[Guidance Overview]
PBGC Must Pay Interest to Airline Pilots Due to 45-Day Delay in Lump-Sum Distribution
"The PBGC (acting as trustee of a terminated US Airways pension plan) must pay interest to two pilots who, having elected lump-sum payment of their retirement benefit, received their lump sums 45 days later than they would have received their first annuity payment, the [court] has ruled."
(Wolters Kluwer Law & Business / CCH)
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DATAIR Defined Benefit Software [Advert.]
PC-based software for proposal’s, compliance testing and valuations with PBGC reporting, employee statements and termination calcs. Supports wide range of plan designs including Cash Balance and 412(e)(3). Cost-effective systems with expert support.
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[Guidance Overview]
ASPPA Video Regulatory Update: DOL Guidance on Fee Disclosure
"ASPPA's General Counsel and Director of Regulatory Affairs, Craig Hoffman explains DOL's EBSA Technical Release 2011-03 and the methods allowed for electronic disclosure for the employer-based sponsored retirement system under the new guidance."
(ASPPA via YouTube.com)
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[Guidance Overview]
Court Rejects Payment of Overstated Pension Benefits; Keeps Severance Pact
"Miscalculation of some of the benefit options available under a pension plan was not intentional, said the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and did not warrant payment of the higher amount. This was the decision in Kenneth Pearson v. Voith Paper Rolls, Inc. . . ."
(Wolters Kluwer Law & Business / CCH)
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GASB Extends Pensions Comment Deadline Two Weeks to October 14
"GASB Extends Pensions Comment Deadline Two Weeks to October 14. The GASB has extended the deadline for commenting on the Board's proposals on pension accounting and financial reporting to Friday, October 14. The deadline was previously September 30."
(Governmental Accounting Standards Board)
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Recent Cases Place Emphasis on Diversity of Investment Options for Retirement Plans
"A body of law appears to be forming across federal Circuit courts giving employers greater guidance on how to build the range of investment options available in employee retirement plans in a way that fulfills the employers' fiduciary duty under ERISA. The most recent case, Renfro v. Unisys Corp., comes from the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit."
(fi360 Blog)
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How ERISA Applies to Multiple Employer Employee Pension Benefit Plans
"ERISA and its regulations specifically lay out the rules which must be met for 'an employer or employers' to adopt a single defined contribution multiple employer plan. These rules are extensive, effectively acting as a set of MEP qualification rules. Interestingly enough, in order to actually qualify as an ERISA MEP, the regs under ERISA Section 210 actually require that the plan first meet the rules under 413(c)-including being treated as a single plan under the Code."
(Business of Benefits published by Robert J. Toth, Jr.)
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Borzi Vows to Keep IRAs in Labor's Revamped Fiduciary Proposal
"'IRAs will continue to be part of the re-proposed rule,' Assistant Labor Secretary Phyllis C. Borzi wrote in an e-mail. 'The rule is designed to provide the strongest possible protections to business owners and retirement savers in plans and IRAs.'"
(Investment News; free registration required)
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Open Multiple Employer Plans: Tax and ERISA Considerations (PDF)
"In light of . . . expanding regulatory requirements, plus increased 401(k) plan fee and fiduciary litigation, small and mid-sized employers . . . may be looking for options to provide their employees with the benefits of a well-managed 401(k) plan while reducing their administrative burdens and mitigating fiduciary risk. One approach . . . gaining wider acceptance among both plan sponsors and their advisers is the 'open' multiple employer 401(k) plan—a single plan sponsored by an independent plan sponsor that covers the employees of a number of unrelated employers, with a centralized administrative and fiduciary structure."
(Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP)
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Tracking the Challenges of Investors in the Retirement Red Zone (PDF)
"This study explores what American investors in The Retirement Red Zone—those near or in retirement—perceive to be their challenges with respect to planning for retirement income. In addition, the study shares data on investors' retirement planning attitudes and concerns, with comparisons to previous Retirement Red Zone studies that Prudential conducted in 2009 and 2006."
(Prudential Retirement)
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Four Tips to Better Retirement Plan Investment Choices
"You might say your 401(k) plan is only for retirement and so it should be invested for the long-term. This is relatively straightforward if your 401(k) is your only significant asset. If you have other investments, you need to consider them as well when devising an appropriate strategy. For example, it could be that it makes sense to concentrate your 401(k) in more conservative bonds for tax reasons."
(Media News group)
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The Hot List: 2011 401(k) Plan Administrators
"[Every month Workforce Management produces] The Hot List featuring a ranking of top HR providers, products and services that help keep businesses up to date, on track and focused on what matters most -- its people."
(Workplace Management: free registration required)
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GASB Changes the New York City Public Hearing Date for Pensions to October 4
"The Board has changed the date of the pensions public hearing in New York City to Tuesday, October 4, from October 3. The public hearing will be held in the morning in conjunction with the public hearing on the recognition of elements in financial statements. The other public hearing and user forum dates remain unchanged."
(Governmental Accounting Standards Board)
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San Francisco Pension Reform Threatened by Health Law Battle
"Business leaders are threatening to withdraw their support for several November ballot measures—including Mayor Ed Lee's pension-reform measure—because of a rift over a proposed change to the city's health care program."
(The San Francisco Examiner)
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L.A. County Deputies' Pension Disclosures Postponed
"A judge agreed Thursday to postpone the disclosure of pension data for 2,529 retired Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies after a union attorney claimed that giving it to the Los Angeles Times would endanger the lives of some retirees."
(Los Angeles Times)
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Per Diem Pay Sweetens Pensions of Iowa Legislators
"Iowa factors hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual 'per diem' payments into the retirement benefit calculations of its lawmakers, potentially inflating their pensions by thousands of dollars each year, an analysis by The Des Moines Register and USA Today shows."
(www.DesMoinesRegister.com)
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[Opinion]
A New 'Secure Choice' Pension Benefit Proposal Is Half-Baked but Could Be Salvaged
"The National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems announced a new proposal with much fanfare last week. Their 'Secure Choice' initiative is ostensibly a well-intended effort to 'spread the wealth' and assure 'retirement security' for private-sector workers at the risk and potential expense of state taxpayers."
(Governing)
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Press Releases
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