ASPPA

ERISA Compliance Specialist
Milliman
in TX

Retirement Plan Administrator/Manager
Retirement Plan Consultants LLC
in ANY STATE

Vice President, Strategic Accounts
United Retirement Plan Consultants
in OH

Retirement Plan Administrator
United Retirement Plan Consultants
in CA

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Fundamentals of Qualified Plans
June 17, 2014 WEBCAST
(National Institute of Pension Administrators [NIPA])

FMLA - An in-depth Legal Review
July 9, 2014 in TX
(Worldwide Employee Benefits Network [WEB] - Houston Chapter)

Insurer Strategies for the Turbulent Small-Group Market
July 9, 2014 WEBCAST
(Atlantic Information Services, Inc)

View All Webcasts and Conferences

[Official Guidance]

Text of GASB Proposed Exposure Draft: Accounting and Financial Reporting for Pensions and Financial Reporting for Pension Plans That Are Not Administered Through Trusts That Meet Specified Criteria, and Amendments to Certain Provisions of GASB Statements 67 and 68
"This proposed Statement would establish requirements for defined benefit pensions that are not within the scope of Statement No. 68, Accounting and Financial Reporting for Pensions, and for the pension plans that are used to provide those pensions. In addition, it would establish requirements for defined contribution pensions that are not within the scope of Statement 68. It also would amend certain provisions of Statement No. 67 , Financial Reporting for Pension Plans, and Statement 68 for pension plans and employers that are within their respective scopes." (Governmental Accounting Standards Board [GASB])  

[Advert.]

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[Official Guidance]

Text of IRS PLR 201424031: DB Plan Amendment Permitting Lump Sum Payments to Retirees Already Receiving Benefits Did Not Violate Required Minimum Distribution Requirements (PDF)
Dated March 21, 2014; published online June 13, 2014. Excerpt: " Eligible Annuitants would have a specified limited window period of no less than 30 days and no more than 90 days during which they could elect to receive, in lieu of their current annuity ... the actuarial present value of their expected remaining benefits under the Plans at the time of such election in the form of a single lump sum payment ... Each Eligible Annuitant would be offered optional financial counseling provided by what Company represents will be a highly qualified and reputable financial advisor before making his or her election decision." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

[Official Guidance]

Text of IRS PLR 201424030: Contribution of S Corporation Distributions to ESOP Did Not Constitute Annual Additional Under Section 415 (PDF)
Dated March 20, 2014; published online June 13, 2014. Excerpt: "[T]he Taxpayer proposes to make S corporation distributions ... of $Z to the Plan, ... The distribution would be allocated to the participants of the Plan based on the number of shares of Taxpayer stock allocated to each participant on the record date for the distribution.... The facts and circumstances of the present case do not support the recharacterization of these S corporation distributions as annual additions under the authority of section 1 .415(c)-1 (b)(4) of the regulations. Instead these amounts constitute distributions of earnings to the Taxpayer's shareholders and not contributions or other additions with respect to participants of the ESOP." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

[Official Guidance]

Text of IRS PLR 201424032: Surplus Assets Attributable to 'Mistake of Fact' Did Not Trigger Excise Tax When Returned to Employer on Plan Termination (PDF)
"The Company made a contribution of Amount 2 to the Plan in order to effect the standard termination of the Plan. In determining Amount 2, the Company inadvertently failed to take into account a money market account in measuring the Plan assets. That is, the Company used an incorrect asset value in calculating the contribution. As a result, the Company contributed more than needed to the Plan.... Such a mistake constitutes a 'mistake of fact' as contemplated in section 403(c)(2)(A) of ERISA and section 4980(C)(2)(B)(ii)(II) of Code.... [T]hus the return of Amount 4 to the Company does not constitute an employer reversion under section 4980 of the Code." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

[Guidance Overview]

IRS Finds No Church Plan Where Religiously Oriented Employers Lacked Sufficient Church Association or Control
"This private letter ruling takes a somewhat narrow approach to the church plan exemption, as have two recent court rulings, albeit for different reasons. The result likely came as an unpleasant surprise for the participating employers, as the plan has been operating as a church plan (and, presumably, taking advantage of Code and ERISA exemptions for church plans) for many years." [IRS PLR 201420028] (Thomson Reuters / EBIA)  

[Guidance Overview]

IRS Publishes Model VCP Submission Documents as New Form 14568 Series
"The new forms do not materially change the content of the Compliance Statement and the nine correction schedules as they appeared in Rev. Proc. 2013-12. While the IRS recommends use of the forms (and links to them in the webpage description of VCP), their use is not currently required. The forms should be easier for users to find and use, however, so plan sponsors seem likely to choose the form version. The new forms are available online in a fillable format[.]" (Thomson Reuters / EBIA)  

Supreme Court Decision Impacts Inherited IRAs (PDF)
"[Clark v. Rameker] involves a daughter's inheritance of her mother's IRA. The rules differ when the person inheriting the IRA is a spouse.... Thus, it may be reasonable to conclude that a spouse's recharacterized IRA could be excluded from the bankruptcy estate as an exempt 'retirement fund' even after Clark. A spouse who inherits an IRA should consider making the election to recharacterize it if bankruptcy is a possibility." [Clark v. Rameker, Trustee, No. 13-299 (S. Ct. June 12, 2014)] (Steptoe & Johnson LLP)  

Massachusetts Office Calls for Disclosure on 401(k) Contribution Changes
"'Employees should be told the potential risks involved in a significant change, such as a shift to a year-end annual employer match, and they should be told before the change occurs,' William F. Galvin, Massachusetts secretary of the commonwealth and chief securities regulator, said in a cover letter ... which was sent to the Massachusetts congressional delegation and DOL officials[.]" (Pensions & Investments)  

Cypen & Cypen Newsletter, June 12, 2014
Topics include: [1] CALSTRS is shareholder activist; [2] No alternative if Jersey pension plan struck down; [3] Why private equity is becoming a public problem; and [4] New York City cuts out pension brokers. (Cypen & Cypen)  

401(k) Index Observations, May 2014
"Defined contribution plan participants bucked the old stock market adage to 'sell in May and stay away' and continued with another light trading month in May ... The average daily transfer volume was 0.024% of balances, identical to April's value, and well below historical levels.... When trading occurred, defined contribution plan participants favored fixed income funds for 62% of trading days in May down from 67% in April." (Aon Hewitt)  

Estimates of the Financial Effects on Social Security of the 'Retirement and Income Security Enhancements Act' (PDF)
"Under the [recently introduced bill], the level of reserves for the theoretical combined OASI and DI Trust Funds declines from 3.30 percent of annual program cost at the beginning of 2013 to depletion of the reserves early in 2034 rather than in 2033 under current law. Enactment of the four provisions of this proposal would reduce the current-law long-range OASDI actuarial deficit of 2.72 percent of taxable payroll by 0.10 percent of taxable payroll, resulting in an estimated OASDI actuarial deficit of 2.62 percent of payroll." (U.S. Social Security Administration)  

Optimal Retirement with Increasing Longevity
"[The authors] show that longer healthy life expectancy usually leads to later retirement, but with an elasticity less than unity.... [O]ver the last century, the effect of rising incomes, which promote early retirement, has dominated the effect of rising lifespans. [This] model predicts continuing declines in the optimal retirement age, despite rising life expectancy, provided the rate of real wage growth remains as high as in the last century." (David E. Bloom, Harvard School of Public Health; David Canning, Harvard School of Public Health; and Michael Moore, University of Warwick)  

[Opinion]

Government Intrusion In the Private Retirement System: The Drumbeat Grows Louder (PDF)
"If the state plans can avoid ERISA, limit liability and get around state laws -- something astute observers believe is possible -- they could gain traction. Led by the states, that traction would no doubt be followed by federal initiatives. These programs may be voluntary in the beginning, but the mandated writing is on the wall along with the private agendas." (Center for Due Diligence)  

[Guidance Overview]

GASB Provides Online Resources for OPED Proposals and Certain Pension Plans; Solicits Comments
"To help users, preparers, and auditors of financial statements familiarize themselves with the proposals, the GASB developed an OPEB web page that features new 'plain English' resources: [1] An article outlining the key ways that the OPEB proposals will change how governments calculate and report the costs and obligations associated with OPEB; [2] An article oriented to financial statement users that addresses how the proposed changes would affect the information that users receive about a government's OPEB; [3] A video featuring GASB Chairman David Vaudt discussing the key principles of the OPEB proposals; [4] A fact sheet answering frequently asked questions; and [5] The summary and the full text of the proposals. Stakeholders are encouraged to review the proposals and provide comments by August 29, 2014." (Governmental Accounting Standards Board [GASB])  

Alliance Benefit Group Adds Another Licensee -- this time, in the Southeast: Warren Averett, LLC
Alliance Benefit Group

FINRA Fines Merrill Lynch $8 Million; Over $89 Million Repaid to Retirement Accounts and Charities Overcharged for Mutual Funds
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority [FINRA]

CMS initiative helps people make the most of their new health coverage
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services [CMS]

Sage Introduces LDI Strategies for Small Pension Plans
Sage Advisory Services

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