Defined Contrib Analyst II
for The Standard in OR

Retirement Specialist
for The Boon Group in TX

Employee Benefits Mgr
for The Standard in PA

Employee Benefits Mgr
for The Standard in GA

Retirement Plan Administrator
for Northeast Professional Planning Group in NJ

Director, Defined Contribution Product Management
for Prudential in NJ

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Is a Benefits Portal Right for Your Company?
Nationwide on February 16, 2012 presented by Lorman Education Services

Understanding Your Summary Plan Descriptions
Nationwide on February 10, 2012 presented by Lorman Education Services

Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program Workshop
in California on January 26, 2012 presented by U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)

PBGC Final Rule: Benefits Payable in Terminated Single-Employer Plans; Interest Assumptions for Paying Benefits (PDF)
"This final rule amends [PBGC's] regulation on Benefits Payable in Terminated Single-Employer Plans to prescribe interest assumptions under the regulation for valuation dates in February 2012." (Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation)

Vegas is the place to (b)!   [Advert.]

18 workshops to advance your career, "Washington Update" with Brian Graff, exciting networking opportunities, post-summit access to recordings and handouts, more affordable pricing and outstanding accommodations!

Service Provider and Participant Fee Disclosure Regulations: Effective Dates
"The participant fee disclosure regulations apply for plan years beginning after October 31, 2011. However, the deadline for the plan administrator of a covered plan to provide the initial annual plan, expense, or investment disclosures to participants is now 60 days after the later of: 1. The effective date of the 408(b)(2) regulations (i.e., April 1, 2012), or 2. The date the regulations apply (i.e., plan years beginning after October 31, 2011)." (SunGard Relius)

PBGC Extends Interim Reporting Relief to 2012 Plan Years
"This Technical Update . . . addresses two topics: [(1)] funding-related determinations for purposes of waivers, extensions, and the advance reporting threshold test; and [(2)] missed quarterly contributions. [Click on the link under 'Items of Interest' on the target page.]" (Keightley & Ashner LLP)

Does Your Fiduciary Liability Insurance Need a Check-Up?
"Fiduciary liability insurance typically protects 'insureds' against 'loss' resulting from 'claims' arising from 'wrongful acts.' 'Insureds' can typically include the plan sponsor's officers, directors and employees who act in a fiduciary capacity (e.g., as plan trustees, plan administrators or members of administrative or investment committees)." (Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP)

IRS's Employee Plans Compliance Unit Completes Project on Leased Employees
"The [Unit] has completed a project to determine if plan sponsors properly considered leased employees for qualified plan purposes. Most of the plan sponsors contacted either misunderstood the leased employee rules or misapplied these rules, the IRS found." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business / CCH)

Preparing for Your First 401k Plan Audit (PDF)
"Whether your company needs a plan audit today or in future, this white paper is a roadmap of what to consider, what to expect and how to be ready for an upcoming plan audit." (Mohler, Nixon & Williams Accountancy Corporation)

Insurance for Fiduciaries: Know Your Options
"Depending on the type of claim asserted, there are a variety of 'coverage' options that may apply. . . . [T]he new fee disclosure rules are likely to increase claims for breach of fiduciary duty in the future, but even without that development, it makes sense to at least know whether you have coverage and what your options are." (Fox Rothschild LLP)

Plan Design Enhancements Can Confuse Instead of Engage Employees
"When you do communicate the changes, try to group several changes together . . . . Also, ALWAYS start any communications with their needs in mind. Focus your communication and education efforts first and foremost on their goals, and then show how these changes can help them achieve their goals." (Financial Finesse via 401khelpcenter.com, LLC)

How to Improve Social Security Education: Retirement Plan Providers' Perspectives (PDF)
"The experts and retirement plan providers interviewed in this study indicate a significant desire for greater collaboration with the Social Security Administration to develop effective communications and deliver useful and credible information to retirement plan participants and Americans as a whole. Some have specific suggestions for how the Social Security Administration can work more closely with defined contribution plan providers to help educate plan participants about the Social Security system and how Social Security benefits may serve as a critical component of their retirement income." (Financial Literacy Center)

Keep Pension Plan for American Airlines' Flight Attendants, Says Union
"American, whose parent company . . . filed for Chapter 11 bankrup.tcy reorganization in late November, has not said whether it intends to terminate or freeze its pension plan covering flight attendants or its three other pension plans." (Business Insurance)

Sacramento, California, City Manager Proposes Workers Contribute More to Pensions
"Sacramento, California's city manager told city employees more than 100 could [lose] their jobs unless they contribute more to their pensions. According to The Sacramento Bee, City Manager John Shirey told the City Council on Tuesday that half of the city's budget over the next two years could be eliminated if all of the city's workers paid their share of their [CalPERS] contributions." (PLANSPONSOR.COM)

NYC Actuary Said to Seek Lower Pension-Fund Rate of Return of 7% from 8%
"In the 10 years through June 2010, America's biggest state pension systems — battered by the Internet stock bubble, the financial crisis of 2008 and the longest recession since the Great Depression — earned an annualized return of less than 4 percent, according to data compiled by Bloomberg." (Bloomberg L.P.)

Federal Agencies Tighten Belts with Buyouts and Early Retirements
"OPM uses two tools to help agencies reduce their staffing levels without resorting to pink slips and firings. One is the Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments (VSIP) program, which is government-speak for buyouts. Employees can get up to $25,000 to quit. The other is the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA), which allows workers to get annuities years earlier than usual." (The Washington Post; free registration required)

EBSA Publishes 2011 Form M-1 for Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements
"The 2011 Form M-1 is now available for online filing." (U.S. Employee Benefits Security Administration)

2012 Reporting & Disclosure Calendar for Benefit Plans (PDF)
Sibson Consulting's 2012 Reporting & Disclosure Calendar for Benefit Plans summarizes compliance requirements for qualified, single employer benefit plans. An interactive version of this calendar is available at http://www.sibson.com/publications-and-resources/rd-calendar. (The Segal Group, Inc.)

Beware of Strategies to Take Advantage of Lower Social Security Tax Rates
"If the 4.2% rate is not extended for the whole year and you receive compensation income (e.g. salary, bonus, stock compensation) in January and February that exceeds $18,350 (a sixth of the Social Security wage base of $110,100), you face some type of recapture for the 2% lower rate." (myStockOptions.com)

Employee Benefits Security Administration Publishes 2011 Form M-1 for Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements
(U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA))

Excise Tax on High Cost Employer-Sponsored Health Coverage
(Lynchval Systems Worldwide Inc.)

Tegrit Technologies Expands Leadership Team to Meet Growing Demand
(Tegrit)