ASPPA

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for Diversified in CA

Manager - Retirement Plans (4181)
for Discovery Communications in DC, MD, VA

National Sales Leader, Retirement Plan Services
for Charles Schwab in OH, TX

Senior Pension Consultant
for National Pension Partners in ANY STATE

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ASPPA Cincinnati Pension Conference
in Kentucky on November 14, 2011 presented by ASPPA (American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries)

ERISA Legal Update with Craig J. Davidson, CEBS
Nationwide on August 17, 2011 presented by FutureOffice Network

Text of SEC Proposed Rule on Business Conduct Standards for Security-Based Swap Dealers and Major Security-Based Swap Participants (PDF)
"Congress has provided certain additional protections in the Dodd-Frank Act for 'special entities'—including certain municipalities, pension plans, and endowments—in connection with security-based swaps." (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission)

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Text of EBSA Interim Final Rule: Reasonable Contract or Arrangement Under Section 408(b)(2)-Fee Disclosure (PDF)
"This document contains an interim final regulation under [ERISA] requiring that certain service providers to employee pension benefit plans disclose information to assist plan fiduciaries in assessing the reasonableness of contracts or arrangements, including the reasonableness of the service providers' compensation and potential conflicts of interest that may affect the service providers' performance." (U.S. Employee Benefits Security Administration)

DOL Further Extension of the Compliance Dates for the 408(b)(2) and Participant Disclosure Regulations
"[DOL] has announced extensions to the compliance dates for two major DOL disclosure initiatives—the service provided disclosure regulation under ERISA section 408(b)(2) and the participant-level disclosure regulation issued under ERISA sections 404(a) and 404(c)." (Groom Law Group)

Treasury Guidance on FBAR Filings for Foreign Financial Accounts (PDF)
"Treasury issued final regulations on FBAR filings, which apply to U.S. persons, including pension plans, that invest in, or have signature authority over, foreign financial accounts. For 2010, these filings were generally due by June 30, 2011." (Buck Consultants, LLC)

403(b) Transfers and Exchanges
"This article will highlight the requirements that must be met in order for transfers and exchanges to qualify for favorable tax treatment." (McKay Hochman Co., Inc.)

Will the 4% Rule Still Apply When You Retire?
"Just because something is called a rule doesn't make it a law of the universe. Therein lies the problem with the 4% withdrawal rule—it doesn't always work. The amount you can withdraw from your retirement accounts fluctuates based on your investment mix and their performance." (Retirement Online LLC)

Judge Rejects Request to Block Part of New Hampshire Pension Reform
"The Associated Press reports that [the Superior Court Judge] said he was not convinced irreparable harm would occur if more time was taken to resolve the dispute over part of the law dealing with setting employer contribution rates." (PLANSPONSOR.COM)

Transcript of July 15 Q&A Session with EBSA on DOL's Regulatory Agenda
EBSA notes that input received during the course of the web chat on July 15, 2011, is not part of the formal rulemaking process. (U.S. Employee Benefits Security Administration)

EBSA's Borzi Chats about Upcoming Definition of Fiduciary Rule
"Borzi said EBSA has been, and intends to continue, working with plan sponsors, participants, service providers, other federal agencies, including the Securities and Exchange Commission . . ., the Department of the Treasury, and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission . . . as well as other experts to produce the best possible final regulation." (PLANSPONSOR.COM)

Discussion on the Future of Social Security at 'Demystifying Social Security: Academy for Interns 2011'
"Attendees gained a better understanding of the challenges facing the White House and Congress as they work to modify Social Security. The free, day-long event featured prominent guest speakers, expert panels, and interactive activities, plus opportunities for networking. [Links to the presentations are available on this target page.]" (National Academy of Social Insurance)

Your 401(k) Plan Has Auto-Enrollment, Now What?
"Consider the basic fact that participation in a 401(k) plan is only one hurdle in making a retirement plan successful. Is a 3% contribution rate good? It may or may not be. In our recent informal online survey, the results indicated that the most popular rates, as shown in the pie chart below, tend to be those that are just enough to maximize the employer matching contribution . . . ." (Milliman, Inc.)

HR Focus on Retirement Plan Governance
"The number of lawsuits, combined with regulatory complexity, the growing cost of benefits and the volatility of investments, has motivated some U.S. companies to beef up the governance of their retirement plans, say experts. But relatively few are proactively addressing governance risks." (Human Resource Executive Online)

Are DC Target-Date Funds Accomplishing What Participants Were Not Doing for Themselves? (PDF)
"Are target-date funds accomplishing their goal of providing long-term investment allocations that will provide growth, preservation of capital, and, finally, a secure retirement nest egg for participants?" (Arnerich Massena, Inc.)

CalPERS Publishes Paper on Vested Pension Rights
"The CalPERS paper says that the California Public Employees' Retirement Law, the state constitution and the U.S. Constitution all prevent altering pensions promised to current employees. It also details a list of 'non-vested' rights that can be altered, such as the price of service credit." (The Sacramento Bee)

United Continental to Issue First Note to PBGC for Pension Takeover
"United Continental Holdings Inc. says it will issue a $62.5 mil.lion note to the [PBGC], the first payment the holding company has made as part of a 2005 agreement to have the PBGC to take over four underfunded United Airlines' pension plans." (Business Insurance)

Idaho State Retirement System Wins Recognition from National Group
"The National Institute on Retirement Security, a group that believes pensions create jobs and stave off poverty, recognized the PERSI fund for its stability. Dianne Oakley, head of the group, praised Idaho for creating a strong program that can be seen as a model for other states." (IdahoReporter.com)

Unions Challenge Arizona on Retirement Contributions
"Three unions have challenged an Arizona budget provision that requires many government workers to make bigger contributions to their retirement benefits while providing employers with corresponding savings." (Forbes.com LLC)

Pension Choices Can Affect Global Economy
"Although it is in each region's interest to pursue reform regardless of what other regions do, there is a clear advantage to global policy cooperation." (International Monetary Fund)

More Faulty Pension Analysis Unhelpful to State and Local Recovery Efforts (PDF)
"Robert Novy-Marx and Joshua Rauh—whose analysis last year contained flawed methods reflecting an inaccurate understanding of public sector finance and operations—released a new paper that makes more dramatic projections about the condition of public retirement systems and their effects on state taxes. The paper, The Revenue Demands of Public Employee Pension Promises, ii uses underlying assumptions that understate revenues, inflate costs, and ignore other available public policy options." (National Council on Teacher Retirement)

Groups Say Academic Researchers' Paper on Public Pension Funding Is 'Misleading' (PDF)
"A July 12 issue brief from the National Association of State Retirement Administrators and the National Council on Teacher Retirement said that underlying assumptions made by academic researchers in a recent paper about public pension plans differ considerably from the assumptions actually used by such funds." (The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc. via National Council on Teacher Retirement)

DOL Should Apply the 'Sole Interest' Fiduciary Duty to Everyone Dealing with Retirement Plans
"[T]he key to avoid becoming a fiduciary when dealing with ERISA-qualified retirement plans is written disclosure. The head of the American Society for Pension Professionals and Actuaries . . . is most helpful in suggesting what this disclosure might look like . . . ." (Morningstar Advisor)

ASPPA Comment Letter on Distribution of Custodial Accounts on 403(b) Plan Termination
"ASPPA and NTSAA believe that the treatment of 403(b)(7) custodial accounts on plan termination should be consistent with the treatment of distributed annuity contracts as outlined in Revenue Ruling 2011–7." (American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries)

Video on Regulatory Update of DOL Electronic 401(k) Fee Disclosure
ASPPA's General Counsel and Director of Regulatory Affairs, Craig Hoffman explains why it's crucial to harmonize the rules between the IRS and DOL for efficiency and to make electronic disclosure the default an option for participants. (American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries via YouTube)

Accounting Standards Are Splitting Away from Pension Funding Policies
"The July 8 exposure draft of proposed financial reporting standards will almost certainly work its way into formal rules next year. Unfortunately, the vast majority of pension funds will most likely adopt the accounting rules, but then go their own way with their funding policies because most employers cannot afford to pay the full actuarially calculated costs of the GASB standards." (Governing)

Legal Authority to Adjust State Pension Plans
"Fortunately, a more appealing remedy than bankrup.tcy exists. It is contained in two U.S. Supreme Court cases, Energy Reserves Group v. Kansas Power & Light and United States Trust Company of New York v. New Jersey. States and, with state authority, municipalities, can unilaterally reduce excess retirement benefits under circumstances now widely prevailing. There is a widespread misunderstanding in many states that the U.S. Constitution prohibits these adjustments, but there is no such prohibition." (Kansas Policy Institute)

Annuities and Getting the Most Out of Social Security
"Traditional pensions are a form of annuity, and people who have them usually seem to love them. What's odd is that people with retirement plans like 401(k)'s generally do not buy annuities, even though annuities would simplify and stabilize their financial lives. Economists call this state of affairs the annuity puzzle." (The New York Times; free registration required)

A Tale of Two New York Pension Funds
"The state pension fund, one of the nation's biggest, is also exceptional because it is around 100 percent fully funded. In contrast, many states, counties, cities and towns around the country confront enormous shortfalls in their pension funds. . . . New York City is a financial trendsetter and other public pensions may follow its lead, as they have in the municipal bond market. At a total of $119 bil.lion, the city's five pension funds are the sixth-biggest U.S. public pension fund." (Leo Kolivakis)

Recent Developments in Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation
The July 2011 edition covers: IRS Notice on Potential Approaches to Shared Responsibility and Other Health Care Reform Requirements; Supreme Court Ruling on SPD-Based Benefit Claims, and Expansion of Potential Lawsuits For ERISA Plaintiffs; Impact of New State Marriage And Civil Union Laws on Employee Benefits; and, Wellness Programs. (Blank Rome LLP)

14 Cities Being Eaten Alive by Public Sector Workers
"Skyrocketing employee costs—the result of overly generous union contracts, an aging workforce, and bad pension investments—are now pushing several municipalities to the brink of fiscal ruin. Without union concessions or substantial reform, these cities will edge closer to insolvency while residents pay higher taxes for deteriorating public services." (Business Insider, Inc.)

In Anemic Job Market, Benefits Take Hit.
"A few family-related benefits have taken a hit since the recession, and haven't recovered, according to the Society for Human Resource Management's (SHRM) latest annual survey of 600 employers' benefits' offerings." (The Wall Street Journal)

Employee Ownership Update for July 15, 2011
NCEO Executive Director Loren Rodgers discusses the following: A new study shows equity plans are a large part of employee savings. Other research sheds light on the relation between ESOPs and disclosure practices at public companies. ESOP-owned Reflexite will merge with a German company. The ESOP is a core part of the corporate identity of USA800, a call center company. The Economist published an obituary for Robert Oakeshott. (National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO))

Benefit Software Inc. Announces Results of Tenth Annual Client Employee Online Enrollment Satisfaction Survey
(Benefit Software Inc.)

ERIC Urges IRS Not to Impose Undue Burdens on Group Health Plan W-2 Reporting Requirements
(ERIC (ERISA Industry Committee))