Benefits Analyst 3
Northrop Grumman Corporation
in CA, VA

Actuarial Analyst
Benetech, Inc.
in CA

Manager of Technical Plan Services
EPIC Advisors, Inc
in NY

Financial Analyst
The Newport Group
in FL, TX

Internal Sales Consultant
The Newport Group
in NC

ERISA Consultant
The Newport Group
in FL

Manager III (Benefits Manager)
Stanislaus County Chief Executive Office
in CA

Account Manager
ASPire Financial Services LLC
in FL

Health Practice Leader
The Segal Group
in DC

Non-Qualified Plan Consultant
The Newport Group
in FL

Plan Document Specialist
America's 401(k), Inc.
in TX

Regional Pension Wholesaler
Nationwide Insurance
in CA

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Mental Health Parity Final Rules: Design and Administration for Employer Health Plans
January 23, 2014 WEBCAST
(Thomson Reuters / EBIA)

Affordable Care Act 101 Webinar
February 6, 2014 WEBCAST
(U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA))

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IRS Releases 2013 Form 8955-SSA and Instructions
"Note that the IRS has proposed regulations that would require electronic filing for Form 8955-SSA ... The instructions also note that sponsors and administrators of government, church, and other retirement plans that are exempt from ERISA's vesting standards are not obligated to file, but may elect to file the Form 8955-SSA voluntarily." (Thomson Reuters / EBIA)  

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Does Bankruptcy Protection Extend to Inherited IRAs? (PDF)
"If an inherited IRA will not get favorable retirement fund treatment in bankruptcy, trust arrangements should be explored to achieve asset protection.... Implementing trust planning with clients could avoid or at least mitigate the harsh effects of accelerated payout periods and reduced asset protection for retirement funds. [In this article, these] planning opportunities will also be reviewed and analyzed under the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA) and the new tax on accumulated trust investment income under the Affordable Care Act." (McGladrey)  

Advised Investors Underperformed Self-Directed Ones in 2013
"Investors who paid fees for portfolio management saw portfolio returns of 14.1% last year, according to SigFig, a website that helps investors track and manage their money. But investors who didn't pay those fees captured a 17.1% return over the year, said Samantha Murillo, a spokeswoman for the firm, which tracks about 1 million investors' portfolios." (InvestmentNews)  

An Interactive Look at the Key Retirement Plan Compliance Dates
"Compliance dates and fiduciary milestones may vary from plan to plan, but these sample quarterly calendars provide a great starting point from which to create a schedule specific to your plan. Please note that specific dates relate to calendar-year plans." (Fidelity Investments)  

2014 Key Administrative Dates and Deadlines for Calendar-Year Single-Employer DB Plans
Includes a calendar with details for each item. (Milliman)  

Mercer U.S. Pension Buyout Index, December 2013 (PDF)
"During December, as indicated by the Index, the cost of purchasing annuities from an insurer increased from 108.4% to 108.5%. The economic cost of maintaining the liability also increased, moving from 108.2% to 108.6% of the balance sheet liability primarily due to recent increases in PBGC premiums which will make it more costly for plan sponsors to maintain the plan." (Mercer)  

Flexing Your Financial Muscles: Get in Shape and Stay in Shape for Retirement (PDF)
"Despite the tools available and the significant communications efforts aimed at providing important information on saving for retirement, many workers aren't comfortable with this type of detailed planning. They need to be reminded that they have to save more, not pick winners in the stock market. Therefore, employees need a rational, well thought out retirement savings target. They need a plan to reach that target, and they need routine progress reviews and adjustments to make sure they stay on the right course." (Buck Consultants)  

The Economic Implications of Money Market Fund Capital Buffers (PDF)
"[R]elatively small capital buffers are capable of absorbing daily fluctuations between a fund's shadow price and its amortized cost. For example, a fund with a capital buffer of 60 basis points can absorb most day-to-day price risk. The ability to absorb large scale defaults, however, would require a significantly larger and more costly buffer. Second, because a buffer is designed to absorb credit risk, capital providers demand compensation for bearing this risk. The analysis shows that, after compensating capital buffer investors for absorbing credit risk, the returns available to money market fund shareholders are comparable to default free securities, which would significantly reduce the utility of the product to investors." (Craig M. Lewis, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Division of Economic and Risk Analysis)  

401(k) Wellness Scorecard
"In the third quarter of 2013, the youngest and oldest employees were the participants most likely to take positive action related to their financial wellness. Meanwhile, employers continued to adopt plan design features that encourage smart retirement savings behaviors. We also found that employees are accessing their plans on the go and will seize upon convenient ways to engage with their plans." (Bank of America Merrill Lynch)  

Success by Plan Design: Improving 401(k) Plan Health and Employee Wellness (PDF)
"[B]etter outcomes can result from plan design strategies that drive such positive participant decision-making as enrolling, contributing and improving financial wellness.... Sponsors can also boost participation rates by synchronizing 401(k) enrollment with annual health care enrollment ... [P]lans that combine automatic enrollment and automatic increase enjoy an average contribution rate that is double that of plans that offer automatic enrollment alone... Employees want advice, they use it, and ... it more fully engages them with their plans." (Bank of America Merrill Lynch)  

Illinois Lawmakers at Odds over Pension Reform Savings
"[Proposed Illinois] pension reform could save $15 billion less than legislative leaders initially anticipated. An actuarial analysis done by the pension systems affected by this bill say the real savings will be $145 billion, rather than the $160 billion originally advertised. That's because the analysis plugged in data from 2013. Legislative leaders acknowledged that their estimates were based on numbers from 2012." (WTTW Chicago)  

[Opinion]

Predicting the Future of Church Plan Litigation
"One can make the argument that [last month's decision by a federal district court denying a motion to dismiss a claim against Dignity Health, a Catholic-affiliated employer] is an outlier, that standing by itself it means nothing in the long run, and has meaning only to the resolution of the specific lawsuit and plan at issue. Past experience with excessive fee litigation, however, suggests to me that the decision is more likely to be the beginning of the end of broadly claiming church plan status for broad, otherwise secular business activities -- particularly in the medical area -- that have some linkage to religious organizations. History -- as well as logic -- suggests to me that, bit by bit, we will see plaintiffs' lawyers and court decisions chip away at the use of church plan status, leading to, eventually, a number of victories in this regard for the plaintiffs' bar." [Rollins v. Dignity Health, No. C13-1450 TEH (N.D. Cal. Dec. 12, 2013)] (Stephen Rosenberg of The McCormack Firm, LLC)  

[Guidance Overview]

Handout for January 29 IRS Phone Forum: Ethical Standards for Employee Benefits Practitioners -- What to Ask and Say to Clients and What to Tell the IRS (PDF)
67 presentation slides. Includes detailed examination of Circular 230, hypothetical situations, discussion of specific issues, and citations to relevant authority. (Internal Revenue Service)  

[Guidance Overview]

ISS 'Burn Rate' Caps: 2009-2014
"As part of its analysis of equity compensation plan proposals, Institutional Shareholder Services analyzes a company's 'burn rate' compared to maximum amounts established by ISS for Russell 3000 and non-Russell 300 Global Industry Classification Standard groups [GICS].... If a company's ISS burn rate exceeds GICS group ISS burn rate cap, ISS will recommend AGAINST the company's equity compensation plan proposal. [A company that exceeds] their allowable burn rate cap can avoid a negative vote recommendation from ISS by publicly committing ... to maintain its burn rate over the next three fiscal years of equal to or less than its GICS group ISS burn rate cap[.]" (EdwardHauder.com)  

District Court Rules that Church Hospitals Cannot Establish Non-ERISA Church Plans
"[T]he risk has increased substantially that separately incorporated 501(c)(3) entities that are not actual churches (such as hospitals, schools, colleges, universities, nursing homes, thrift shops or other charities) cannot establish and maintain their own church plans (though they may be able to participate in denominational church plans). The decision's reasoning would not be limited to defined benefit pension plans -- it would apply to any pension or welfare plan. Because few plans that are church plans will have complied with ERISA and the Code in every respect, the potential taxes, interest and penalties resulting from a finding of non-compliance for any given church-related charitable organization could be staggering." (Groom Law Group)  

Should Companies Bifurcate Their Requests for Shareholder Approval of Stock Incentive Plans?
"The question comes up every year around this time (during the drafting of proxy statements) with respect to shareholder approval of stock incentive plans: Should we bifurcate our request to shareholders for the approval of: [1] The performance measures available for Section 162(m) purposes (which generally require re-approval every 5 years), [2] The addition of shares to the authorized share pool, and/or [3] Other amendments of the plan? ... Last week, the SEC Staff has weighed in with new Compliance and Disclosure Interpretations (C&DIs) on the issue[.]" (Winston & Strawn LLP)  

Conrad Siegel Investment Advisors Reaches $1 Billion in Assets Under Management
Conrad Siegel Investment Advisors, Inc.

ConnectYourCare’s HSA On Demand with Healthcare Payment Card Named Winner in Eighth Annual Paybefore Awards
ConnectYourCare

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