[Guidance Overview]
Effective Date Delayed for CFTC Swap Rules Affecting Retirement Plans
"The CFTC issued proposed regulations in December 2010 on both the regulation of MSPs and the business conduct standards, but have yet to finalize them. Until the rules are finalized, the CFTC has postponed the effective date of the swaps provisions under the Dodd-Frank Act, which were originally intended to take effect on July 16, 2011."
(McguireWoods LLP)
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[Guidance Overview]
Compliance Dates Extension for Fee Disclosure Rules (PDF)
"In its latest guidance, the DOL stated that it intends to publish a final 408(b)(2) service provider fee disclosure regulation before the end of this year and 'does not expect that the changes to the interim final rule are likely to require more additional time for compliance.'"
(Kelly, Hannaford & Battles P.A.)
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[Guidance Overview]
The Roth 'In-Plan' Rollover: A New Plan Design Feature for Qualified Plans (PDF)
"A summary of the prior law is set forth below, along with a summary of the new provision and the IRS guidance issued in Notice 2010–84 to facilitate implementing this provision. Lastly, the article reviews the key implementation steps when adding the new Roth rollover feature."
(CCH Incorporated via Groom Law Group)
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[Guidance Overview]
Think Your Employee's Divorce is a Sham to Get at Retirement Benefits?
"[T]he Fifth Circuit issued its opinion in Brown v. Continental Airlines, Inc., 2011 WL 2780505 (5th Cir.), a rather unusual case addressing what a plan administrator's obligations are with respect to a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO) when the plan administrator thinks the underlying divorce that produced the order was a sham."
(Constangy, Brooks & Smith, LLP)
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Retirement Calculators Threaten the Stability of Your Entire Plan
"Calculators are not designed to compute investment performance history, but rather, to use such information along with contribution rate to give the participant an idea of whether or not they're on track to reaching their savings goal."
(Invest n Retire, LLC)
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Beyond Age and Se.x: Enhancing Annuity Pricing
"Prices of standard annuity products in the United States do not currently reflect buyers' personal characteristics other than age and se.x. I show that several readily-measurable risk factors can significantly increase explained variability in mortality outcomes in a proportional hazards framework and use them to construct alternative pricing schemes."
(Pension Research Council: free registration required to download fulltext of articles)
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401(k) Plan Sponsors: Is It Time for a Fee Policy?
"A Fee Policy Supplement can provide a tool to facilitate decision-making in the context of ERISA's requirements. It can provide a framework and structure to help plan sponsors document and understand which decisions need to be made and how to make them."
(Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP)
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Retirement Security Products and Investments
"More realistic pricing means that many products such as lifetime benefit annuities and LTC insurance are not as attractive as they once were. Products that are less complex and less expensive—such as SPIAs and longevity insurance—may be more attractive to today's consumers. . . ."
(Milliman, Inc.)
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[Opinion]
Are in-Kind Contributions for Public Pensions an Overlooked Opportunity?
"Industry observers say that among private pension funds, in-kind contributions have been a creative partial response for dealing with their severe funding pressures, and that their success with this approach may be an opportunity for public funds."
(Asset International, Inc.)
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[Opinion]
Gang of Six Plan Reference to Retirement Savings Based on Fuzzy Math
"[This] is a statement from Brian H. Graff, . . . of The American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries . . . in response to the proposal by a bipartisan coalition of senators known as the 'Gang of Six.'"
(American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries)
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[Opinion]
Idaho's Expensive Pension System
"The state and its school districts spend about $1 bil.lion on salaries. As a result, schools also spend about $100 mil.lion annually making payments to the state's pension system, about 10 percent of payroll."
(IdahoReporter.com)
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Benefits in General; Executive Compensation
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Press Releases
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