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Retirement Plans Newsletter

May 26, 2010

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DB Administration, Discrimination Testing and Proposal software with Multiple Plan and Cash Balance Plan handling. PPA’06 Pension Funding.
* Funding Target and Target Normal Cost with 3-rate segments
* 404(o) Cushion; 430 minimum and 404(o) maximum contributions
* Funding Target Attainment Percentages (FTAPs)
Schedule SB reports and links to our 5500/PBGC System, and our FAS 158 and Termination Calculation reporting systems.
sales@datair.com or call 1-888-328-2474

[Guidance Overview]
Required 2010 Tax-Qualified Plan Amendments and January 2011 IRS Determination Letter Filing Deadline (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "Plan sponsors should review their tax-qualified plans annually to ensure that all necessary amendments are adopted on a timely basis. This can be challenging because the timing rules for plan amendments have become quite complex due to the interplay between the rules sometimes contained in new laws and the rules imposed by the Internal Revenue Service. It is important to meet these rules as IRS determination letter reviewers thoroughly review plan amendments . . . ."
(Groom Law Group)

[Guidance Overview]
Roundup of 2009 Changes to Form 5500 and Schedules
Excerpt: "What should you be doing now? 1. Start collecting the information you need; if you are having trouble obtaining the information, document your requests. 2. If your plan is subject to an audit, hopefully the process has begun. 3. Confirm that your vendor will preparing your 5500 and determine if they will be a 'transmitter' for purposes of EFAST2 credentials. 4. Leave time for the 'signing ceremony'; don't wait until the last minute to avoid delays in transmission. 5. Don't forget to check the DOL website; there is a lot of useful information regarding Form 5500."
(ERISAdiagnostics Inc.)

[Guidance Overview]
ESOP Trustee Cleared of ERISA Wrongdoing
Excerpt: "The trustee of an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) acted in good faith when it determined the fair market value of company stock, so it did not violate prohibited transaction rules, a judge has determined."
(PLANSPONSOR.com)

EBSA Schedules June 3rd EFAST2 Webcast
Excerpt: "Sponsors and plan service providers with questions about the U.S. Department of Labor's ERISA Filing Acceptance System (EFAST2) can tune in to an upcoming Webcast to get some answers."
(PLANSPONSOR.com)

Are You Ready for the IRS 401(k) Compliance Check Questionnaire?
Excerpt: "Although this Project is not an IRS audit or investigation, failure to respond or provide complete information will result in IRS enforcement action, which may include an examination of the 401(k) plan. Plan sponsors that must complete the Questionnaire should develop a comprehensive review process with legal counsel and third-party administrators."
(Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP)

Some Concerned That Major Retirement Policy Changes Are Ahead
Excerpt: "A request by the federal government seeking comments on ways to enhance the use of annuities in employer retirement plans has sparked some fear that the Obama administration will engage in extensive revamping of current regulations. Experts say the use of annuities in employer plans can have both positive and negative aspects."
(Human Resource Executive Online)

Fiduciary Provision May Be Most Important Part of Financial Reform Bill
Excerpt: "[T]here's a last-ditch battle to determine whether the reform package ultimately will require all financial advisors to be fiduciaries, or trustees for their clients . . . . Why does that matter? This fiduciary provision is simple, says Bob Webster, a spokesman for the North American Securities Administrators Assn. It demands that financial advisors -- regardless of whether they call themselves 'wealth planners' or 'investment specialists' -- put their clients' interests ahead of their own."
(Los Angeles Times)

The Retirement Income Landscape (PDF)
10 pages. Excerpt: "As baby boomers begin to take lump-sum distributions from workplace retirement plans, a new generation of products has emerged to help them meet the retirement income challenge. In this Vanguard research note, the authors analyze conventional strategies as well as new ways to translate lump-sum savings into a stream of income in retirement."
(The Vanguard Group, Inc.)

[Opinion]
Should We Be Helping Participants to Do the 'Right' Thing About Retirement Income?
Excerpt: "The new frontier in participant decision-making appears to be retirement income or, more precisely, helping individuals make arrangements for a suitable stream of income post-retirement. There is a general -- and perhaps increasingly pervasive -- sense that the solution to this challenge is already at hand (or could be with a tweak here and there): the annuity."
(PLANSPONSOR.com)




June 17-18, 2010 Chicago, IL
This is the first conference designed by ERPAS for ERPAS! A one of a kind program developed from topic suggestions by current and potential ERPAs to provide practical solutions to the issues they face, the ERPA Conference offers up to 10.5 ASPPA, ERPA, JBEA and NIPA CPE credits, Ethics CPE credit, access to top speakers from the IRS, and networking with colleagues and fellow ERPAs.

For more details and registration, visit www.erpaconference.org today!

Sponsored by ASPPA

Executive Compensation; Benefits in General

[Guidance Overview]
Supreme Court Holds that ERISA Does Not Impose 'Prevailing Party' Requirement for Award of Attorneys' Fees (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "Eight of the justices joined the opinion, which was issued only four weeks after oral argument. Justice John Paul Stevens agreed that ERISA does not impose a 'prevailing party' requirement and that the District Court acted within its discretion in granting attorneys' fees to Hardt, however, Justice Stevens indicated he would not have followed Ruckelshaus (from which he dissented) without further analysis of the text, structure and history of ERISA."
(Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP)

[Guidance Overview]
Supreme Court Holds ERISA-Based Attorneys' Fees Available
Excerpt: "On May 24, 2010 the U. S. Supreme Court held that a party does not need to be a 'prevailing party' in order to be eligible for an attorneys' fees award under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). In reaching this decision, the Court relied on the statutory language of the applicable statute, which does not include any 'prevailing party' requirement, and noted that Congress is able to impose limitations on the availability of attorneys' fees when it deems fit. Hardt v. Reliance Standard Life Insurance Company."
(Fisher & Phillips LLP)


Webcasts and Conferences

Getting Started with EFAST2 & Preparing Your 2009 Form 5500 Webcast
Nationwide on June 3, 2010
presented by U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)

Retirement Plan Compliance Assistance Seminar
in Indiana on July 22, 2010
presented by U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)

Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program Workshop
in Michigan on July 27, 2010
presented by U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)


Press Releases

PBGC Divides Chicago Trucker Pension Plan to Extend its Solvency
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)

US Department of Labor to Host Fifth Webcast on 2009 Form 5500 and Electronic Filing Requirements
U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)


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in PA

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