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| October 12, 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
Text of EBSA Field Assistance Bulletin 2007-3 Clarifying Benefit Statement Requirement for DC Plans without Participant Investment Direction
Excerpt: "Plan administrators of individual account plans that do not provide for participant direction of investments will be treated as acting in good faith compliance with a reasonable interpretation of section 105(a)(1)(A)(ii) of ERISA when statements are furnished to participants and beneficiaries on or before the date on which the Form 5500 Annual Return/Report is filed by the plan (but in no event later than the date, including extensions, on which the Annual Return/Report is required to be filed by the plan) for the plan year to which the statement relates." (Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor)
(b) News
New York State Pension Fund Faces a Federal Inquiry
Excerpt: "The Securities and Exchange Commission has begun an inquiry into oversight of the New York State pension fund, which is drawing increasing scrutiny over claims that investment firms paid friends and relatives of former Comptroller Alan G. Hevesi in exchange for business." (The New York Times; free registration required)
(c) Summaries of Guidance; Filed Comments
Letter to U.S. Treasury Depart. from Several U.S. Congress Representatives Members Regarding Backloading and Hybrid Plans (PDF)
4 pages. The letter concerns an Internal Revenue Service position being taken on hybrid defined benefit plans. (U.S. Congress via American Benefits Council)
Side-by-Side Comparison of Each Provision of the 403(b) Final Regulations and the Impact to Plan Sponsors
8 pages. Excerpt: "This special 403(b) final regulations guide outlines many of the clarified or modified provisions and summarizes how they may affect your organization and employees. While many of the changes are effective with tax years beginning in 2009, please use this guide to learn more about the impact on your 403(b) plan(s) and how you can best prepare to incorporate future requirements and optional designs into your strategy." (The Principal)
Overview: Practical Implications for Plan Sponsors of the 403(b) Regulations
12 pages. Excerpt: "The purpose of this article is to focus primarily on the new regulations' implications for 501(c)(3) organizations sponsoring 403(b) plans. In light of the new contract exchange and plan transfer rules -- which became effective on September 24, 2007 -- particular attention will be given to the structural plan design decisions that plan sponsors will now be forced to make in order to be in compliance." (The Principal)
Overview: The IRS Pension Yield Curve (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "On October 9, the IRS issued Notice 2007-81, which describes the methodology that will be used to determine the pension yield curve prescribed by PPA. This guidance is necessary to determine minimum funding contributions and lump sum payments beginning with 2008 plan years. However, additional guidance is still needed regarding calculation of minimum lump sum distributions." (Buck Consultants)
How to Include ETFs in a Client's 401(k)
Excerpt: "The opportunity to provide an asset allocation model, with costs lower than those associated with traditional investments such as mutual funds, is a key asset-gathering and asset-retention tool. In addition, it helps to provide peace of mind for fiduciaries in what has become an area of concern - fees reducing participants' return on investments in their 401(k) accounts. ETFs, offered through a platform that allows the institutional trading of participants' shares, helps to provide the solution to these issues." (Investopedia ULC)
(d) Trends, Surveys, Research
403(b) Plan Sponsor's Guide to the New Final 403(b) Regulations: A Technical Interpretation
16 pages. Developed in partnership with Groom Law Group. Excerpt: "The main theme of the proposed regulations still echoes strongly through the final version and is consistent with changes in the statute over time. It is that 403(b) plans have become very much like 401(k) plans, and they must be run in a very consistent manner. And that means many plan sponsors will need to make a number of changes in how they currently manage their plans." (The Principal)
Steps Taken in Romania to Implement Pension Systems
Excerpt: "The government is taking a number of steps to implement new pension systems created in recent years to lessen retirees' reliance on social security. However, a delay in implementing second-pillar pensions has raised questions about whether that system will be fully operational by January 1, 2008, as originally planned." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)
Working Paper: Financial Literacy and Retirement Planning: New Evidence from the Rand American Life Panel
Excerpt: "The present paper introduces a new dataset, the Rand American Life Panel (ALP), which offers several appealing features for an analysis of financial literacy and retirement planning. It allows us to evaluate financial knowledge during workers' prime earning years when they are making key financial decisions, and it offers detailed financial literacy and retirement planning questions, permitting a finer assessment of respondents' financial literacy than heretofore feasible." (University of Michigan Retirement Research Center)
Overview: Cross-Testing in EGTRRA Prototype and Volume Submitter Plans
Excerpt: "Even with the . . . restrictions applicable to prototype plans, most employers should be able to fit their existing plan design on the EGTRAA prototype. If they cannot do so, they must either modify their design or restate on a volume submitter of individually designed plan. The IRS informally has indicated that it will permit EGTRRA prototype subscribers to switch to volume submitter sponsorship. However, at the present time, we do not have any details about the process, timing or possible cost for switching." (SunGard Corbel LLC)
Cash Balance Pensions Gain Momentum
Excerpt: "Cash balance pensions are becoming increasingly popular among employers for a variety of legal and economic reasons, and the industry can expect a notable resurgence for this hybrid model, experts say." (Employee Benefit News; free registration required)
Papers from the 'Challenges and Solutions for Retirement Security' Conference Held August 9-10, 2007
The target site provides links to the papers presented at the conference sponsored by the Office of Policy, Social Security Administration and the Retirement Research Consortium. Topic areas covered include the following: Recent Empirical Evidence on Retirement and Retiree Behavior; Demographic Changes and Family Behavior; Preparedness for Retirement: Managing Financial and Mortality Risk; Preparedness for Retirement: Private Pensions; Measuring Well-being in Retirement; Examining the Motives and Reasons for Retirement; How Health Influences Retiree Well-Being; and, Retirement Behavior Now and In the Future. (University of Michigan Retirement Research Center)
Social Insurance Benefits Need Not Limit Economic Growth -- Report of a Seminar
Excerpt: "Many families face difficult choices as they adjust to the rapidly changing U.S. economy. Policymakers want to help, but they are often stymied by the assertion that any programs that buffer economic losses will harm the economy. Is this theory true? To find out, the National Academy of Social Insurance brought together several experts to examine this question." (National Academy of Social Insurance)
(e) Policy, Opinion, Advocacy
GAO Report: Women Face Challenges in Ensuring Financial Security in Retirement
Excerpt: "GAO was asked to examine (1) how women's retirement income compares with men's and the reasons for differences; (2) how certain life events such as divorce, widowhood, and workforce interruptions affect women's retirement income; and (3) the possible effect on women's retirement income of certain changes to Social Security and pensions that seek to mitigate the effects of differences in workforce participation patterns." (U.S. Government Accountability Office)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Social Security Reform: A Framework for Analysis (PDF)
18 pages. Excerpt: "This brief seeks to advance the debate over Social Security reform by offering a top-down framework for designing and evaluating Social Security reform plans. This framework centers on the following four key questions that any plan must address. 1. Fairness across generations. . . . 2. Fairness within generations. . . . 3. Size of the safety net. . . . 4. Pre-funding future benefits." (U.S. Department of the Treasury)
Newly Posted Events
Compensation and Benefits in the Non-Profit and Government Sectors :Making Sense of the New Rules
in Pennsylvania on October 30, 2007
presented by PEBA --Penjerdel Employee Benefits & Compensation Assn.
HIPAA Revisited Teleweb
Nationwide on October 25, 2007
presented by International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans
Legislative Overview and Update
in Virginia on November 5, 2007
presented by Capital Chapter ISCEBS
VEBA Madness - Teleconference
Nationwide on October 30, 2007
presented by Seyfarth Shaw LLP
Newly Posted Press Releases
PBGC Assumes Easton Hospital Pension Plan
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)
U.S. Labor Department Sues Former Officer of Detroit Business to Restore Funds to Pension and Profit-sharing Plans
U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)
Employee Benefits Security Administration Provides Additional Guidance on Timing for Individual Benefit Statements
U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)
California Public Employees Retirement System Prefunding Plan For Retiree Health Benefits To Be Available To All California Public Agencies
CalPERS (California Public Employees' Retirement System)
Hillary Clinton's American Retirement Accounts Plan: A 401(k) Plan For All Americans
HillaryClinton.com
RiverSource Investments and PLANSPONSOR Research: Most Mid and Large 401(k) Plans Offer Lifecycle Funds
RiverSource Investments
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
(Post a Job | View All Jobs |
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Defined Benefit Calculation Developer
for Vanguard
in PA
ERISA Consultant
for Vanguard
in PA
Defined Contribution Plan Administrator
for Estate & Pension Advisory Board, Inc.
in PA
Client Service Consultant - Regional
for Standard Insurance Company
in MO
Defined Contribution Benefits Service Manager
for Hewitt Associates
in NJ
Retirement Plan Actuary/Consultant
for Charles Schwab
in OH
401k Administrator
for Vanguard
in PA
Pension Administrator
for Howard A. Feinstein Associates, Inc.
in IL
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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