Health & Welfare Consulting Actuary
for Milliman in NY

Director, Actuarial - Financial Modeling, Annuities
for Prudential in NJ

VP, Capital Markets Hedging
for Prudential in NJ

Associate Actuary, Capital & Earnings Team - Annuities
for Prudential in NJ

Pension Administrator
for Western & Southern Financial Group in OH

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Coping with Employee Stress: Innovations and Best Practices Seminar
in Massachusetts on February 2, 2012 presented by New England Employee Benefits Council

DOL Update
in Florida on January 25, 2012 presented by ASPPA Benefits Council of Central Florida

CFDD

PBGC's Policy Statement on Recharacterizing Premium Contributions
"A recharacterization of a premium contribution from the current plan year to a prior year is not an appropriate basis for amending a filing and claiming a refund of the premium, according to a Policy Statement released by the PBGC." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business / CCH)

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Sample Compliance Calendar for Retirement Plans (PDF)
"This calendar provides general key retirement plan compliance requirements common to most calendar year plans." (ERISAdiagnostics Inc.)

Scriveners' Errors, Drafting Errors, Operational Failures, Retroactive Amendments, Reformations, ERISA, and the Tax Qualification of Pension Plan Trusts
"There are often discrepancies between a pension plan's governing documents and the plan's operations . . . . Such a discrepancy if not corrected pursuant to the terms of the governing documents, is described as an operational failure . . . . This article offers suggestions by which the [IRS] may lessen the burden on itself and conscientious plan sponsors, while improving compliance with (1) the tax-qualification rules of Section 401(a) of the [IRC] and (2) the similar provisions of [ERISA]." (Social Science Research Network)

New FASB Rules on Multiemployer Plan Disclosures: Where to Find the Information
"The new requirements ask employers to provide a lot of detail concerning the pension plans they contribute to. Some of the information will be readily available within the employer's own records, such as the amount of contributions made to each 'significant' plan and to all plans in the aggregate, as well as the expiration dates of collective bargaining agreements. However, much of the rest needs to be gathered with a little bit of help from the plans themselves." (Retirement Town Hall)

Schwab Takes Aim at 401(k) Fees
"As regulators focus more on the fees participants pay for their 401(k)s, Charles Schwab is launching a 401(k) plan that offers only index mutual funds, which are often much less expensive than actively managed funds." (Treasury & Risk)

Best Practices for 403(b)s Subject to Fee Disclosure Rules
"[T]he NTSAA Fee Transparency Task Force is in the final stages of the development of a fee disclosure document patterned after the DOL model comparative fee chart. The document will be available for non-ERISA employer plans in the belief that employers and participants will benefit from total transparency as they exercise their freedom to choose their own investment options, and financial advisers. It is expected that the Task Force will launch the new document in the first quarter of 2012." (PLANSPONSOR.COM)

Class Certification Requirements in 401(k) Fee Litigation (PDF)
"The basis for granting certification has frequently been the offhand observation that the class was complaining of the plan's structure as a whole. [The Spano and Kraft cases] indicate that, while class certification remains possible in cases involving 401k plans, the potential conflict between various categories of plan participants requires narrower definitions of the class that align." (401(k) Advisor via The Wagner Law Group)

Revisiting Stable Value Investments (PDF)
"This article reviews background information about stable value investments and provides important guidance that plan sponsors can use to evaluate and compare stable value investments. This article also discusses important current issues confronting stable value funds and plan sponsors." (Defined Contribution Insights via Portfolio Evaluations, Inc.)

Recovery at Risk as Americans Raid Savings
"In an ominous sign for America's economic growth prospects, workers are paring back contributions to college funds and growing numbers are borrowing from their retirement accounts." (The New York Times; free registration required)

Top Ten Rhode Island Local Pension Plans in Crisis
"Two thirds of all the locally administered pension plans are now in financial dire straits after the total cost of the unfunded liability for municipal retirement plans ballooned by more than a bil.lion dollars in a year, according to data obtained by GoLocalProv." (GoLocalProv)

Industry Groups Request DOL Clarify and Refine Fiduciary IRA Data Request
"Industry trade groups told the Department of Labor in a Jan. 12 letter that it would be impossible for them to provide data to DOL concerning conflicts of interests brokers face in advising IRAs by Jan. 15, and requested a meeting with DOL to 'clarify and refine' DOL's original request." (AdvisorOne)

Philadelphia Orchestra Association Negotiating Split with National Musicians' Pension Fund
"Under discussion are the amounts the association would pay, and over what period of time, to the American Federation of Musicians and Employers' Pension Fund (AFM-EPF), said the orchestra association's lawyer, Lawrence G. McMichael. Although the association won't contribute to it anymore, the fund will still be responsible for providing some benefits players earn." (Philadelphia Media Network Inc.)

Double-Dipping Common for Public-Sector 'Retirees' Who Take on Additional Work
"Proponents of such contracts argue that taxpayers are getting a good deal. 'Retired' public servants provide expertise and leadership, and their terms of employment can be cheaper for local governments because their compensation often doesn't involve health care or other benefits." (San Jose Mercury News)

The Perfect Storm is Brewing for 401(k) Fiduciaries (PDF)
"A perfect storm is brewing in the world of 401(k) fiduciary risk management, and fiduciaries and plan sponsors who do not carefully plot a course forward now risk being sunk. The elements of this storm are: [1.] The evolving standard for measuring whether or not fiduciaries are fulfilling their duties is how well the plan is helping participants make progress toward achieving a financially secure retirement." (Investment Horizons, Inc.)

Increasing Retirement Ages Would Reduce Federal Spending, Limit Health Care Benefits
"The Congressional Budget Office released on Jan. 11 an issue brief describing the effect of increases in the eligibility ages for Social Security and Medicare. The CBO found that raising the Medicare eligibility age or the early or full eligibility age for Social Security would reduce federal spending and limit the number of people with access to health insurance." (AdvisorOne)

American Airlines Flight Attendants Echo PBGC's Call for American Airlines to Honor Obligations and Retain Pension Benefits for Current Employees
(Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA))

Mercer's 2012 Guide To Social Security And 2012 Medicare Booklet Now Available
(Mercer)

New 401k Averages Book Released for Fee Benchmarking
(401k Averages Book)

Tegrit Group Begins Re-Branding Process
(Tegrit Group)