|
BenefitsLink Retirement Plans Newsletter
|
|
|
Looming Potential Downgrade of U.S. Government Securities May Require Action by Fiduciaries
"Most employee benefit plans subject to [ERISA] maintain substantial asset allocations to either U.S. Treasury securities or other forms of debt issued by . . . the United States government or its various agencies. In addition to possibly having a direct adverse impact on those debt instruments, a downgrade might even negatively affect other asset classes . . . ."
(Proskauer Rose LLP)
|
Industry Education Begins with RPF [Advert.]
Earn Your RPF Certificate and start your journey to a credential. RPF webcourses, texts and exams cover terminology, issues, and requirements for anyone starting the credential process or building a career. Start your journey today.
|
[Guidance Overview]
PBGC Announces August 2011 Interest Rates and Factors
"The rate to be used by the PBGC in valuing lump-sum benefits under single-employer or multiemployer plans for valuation dates on or after August 1, 2011 will be 2.25%, which is the same as the July 2011 rate."
(Wolters Kluwer Law & Business / CCH)
|
|
The Economic Recession: Impact on Employment Trends and Retirement Patterns
"Companies are now dealing with high health care costs and considerable uncertainty about health care reform. Economic conditions have also driven up pension costs. Between the higher known costs and the uncertainty, many companies are waiting for the dust to settle before hiring new employees."
(Towers Watson)
|
|
Retirement Security and the Financial and Economic Crisis: An Overview
"At a recent Impact Conference . . . academics, practitioners, and policy analysts joined to explore how retirement planning and long-term financial security have changed, following the crisis."
(Pension Research Council: free registration required to download fulltext of articles)
|
The Need for Plan Sponsors to 'Tune-Up' their Retirement Plans
"[P]lan sponsors also need to review their plan providers to ensure that they are diligent in their duties because despite the plan sponsor's delegation of duty to their providers, plan sponsors are still on the hook for liability as a fiduciary.
(The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C. via JD Supra, LLC)
|
401(k) Leakage and the Impact on Retirement (PDF)
"We will examine how loans, hardship withdrawals, distributions and cash outs impact potential outcomes. Contrary to many assumptions around leakage, the DCIIA research points to trends around cash outs and distributions to be the most harmful of the leakage points. Finally we will provide recommendations on steps plan sponsors can take now to prevent retirement savings leakage."
(Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association)
|
|
GAO Report: PBGC's Asset Management Needs Better Stewardship
"To ensure a disciplined and long-term approach to investment, PBGC and its board of directors should develop and maintain a comprehensive investment policy statement that provides clear organizational accountability, well-defined goals, and risk management parameters."
(U.S. Government Accountability Office)
|
|
|
Benefits in General; Executive Compensation
|
[Guidance Overview]
Forum Selection Clause Enforced in ERISA Claim Litigation
"The Plaintiff presented three reasons that the Court should not enforce the forum selection clause: #1 the SPA's forum selection clause is not explicit enough to be enforceable because it was 'buried' in the SPA and does not specifically reference Plaintiff's severance agreement; #2 forum selection clauses are not enforceable under ERISA; and #3 the forum selection clause was unreasonable."
(Roy Harmon III / Health Plan Law)
|
|
July 2011 Employee Benefits Update (PDF)
The newsletter includes select compliance deadlines and reminders, retirement plan developments, health and welfare plan developments, and other issues of note.
(Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c.)
|
Press Releases
|
|
BenefitsLink.com, Inc.
1298 Minnesota Avenue, Suite H
Winter Park, Florida 32789
Phone (407) 644-4146
Fax (407) 644-2151
Jeanette Hull, News Editor
David Rhett Baker, J.D., Editor and Publisher
Lois Baker, J.D., President
Holly Horton, Business Manager
Copyright © 2011 BenefitsLink.com, Inc. All rights reserved.
All materials contained in this newsletter are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of BenefitsLink.com, Inc., or in the case of third party materials, the owner of that content. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content.
Links to Web sites other than those owned by BenefitsLink.com, Inc. are offered as a service to readers. The editorial staff of BenefitsLink.com, Inc. was not involved in their production and is not responsible for their content.
More useful links:
|
|