Compliance Analyst
National Retirement Services, Inc.
in NC

Relationship Manager
DailyAccess Corporation
in AL, KS, MO, TX

Retirement Plan Administrator
RCM&D
in MD

Customer Service - Retirement Services
MassMutual Financial Group
in MA

Senior Customer Relationship Manager
Ohio National Financial Services
in OH

Senior Director, Employee Retirement Plans
NYC Health & Hospitals Corp.
in NY

Retirement Plan Specialist
Associated Bank
in WI

Compliance Officer - Privacy & Security
ATPA
in CA

DB and DC Administrator
Actuarial Consulting Services
in NJ

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Filing Health Care Reform Forms 1094 and 1095: Line-by-Line Guidance on the IRS Forms and Instructions
October 2, 2014 WEBCAST
(Thomson Reuters / EBIA)

Compensation System Design: Developing Pay Ranges to Maximize Your Payroll Investment
October 16, 2014 WEBCAST
(Clear Law Institute)

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[Guidance Overview]

Hybrid Plan Regulations Relax Market Rate of Return (PDF)
"Plan sponsors will need to be mindful of the funding based restrictions on amending plans when evaluating the regulatory options offered by the hybrid regulations. Amendments to meet mandatory vesting requirements -- which would include the market rate of return requirement -- are excused from this funding-based restriction, but only to the extent the increase is necessary to continue to satisfy plan qualification requirements." (Buck Consultants at Xerox)  

[Advert.]

ASPPA Annual Conference on October 26-29 in Washington DC

We don't just set the bar, we're constantly raising the bar for America's Retirement. And we unleash that tenacity at every ASPPA Annual Conference.

[Guidance Overview]

IRS Issues Final Rules For Cash Balance and Pension Equity Plans
"With respect to the requirement that interest crediting rates not exceed a market rate of return, the list of permissible interests rates has been expanded to include rates of return based on a subset of plan assets, an increase in the permitted maximum fixed rate from 5% to 6%, an increase in the maximum floor from 4% to 5% for government bond-based rates and the use of segmented rates." (Winston & Strawn LLP)  

Supreme Court Grants Certiorari in Tibble v. Edison International
"The Supreme Court's decision in this case will be important because it will necessarily address the nature of a separate duty to reconsider past decisions and decide whether a theory of 'continuing violation' can be used to evade ERISA's limitations period. The Court's decision may therefore alter the nature of fiduciary duty and expose ERISA fiduciaries to increased risk for past actions." [Tibble v. Edison International, No. 13-550 (9th Cir. Aug. 1, 2013; cert. pet. granted Oct. 2, 2013)] (Mayer Brown)  

Beyond Auto-Mania: The Future of 401(k) Plan Design
"The various 'autos' -- auto-enrollment, auto-escalation, and auto-asset allocation -- appear to have encouraged increased savings by 401k plan participants.... The industry has certainly seen less talk about evaluating investment performance and more talk about assessing retirement readiness.... While professionals see the need for a more goal-oriented focus, many wonder if plan sponsors see it too.... Will the popularity of automated features lull plan sponsors into complacency? And, if that happens, then what?" (Fiduciary News)  

PBGC Intends to Monitor Lump-Sum and Annuity Cashouts Under Defined Benefit Plans
"Some pension rights advocates have recently raised public policy concerns about the increasing use of lump-sum cashouts, claiming that cashouts jeopardize the retirement security of plan participants by providing them with unrestricted access to their retirement funds. However, it is the reduction in premium payments that is likely most concerning to the PBGC.... At this time, the PBGC is only proposing to require disclosure of certain lump-sum distributions and annuitizations, and has not proposed any other type of PBGC review or oversight." (McDermott Will & Emery)  

[Advert.]

ACI's 8th National Forum on ERISA Litigation

ACI has developed its 8th installment of its acclaimed ERISA Litigation conference. This is the highest-level ERISA event that goes the extra mile and brings you advanced judicial insights and maximum networking opportunities with in-house industry experts.

Do 'Customized' Target Date Funds Hit the Target?
"[S]ome plan sponsors are considering whether it pays to purchase a customized series of TDFs, which use an asset allocation mix and glide path ... designed to meet the specific demographic needs of the plan sponsor's workforce, rather than the population at large. The question is whether these are a better option for participants than the off-the-shelf TDFs offered in most 401(k) plans." (Society for Human Resource Management [SHRM])  

Who Gets Retirement Plans and Why, 2013 (PDF)
"Of those most likely to desire to save for retirement in the current year, three-quarters had access to a pension plan through their own employer or their spouse's employer, and 93 percent of those with access participated.... [E]mployees who work for firms that sponsor plans are more likely to be older, have higher earnings, and work full-time for a full year.... Although only 17 percent of workers at firms with fewer than 10 employees have an employer that sponsors a plan -- compared with 71 percent of workers at firms with 1,000 employees or more -- if a firm sponsors a plan, approximately eight in 10 employees participate, regardless of firm size." (Investment Company Institute [ICI])  

Cultivating Pension Plans
"Some believe that because employers have been migrating away from traditional defined benefit pension plans in the United States, the plan cultivation provisions of federal law have failed to encourage U.S. employers to offer pension benefits to their employees.... Employers appear to have migrated away from traditional defined benefit plans primarily because employers have concluded that defined contribution plans and some hybrid plans are more compatible with their own interests and the interests of their employees than are traditional defined benefit plans." (Pension Research Council, Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania; free registration required)  

Stockton Bankruptcy Ruling Opens Door to Pension Cuts by Other Municipalities
"If established as a precedent, the Stockton ruling may increase incentives for distressed municipalities to seek pension cuts in bankruptcy court. However, Fitch believes those seeking bankruptcy protection will do so whether or not they can be certain of their ability to impair pensions. More likely in Fitch's view is that the ruling may encourage labor and management to negotiate pension cuts to avoid the uncertainties of bankruptcy court." (Fitch Ratings)  

Cypen & Cypen Newsletter, October 2, 2014
Article titles include: [1] Tough choices face Florida's governments; [2] Understanding Florida's local pension plans; [3] An introduction to qualification and taxation issues for governmental retirement plans; [4] Entitlement reform in the future of pensions; [5] Total holdings and investments of major public pension systems increased to over $3.4 trillion; and [6] Florida documentary stamp tax applies to plan loans. (Cypen & Cypen)  

Employee Ownership Update for October 1, 2014
Article titles include: [1] Fourth Circuit Ruling Increases Standard of Prudence for Fiduciaries; [2] New Jersey Advances Legislation to Encourage ESOPs; [3] SEC Issues Charges for Failure to Disclose Stock Holdings; and [4] The American Benefits Council: Recommendations on Stock Plans. (National Center for Employee Ownership [NCEO])  

Ethical and Professional Conduct in an 'Experiment in Anarchy'
"The digital world offers revolutionary means to communicate, store and share data. But using it in a responsible and ethical manner is as important as it is challenging, [according to] Lauren Bloom, an expert on professional ethics and risk management ... She noted that while it offers many advantages, using electronic tools is not a panacea and outlined the challenges professionals face in using them[.]" (American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries [ASPPA])  

[Opinion]

ERISA at 40: A Time for Reflection and a Time for Action (PDF)
"Congress's willingness to frequently consider retirement legislation in the absence of a national policy against which such legislation might be measured, demonstrates that we in the benefits community have not yet done a sufficiently good job cultivating retirement policy champions. The challenge ahead is for all who support a robust employer-sponsored benefits system to engage in a thoughtful dialogue with members of Congress from both parties. To enlist a larger group of policy champions who will be effective -- regardless of the particular agenda they may wish to advocate -- will require convincing future political leaders that it is worthwhile to learn the intricacies of ERISA." (American Benefits Council, via Bloomberg BNA Pension & Benefits Reporter)  

Spotlite’s Seven Strategies for Improving Engagement during Open Enrollment
Spotlite

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