actuarial Position
for Swerdlin and Company
in GA
Retirement Plan Consultant
for CDM Retirement Consultants, Inc.
in MD
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Bates & Company, P.A.
in FL
WRS Relationship Manager I
for Wachovia
in PA
Senior Human Resources Analyst
for The County of Riverside
in CA
Manager, Benefits Program
for Entertainment Company in Hollywood
in CA
Relationship Manager
for BISYS Retirement Services
in PA
Director of Operations
for BISYS Retirement Services
in PA
Contracts Director - Broker/Dealer Risk
for Fidelity Investments
in RI
Senior Conversion Analyst
for Administaff
in TX
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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