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April 4, 2008

Here are the Web's best new links about compliance and cost aspects of plan operation, design and policy.


Today's sponsor is www.ftwilliam.com

(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
Banner ad for www.ftwilliam.com

Looking for a more efficient way to manage your plans?

You can count on ftwilliam.com to provide you with the knowledge and software you need to make the EGTRRA restatement process a breeze. We will be offering periodic webinars to inform you of everything you need to know about EGTRRA restatements. In addition, we've provided a new customer communications feature, custom cover letters and more! For details call 800.596.0714 or email support@ftwilliam.com.

[Guidance Overview] PBGC Proposed Regs Address Reallocation Liability Upon Mass Withdrawal
Excerpt: "The proposed regulations clarify that for each modification to the withdrawal liability method discussed in the rule, a plan's unfunded vested benefits, determined with respect to plan years ending after the plan year designated in the plan amendment, are reduced by the value of the outstanding claims for withdrawal liability that can reasonably be expected to be collected for employers who withdrew from the plan on or before the designated plan year." (Wolters Kluwer)


[Guidance Overview] PBGC Proposed Amendments to Withdrawal Liability Regulations
Excerpt: "This Compliance Alert summarizes the highlights of the proposed amendments, which would generally be effective for withdrawals occurring after these proposed regulations are adopted in final form, except where they implement a PPA '06 change for which the law prescribes a different effective date." (The Segal Group, Inc.)


How to Launch a Company 401(k) Plan
Excerpt: "The pages that [link from the target page] will help. They contain a step-by-step guide to picking a plan, a primer on the fees you can expect to pay, questions to ask a prospective investment adviser, and resources for further inquiry." (Inc.)


3M's Defined-Benefit Pension Plan Not Sticking Around
Excerpt: "Employees hired on or after January 1, 2009, will be covered by a new 401(k) plan, to which 3M will make an automatic contribution equal to 3 percent of employee pay." (Workforce Management; free registration required)


Roth 401(k) vs. Regular 401(k) Calculator
Schwab provides this Roth 401(k) calculator to help people make a determination about whether or not a Roth 401(k) is right for them. (Schwab Retirement Plan Services)


Updated Canadian Pension Adjustment Reversal Guide Released
Excerpt: "This guide provides information on how to calculate a pension adjustment reversal (PAR) amount. Registered pension plan administrators or trustees of a deferred profit sharing plans are sometimes required to calculate a PAR for plan members who terminate their membership." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)


Thrift Savings Plan Is a 'Benefit for Life'
Excerpt: "Two of three military members who separate or retire do so without having opened a government-run Thrift Savings Plan account, a benefit that has been available since 2002. Those who depart without an account leave behind a valuable tool that they could use over and over again to dampen their costs while investing for retirement . . . ." (Stars and Stripes)


Advice Efforts by Retirement Plan Providers Go Unused
Excerpt: "Although retirement plan providers supply investment education materials to 56% of participants surveyed by Spectrem Group, only 12% said they refer to these materials on a regular basis and 22% never use them." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)


Company Stock Exclusion not Warranted by Operational Fraud Revelation
Excerpt: "The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed a district court ruling that Tribune Company did not breach its fiduciary duties by continuing to offer company stock as an investment in employee retirement plans during the time a fraud that occurred at a New York subsidiary was being revealed." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)


Termination Before Selloff not Intentional Benefits Interference
Excerpt: "The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania has found that an employer was not motivated by a desire to deprive an Employee Stock Ownership Plan participant of benefits when it terminated him to move along a sell of one of its units to another company." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)


Judge Rules Against New Jersey Teachers in Case Involving Pension Payments
Excerpt: "A state Superior Court judge rejected a teachers' union lawsuit Wednesday aimed at forcing the state to pay $2.6 billion to make up for shortfalls in the teachers' pension system. The ruling rebuffed the New Jersey Education Association's claims that the state broke contractual promises by underfunding the teachers' retirement system in recent years. Superior Court Judge Linda Feinberg wrote that there is still enough money to pay for decades of benefits, despite growing deficits." (Asbury Park Press via)


[Official Guidance] April 2008 Pension Funding Segment Rates
Generally for plan years beginning after 2007, the rates in the tables . . . apply for minimum funding requirements under section 430 of the Code. (Internal Revenue Service)


[Official Guidance] IRS 30 Year Treasury Securities Rate Updated for March 2008
30 Year Treasury Securities Rate for March 2008: 4.39% (Internal Revenue Service)


[Official Guidance] IRS Composite Corporate Bond Rate Table Updated for April 2008
Corporate Bond Weighted Average Interest Rate = 5.99 for April 2008 (Internal Revenue Service)



Sponsored by: ASPPA

(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
Banner ad for ASPPA

The ERISA Outline Book

Stay current with The ERISA Outline Book, 2008 Edition, by Sal Tripodi, J.D., LL.M. only from ASPPA. Available in both print or on CD, this one of a kind resource has become the must have for anyone working in the pension industry today. Fully updated with the latest guidance on a variety of PPA 2006 items, the 2008 Edition also includes automatic enrollment guidance including QACAs, final regulations on QDIA's, guidance on benefit restrictions and much more. Stay current and order your copy today.

(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)

Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Can Your Long-Term Incentive Plan Become More Performance Based Again? (PDF)
Excerpt: "A top responsibility for Compensation Committees is to ensure a strong linkage between executive compensation and company performance. Long-Term Incentive Plans (LTIPs) typically provide the largest component of senior executives' compensation, most often through one or more of three equity-based types: Stock Options, Restricted Stock, and Performance Shares. This InsightOut™ assesses the relative strength of the linkages between company performance and each type of equity when included in an LTIP." (Buck Consultants)


Mandatory Clawbacks: Rep. Frank to Re-Engage on Executive Comp Oversight, Regulation
Excerpt: "In the wake of the 'fire sale' of Bear Stearns & Co., House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) indicated that he may require companies to adopt 'clawback policies' to recoup executive compensation when shareholders suffer large losses." (HR Policy Association)


Court Awards Restoration of Benefits to Former Westinghouse Employees
Excerpt: "The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania has ordered Siemens Corp. to restore separation from employment benefits to former employees of Westinghouse Electric Corp." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)




Newly Posted Events

401(k) Plan Workshop
in Michigan on May 9, 2008
presented by SunGard Relius

401(k) Plan Workshop
in Missouri on May 9, 2008
presented by SunGard Relius

401(k) Plan Workshop
in Washington on May 9, 2008
presented by SunGard Relius

Form 5500 Workshop
in Washington on May 8, 2008
presented by SunGard Relius

Form 5500 Workshop
in Michigan on May 8, 2008
presented by SunGard Relius

Form 5500 Workshop
in Missouri on May 8, 2008
presented by SunGard Relius

Managing the Vendor/Consultant Relationship: Service, Contracts and Renewals
in Illinois on April 24, 2008
presented by WEB - Chicago West



Newly Posted Press Releases

EBRI Testimony on Health Coverage and the Uninsured Among the "Near Elderly"
Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI)

Unum Begins Nationwide Launch of Simply Unum, a Benefits Solution to Address Needs of Small to Midsize Employers
Unum

U.S. Preventive Medicine and deCODE Genetics Sign Letter of Intent to Expand Personalized Medicine Platform
U.S. Preventive Medicine

PIMCO Launches New Target Date Funds
PIMCO



We're one of the top 350 employment sites on the web!Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
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Director-Retirement Services 50058839
for MassMutual Financial Group
in MA

RFP Consultant
for The Newport Group
in FL

Defined Contribution Plan Administrator
for Alliance Benefit Group - Rocky Mountain
in UT

Senior Manager Product and Marketing Development
for Charles Schwab
in CA

401(k) Plan Administrator
for Retirement Planners
in VA

Institutional Consultant
for UnifiedTrust Company, N.A.
in AZ, CA, OR, WA

Retirement Plan Administrator
for Employee Fiduciary
in AL




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