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| October 1, 2007 |
| Here are the Web's best new links about compliance and cost aspects of plan operation, design and policy. |
Today's sponsor is DATAIR Employee Benefit Systems, Inc.
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| Software for 401(k), Pension and Flex Administration |
| Pick and choose the software modules you need:
DC/401(k) Proposals & Administration - DB Proposals & Administration - Retirement Plan Documents (Prototype and
Volume Submitters) - Government Forms (5500s, 1099-Rs, 5300s) - - Cafeteria Plan Administration & Documents - Participant Termination Calculations - FAS 132 Reporting
Contact sales@datair.com or call 1-888-328-2474. |
(a) New Guidance Documents
(None today.)
(b) News
Hearing Scheduled on Fee Disclosure Bill, H.R. 3185
Excerpt: "U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, has announced that he plans to hold hearings Thursday, October 4, 2007, on H.R. 3185, the '401k Fair Disclosure for Retirement Security Act of 2007.' Witnesses are yet to be announced, but the hearings will be webcast live beginning at 10:30 a.m. Eastern time." (401khelpcenter.com)
Principal Revenue Sharing Suit Focusing on Class Action Issue
Excerpt: "A federal court lawsuit over the Principal Financial Group's 401(k) revenue sharing arrangements likely will not be heard in an Iowa courtroom until mid-to-late 2008 at the earliest, according to the latest case schedule." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Teamsters and U.P.S. Reach Deal on Pensions
Excerpt: "The International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced last night that it had reached a tentative five-year contract with the United Parcel Service that calls for sweeping changes in the pension plan for many workers." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Beneficiary Status Revoked Upon Divorce in South Dakota
Excerpt: "The South Dakota Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a man who was the beneficiary of his ex-wife's pension for three decades will not see any pension money because the couple was divorced, which revokes the beneficiary status under state law." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Connecticut's Supreme Court Rules on State Employee Unused Vacation
Excerpt: "Unused vacation time cannot be factored into a state employee's pension calculations, the state Supreme Court has ruled, in a case closely monitored by thousands of state employees." (The Hartford Courant)
(c) Summaries of Guidance; Filed Comments
Overview of Class Action Lawsuits Targeting 401(k) Fees and Expenses (PDF)
Pages 2, 4 of 4 pages. Excerpt: "The complaints also allege plan fiduciaries failed to adequately inform plan participants of the actual fees and expenses that were incurred by the plans." (The 401(k) Company)
Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide Updated as of September 26, 2007, for Retirement Plans (PDF)
7 pages. This Federal Legislation Quick Guide provides short updates on federal legislation that is currently under active consideration by Congress or has recently been enacted into law regarding retirement plans. (Hewitt Associates)
(d) Trends, Surveys, Research
Industry, Fearing 401(k) Default Rule, Touts GICs
Excerpt: "The deadline is approaching for a final decision on a U.S. Department of Labor rule that could exclude annuities and guaranteed investment contracts as qualified default investments in 401(k) plans." (The National Underwriter Company; free registration or paid subscription required)
Vacation Funding of Retirement
Excerpt: "One rarely used way to increase retirement savings is to allow employers to defer the equivalent of unused vacation days and use it as a 401(k) contribution instead. A more complicated option allows employers to contribute the pay themselves, but it requires some complex testing to make it viable." (Human Resource Executive Online; free registration required)
401(k) Investing: Life Annuities and Retirement (PDF)
Page 3 of 4 pages. Excerpt: "Regulations governing annuities within ERISA plans are complex, subject to both ERISA and insurance regulations, impose substantial administrative burdens (joint and survivor requirements), require unisex pricing which make them substantially more expensive, carry a significant fiduciary burden (which will remain even after the 'safest annuity rule' is rewritten as mandated by the Pension Protection Act), and pose a nightmare when required minimum distribution rules kick in." (The 401(k) Company)
DB Plan Sponsors Taking Wait and See Approach to PPA Impact, According to Chatham Partners
Excerpt: "Though many predicted the requirements of the Pension Protection Act and Financial Accounting Standards Board Statement 158 would further accelerate the demise of the defined benefit plan, plan sponsors are taking a 'wait and see' approach and not rushing to make plan changes." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Working Paper: Understanding Consumption in Retirement - Recent Developments
Excerpt: "This chapter summarizes five facts that have emerged from the recent literature on consumption behavior during retirement. Most importantly, there is substantial heterogeneity in spending changes at retirement across consumption categories." (Pension Research Council; registration required to download fulltext of paper)
Zeroing In on 76 Million Boomers Starting to Retire
Excerpt: "Seventy-five percent of plan participants switch their primary financial advisor or initiate a relationship with an advisor within five to 10 years of retirement." (The National Underwriter Company; free registration or paid subscription required)
Employee Ownership Update for September 28, 2007
NCEO Executive Director Corey Rosen discusses a new NCEO study of ESOP account balances, indicating that ESOP participants receive a much larger benefit from their employers than non-ESOP participants; proposed changes to SEC Rule 144; two recent surveys finding that employee ownership, while still comprising a small part of the European economy, is growing; and nominations for the NCEO's board. (National Center for Employee Ownership)
Fiduciary Responsibilities and Opportunities
Excerpt: "While many plan sponsors view the fiduciary obligations associated with retirement plans as a burden, it is refreshing that some plan sponsors embrace their obligations. Some plan sponsors also view their fiduciary responsibility as an opportunity to build a sound retirement program and better equip plan participants to secure adequate retirement savings." (The New York State Society of CPAs)
(e) Policy, Opinion, Advocacy
Testimony for Department of Labor ERISA Advisory Council on Financial Literacy (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "1. Does the plan sponsor have any responsibility to educate the participants about their decisions at retirement? Absolutely! Any firm that offers a retirement plan should provide employees with financial education around how to make informed decisions on how to use these plans to achieve their retirement goals." (Financial Finesse)
Employer Groups Request Simplicity, Flexibility in Enforcing PPA Participant Benefit Disclosure Rules
Excerpt: "Witnesses testifying at a September 18, 2007 hearing of the ERISA Advisory Council Working Group on Participant Benefit Statements called for 'flexibility' and 'simplicity' when the Labor Department issues guidance enforcing the new requirements on periodic benefit statements mandated by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA; P.L. 109-280)." (Wolters Kluwer Financial Services)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Senator Seeks to Make Companies Use One Number to Record Stock Options for Taxes and Accounting
Excerpt: "Corporations would no longer be able to record different amounts of executive stock options for tax purposes than they do for accounting reasons if a bill introduced [September 28] by Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) succeeds." (Financial Week; free registration required)
Next SEC Target: Executives' Stock Sales
Excerpt: "The key study suggesting possible abuse was published by Alan Jagolinzer, a professor at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business. Much as the study by University of Iowa professor Erik Lie on employee option granting practices ignited the backdating scandals, Mr. Jagolinzer's work has been a lightning rod for 10b5-1s." (Financial Week; free registration required)
Listing of IRS Published Guidance for January-September 2007
The target page links to guidance published by the Service relating to retirement plans: Treasury Regulations; Revenue Rulings; Revenue Procedures; Notices; and, Announcements. (Internal Revenue Service)
Senators Obama and Kennedy Introduce Measure Eliminating Safe Harbor for Independent Contractors
Excerpt: "Senators Barack Obama (D-IL) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) have introduced a bill that would eliminate an existing safe harbor in tax law that protected employers that had properly classified individuals as independent contractors based on existing IRS rulings. The 'Independent Contractor Proper Classification Act' (S. 2044), would also prohibit employers from relying on established industry practice as a basis for classifying individuals as independent contractors . . . ." (HR Policy Association)
Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide for September 26, 2007, on Human Resources & Employment Law (PDF)
10 pages. This Federal Legislation Quick Guide provides short updates on federal legislation that is currently under active consideration by Congress or has recently been enacted into law regarding human resources and employment law. (Hewitt Associates)
Charting the U.S. Labor Market in 2006
Excerpt: "This report, Charting the U.S. Labor Market in 2006, includes graphs and text describing the U.S. labor market in 2006. Highlights include information about educational attainment, race and Hispanic ethnicity, women, and families." (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Text: ''Protecting Employees and Retirees in Business Bankruptcies Act of 2007'' (PDF)
30 pages. Excerpt: "To amend title 11, United States Code, to improve protections for employees and retirees in business bankruptcies." (U.S. House of Representatives via American Benefits Council)
Experimental Estimates of Compensation Levels and Trends for Workers in the 15 Largest Metropolitan Areas, 2004-05
Excerpt: "This article presents new experimental Employment Cost Index (ECI) and Employer Costs for Employee Compensation (ECEC) estimates for the 15 largest metropolitan areas in the United States. The estimates were calculated as part of a research project to determine the feasibility of publishing ECI and ECEC estimates for metropolitan areas. BLS plans to begin regular publication of these kinds of estimates in the coming years." (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Newly Posted Events
Orlando ERISA Update Seminar with Charles Lockwood
in Florida on November 8, 2007
presented by GrayRobinson, P.A.
Planning for Your Retirement is more than a Game of Change
in Illinois on October 22, 2008
presented by
Newly Posted Press Releases
U.S. Department of Labor's ERISA Advisory Council Working Groups to Hold Teleconferences October 16
U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)
New IBM Report Predicts Healthcare Reform Will Force New Roles for US Health Insurers
IBM
Alliance Underwriters Chooses REporter (sm) from Benefit Informatics to Improve Claim Administration
Benefit Informatics
State Street to Freeze Pension Plan, Boost 401(k) Offerings
Boston Globe
New Report Says 'Health Courts' Bureaucracies Offer Big Financial Burdens and Loss of Patient Rights
American Association for Justice
Jewell Lim Esposito Joins Chamberlain Hrdlicka Philadelphia Office as Shareholder
Chamberlain Hrdlicka Attorneys at Law
Fidelity Reorganizes Under New President
Philly.com
BofA Hires Another Fidelity Exec to Oversee DB/DC Offerings
Institutionalinvestor.com
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
(Post a Job | View All Jobs |
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Retirement Sales Wholesaler - Inside Sales
for ExpertPlan, Inc.
in NJ
Plan Administration Specialist
for Boston Financial Data Services
in MA
Communications Consultant
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA
Taft-Hartley Relationship Manager
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA
Senior Manager of Benefits
for World-renowned cultural institution in NYC
in NY
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Spectrum Pension Consultants, Inc.
in WA
Health & Benefits Outsourcing
for Benefit Jobs LLC
in MA
Defined Benefit Outsourcing
for Benefit Jobs LLC
in MA, NC, NJ, NY
New Business Account Manager
for Standard Insurance Company
in PA
ERISA Health Attorney, Senior-Level
for Groom Law Group, Chartered
in DC
401k Administrator II
for Paycor
in OH
ERISA Health Attorney, Junior-Level
for Groom Law Group, Chartered
in DC
ERISA/Employee Benefits Litigation Attorney
for Groom Law Group, Chartered
in DC
Manager, Benefits Processing
for Princeton Retirement Group, a Merrill Lynch Co.
in NC
401(k) Implementation Manager
for ADP TotalSource
in FL
Retirement Services District Manager
for ADP- Automatic Data Processing
in AZ, CA, GA, IL, MN, NM, NY, PA, TN, TX
Director, Rollover Services
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA
Defined Benefit Conversions Data Analyst
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA
Vice President, Participant Experience Management.
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA
Defined Contribution Client Account Manager
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA
Quality Development Manager in our Participant Service Center
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA
Compliance Analyst
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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