Lead Benefits Analyst (Employee Benefits)
for Alliant Insurance Services, Inc. in CA

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The Family Medical Leave Act: Back to Basics
Nationwide on January 15, 2013 presented by Davidson Marketing Group -- FutureOffice Network

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[Guidance Overview]

Hacienda Extends Deadlines to Comply with Puerto Rico Internal Revenue Code of 2011
"The original amendment deadline was the last day of the first plan year beginning on or after January 1, 2012. For calendar year plans, the deadline would have been December 31, 2012. The new deadline is the later of June 30, 2013, or the last day of the first plan year beginning on or after January 1, 2012. In addition, the deadline to submit a 'Request for Qualification' letter was extended to the later of September 30, 2013, or the due date to file an income tax return of the employer, with extensions, for the first taxable year that begins on or after January 1, 2012." (Haynes and Boone, LLP)

[Guidance Overview]

Correcting Improper Exclusion of an Eligible Employee from Deferring to a Traditional 401(k) Plan
"If a plan improperly excludes an eligible employee, the plan corrects by making a qualified nonelective contribution (QNEC) equal to the 'missed deferral opportunity.' The missed deferral opportunity is 50% of the 'missed deferral.' The missed deferral is actual deferral percentage (ADP) for the employee group (HCE or NHCE) to which the employee belongs multiplied by the employee's compensation for the portion of the plan year in which the employee was improperly excluded." (SunGard Relius)

How the Fiscal Cliff May Impact 401(k) Contributions
"The Bipartisan Policy Center's Debt Reduction Task Force has one way to help fix the deficit: reduce 401(k) contributions by 64% using a 20/20 Cap. Under the 20/20 Cap, contributions would be limited to the lesser of 20% of pay or $20,000 a year. All those pretax dollars designated for retirement will now be taxable income and Treasury will fill with additional tax revenues." (Fox Business)

San Bernardino Wins Partial Victory in Bankruptcy Court
"San Bernardino scored a victory in bankruptcy court [on Friday, Dec. 21,] as Judge Meredith Jury refused a motion by CalPERS that would have allowed the pension giant to sue in state court for millions of dollars in payments the city has stopped making. She said she was inclined to think at least $13 million in payments the city plans to defer until July 2013 are legally required, but the harm to the city would be overwhelming." (The Sun)

San Bernardino May Have to Pay Full Pension Tab
"A federal judge [has] rejected a CalPERS request to sue bankrupt San Bernardino for a growing unpaid bill, but gave preliminary support to the argument that the bill must be paid in full before the city can leave bankruptcy. The widely watched question of whether the bankruptcy will reduce pensions promised retirees or payments made by the city to CalPERS may now turn on the ability of the city to pay. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Meredith Jury agreed to a 60-day discovery period sought by CalPERS to probe city finances." (CalPensions)

Bankruptcy Court Judge Tentatively Rules Against CalPERS' Objection to San Bernardino Bankruptcy
"If the $240.7 billion [CalPERS] is allowed to sue and wins a monetary judgment, '[T]he impact on the city's ability to reorganize would be astronomical,' [said a U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge, whose] ... initial ruling sides with San Bernardino and its bondholders, which claimed the city can't afford to fund vital public services and also pay past-due obligations to CalPERS. She invited CalPERS and its lawyers to try to change her mind.... The ruling may set a legal precedent at a time when pensions for public employees are straining local governments from California to Rhode Island, according to bankruptcy attorneys that specialize in municipal insolvencies." (Pensions & Investments)

Bankruptcy as Tool to Save Public Pensions?
"The unfolding bankruptcy in the Northern California city of Stockton is revealing the lengths to which public officials are going to protect government union members from even the most modest cuts in their outsized pay and benefit packages.... Assured Guaranty -- which insures the pension-obligation bonds that creditors issued to Stockton in 2007, when it was first unable to make ends meet -- argues that the city is not actually bankrupt. Instead, [Assured says,] '[T]he city hopes to use the Chapter 9 plan process to cram down a non-consensual plan on capital market creditors in order to free up cash to fund above-market labor and pension costs, while refusing to consider -- much less implement -- additional sources of revenue and much-needed expenditure reductions.'" (Orange County Register)

Moody's Cuts Rating on Orange County California's Pension Bonds
"Moody's Investors Service cut its rating on Orange County's pension obligation bonds by one notch ... Each January, the county sells 18-month bonds to investors, using the proceeds to prepay a year's worth of pension contributions to the Orange County Employee Retirement System. By prepaying, the county gets a 7.75 percent discount on what it pays OCERS ... Moody's said it believes pension bonds are less secure than prior estimates[.]" (Orange County Register)

Census Bureau Quarterly Survey of Public Pensions: 3rd Quarter 2012
"This quarterly survey (formerly known as the Finances of Selected State and Local Government Employee Retirement Systems Survey) provides national summary statistics on the revenues, expenditures and composition of assets of the 100 largest state and local public employee retirement systems in the United States. These 100 systems comprise 89.4 percent of financial activity among such entities, based on the 2007 Census of Governments. This survey presents the most current statistics about investment decisions by state and local public employee retirement systems, which are among the largest types of institutional investors in the U.S. financial markets." (U.S. Census Bureau)

Archived Webcast and Written Testimony at House Hearing: 'Challenges Facing Multiemployer Pension Plans: Evaluating PBGC's Insurance Program and Financial Outlook'
Held December 19, 2012. Includes opening statement by Rep. Phil Roe and testimony by PBGC Director Joshua Gotbaum. (U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce; Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions)

'Chained-CPI' Inflation Gauge Would Hurt Social Security Recipients
"[C]hained-CPI assumes that as prices increase, consumers make substitutions in what they purchase.... Social Security provides at least half of total household income for 65 percent of all aged beneficiaries. And for non-married beneficiaries, that figure rises to 74 percent, or nearly three-quarters of their income. For more than a third of all older beneficiaries, Social Security provides 90 percent or more of total income, while for non-married beneficiaries that figure rises to 46 percent. These are the people who would suffer most under a chained-CPI[.]" (CBS MoneyWatch)

Future of DC Plans Hitched to Economy, Education
"[Barbara Butrica, senior economist at the Urban Institute,] said that the industry is still learning from the switch from defined benefit plans to defined contribution plans. 'There are still a lot of things we don't know about what it means for retirement security' ... She pointed to the increased pressure on workers in defined contribution plans to determine their retirement success. They have to decide whether to participate and where to invest their money, 'decisions that formerly they didn't have to think so much about. Many aren't prepared to make the financial decisions defined contribution plans require.'" (Advisor One)

Investment News 2013 Databook
"The outlook for investing in 2013 isn't as bad as one might think. By historical standards, corporate fundamentals have never looked better and stock price valuations are quite reasonable. In addition, decisive monetary action by the various central banks should help put U.S. securities markets on better footing in the year ahead." (Investment News; free registration required)

Toyota to Introduce New Retirement Plan for Employees in Japan
"According to the automaker this move was necessary to fill the void created by the government's plan to raise the retirement age to 65 from 60 in April 2013.... Under the company's program, employees who are 18 when they join the automaker will set aside about 8,300Y [approximately $99] per month over a 42-year period and during the employees' early retirement years, Toyota will offer them about 210,000Y [approximately $2,490] per month." (InAutoNews)

[Opinion]

Statement by CalPERS on Bankruptcy Court's Denial of Motion for Relief from the Automatic Stay in the City of San Bernardino Bankruptcy Case
"While it is not surprising that the decision was to keep the issues in bankruptcy court, the court clearly stated today's decision was not a 'great victory' for the City of San Bernardino nor a 'great defeat' for CalPERS. The Court recognized that all debts incurred after filing for bankruptcy by any entity must be paid in full at the time of approval of the plan of adjustment. We are confident that the court will recognize the priority of our members and the obligations owed to them." (California Public Employees' Retirement System)

[Opinion]

Pension Politics: CalPERS Plays Hardball in Court
"[I]f the city can't pay CalPERS, the fund's attorneys argue, the pension fund can use state police powers to collect its money through asset or property seizure.... Credit rating agencies report that states and local governments nationwide have more than $2 trillion in unfunded pension liabilities. In Nevada, depending on how you measure risk, that figure is between $10 billion and $40 billion. Elected officials everywhere, at every level, have promised far more in employee retirement benefits than taxpayers can afford. And those funds -- and their unionized beneficiaries -- want these promises kept at all cost." (Las Vegas Review-Journal)

[Opinion]

On Illinois Pension Crisis, Something's Gotta Give
"The State of Illinois cannot print the money to pay the pensions of teachers and other state employees. And there isn't enough money in the pension funds to generate the promised payments.... Illinois is not alone in having an underfunded pension system. It's estimated that all states together have unfunded teacher pension liabilities adding up to $325 billion. But Illinois is in the worst shape -- with an unfunded teachers' pension liability of $43.5 billion. The total underfunding for all state pension obligations is $95 billion." (Chicago Sun-Times; free registration required)

[Opinion]

How Much Company Stock Should I Have in My 401(k)?
"When choosing 401(k) investments, many employees have the option to buy an ownership stake in the company by electing to purchase employer stock. Management encourages this type of investment because employees will think more like owners. But employees should carefully consider before loading up on company shares.... Employers have begun to shun this option because many high-profile bankruptcies or near bankruptcies have led to undesirable lawsuits from employees ... related to losses from drops in company stock." (Marotta on Money)

[Opinion]

Sometimes, Enough Money Really Is Enough
"In his 60-year career, [Vanguard founder John C. "Jack" Bogle] has witnessed what to him is a concerning shift from a world where long-term investing was the mantra to one in which short-term speculation is running rampant. And so ... [the author] caught up with Mr. Bogle to discuss the difference between investing and speculating and, in the spirit of the holidays, what it means to have 'enough.' 'People look at investing more or less as trading stocks or mutual funds or God forbid ETFs, and that has nothing to do with investing,' he says." (The Wall Street Journal)

[Guidance Overview]

NASDAQ Amends Compensation Committee Proposal
"While the substance of the proposal did not change too much, the transition requirements did, and became more workable.... In order to allow companies to make necessary adjustments to their boards and committees in the course of their regular annual meeting schedules, NASDAQ proposes that companies comply with the remaining provisions of the amended listing rules, as set forth in proposed NASDAQ Listing Rule 5605(d) and IM-5605-6, by the earlier of: (1) their first annual meeting after January 15, 2014; or (2) October 31, 2014." (Dodd-Frank.com, a blog by Leonard, Street and Deinard)

Impact of Special Dividends on Stock Compensation
"Companies paying dividends because of the lower tax rate on 'qualified' dividends may consider whether this places options and [restricted stock units] at a disadvantage (unless they pay a dividend equivalent), and they may want to think about how to adjust for this.... Many stock plans have provisions that allow for an adjustment or for equity restructurings, such as a special dividend, a stock split, or a spinoff. This is sometimes called an antidilution provision." (myStockOptions.com)

Vacation Days Becoming Employee-Friendly Commodity
"Many [employees] wish they could get more time away from the office, while others wonder how they'll ever use up all of their days off. Some employers offer a worker-friendly solution -- allowing employees to buy or sell vacation days or paid time off. For companies facing tight economic conditions, it's a way to offer a benefit that costs the company little but may help attract and retain employees. Employers who offer it say it gives people the flexibility they need to manage their lives." (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Trucker Huss Benefits Report for December 2012 (PDF)
Articles in this issue: Health Care Reform and Wellness Programs: Protecting Participants and Giving Employers More Flexibility; HHS Issues Additional Transitional Reinsurance Fee Guidance; and IRS 2012 Cumulative List. (Trucker Huss)

Cheiron, EFI Actuaries Combine to Form Larger Innovative Consulting Firm
Cheiron

CashBalanceWizard.com launched for TPAs/Actuaries by Dallas Actuaries, Inc.
Dallas Actuaries, Inc

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