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Kravitz, Inc.
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Pension Administrator - DC
T R Paul Inc.
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Client Service Manager, Defined Benefit
The Newport Group
in WI

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Highly respected pension administration firm
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TPA Firm
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New York Life Retirement Plan Services
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Plan Recordkeeping
RECORDED
(IRS [Internal Revenue Service])

Building Engagement: Making HDHPs and HSAs a Success
March 12, 2015 WEBCAST
(Benz Communications)

23rd National HIPAA Summit
March 16, 2015 in DC
(Global Healthcare, LLC )

Dealing with Employee Abuse of ADA and FMLA
March 18, 2015 WEBCAST
(Clear Law Institute)

Pre-Approved 403(b) Plan Program
March 19, 2015 WEBCAST
(ASCi)

Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program
March 24, 2015 WEBCAST
(Employee Benefits Security Administration [EBSA], U.S. Department of Labor)

Does Wellness “Work” – Implementing Effective Workplace Wellness Programs
April 8, 2015 WEBCAST
(Clear Law Institute)

2015 Enrolled Actuaries Meeting
April 12, 2015 in DC
(Conference of Consulting Actuaries)

ERISA Compliance for Health & Welfare Plans
May 6, 2015 in TX
(Thomson Reuters / EBIA)

HSAs, HRAs, and Consumer-Driven Health Care
May 6, 2015 in TX
(Thomson Reuters / EBIA)

Day at the Races – Employee Benefits Update
May 15, 2015 in IL
(James M. Moyna. CPA, PC)

View All Webcasts and Conferences

[Guidance Overview]

IRS SEP Fix-It Guide (PDF)
19 pages, updated March 4, 2015. "Any employer -- including a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation and nonprofit organization -- with one or more employees may establish a SEP plan. This includes a self-employed business owner, regardless of whether he or she is the only employee of the business. Individual employees may not establish a SEP plan." [Includes a one-page chart identifying mistakes and corrective actions.] (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

[Advert.]

Plan Advisors Can't Miss the NAPA 401(k) Summit -- San Diego, March 2015

Learn from the best and add to your professional skill set by earning ASPPA and CFP CE's, networking with other exclusive financial advisors and TPAs, hearing from leading speakers on topics that matter to you most. The NAPA 401(k) Summit supports your needs!

[Guidance Overview]

IRS Publication 4286: SARSEP Checklist (PDF)
Revised March 2015. "Every year it's important to review the requirements for operating your Salary Reduction Simplified Employee Pension (SARSEP) plan. Use this checklist to help you keep your plan in compliance with many important rules. [A]dditional information (including examples) on how to find, fix and avoid each mistake [is available through links in this checklist]." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

Audit Survival Tips for Retirement Plans
"Although only a small fraction of retirement plans are audited each year, over time it's almost certain that you and your plan will be audited by either the [IRS] or the [DOL]. Your preparation for an audit and your approach to an audit will save your organization thousands of dollars in productive time, penalties, and interest.... It is not uncommon for the IRS to issue plan sponsor questionnaires designed to help determine areas of audit focus, and -- we suspect -- to mark a certain number of plans for later audit. Failure to respond to an IRS questionnaire is comparable to sending the IRS an invitation to audit your plan." (Bryan, Pendleton, Swats & McAllister, LLC)  

Glide Path Caution: A Steep Slope Could Derail Retirement Income Success (PDF)
"Glide path slope -- the rate of change in equity exposure over time -- is often overlooked when evaluating the likelihood for a target date portfolio to achieve its retirement income objectives. During the past year, a number of target date fund providers increased the equity exposure of their glide paths. This asset allocation shift resulted in a steepening of glide path slope, leading to increased 'slope risk' -- the risk of either failing to recover retirement savings after a cyclical equity market decline or foregoing the benefit of an equity market expansion. [This article examines] the influence that glide path slope has on retirement wealth accumulation and preservation." (Fidelity Investments)  

Concerns Surface About Target Date Fund Effectiveness
"The target-date approach was tested in the 2008 financial crisis, and many investors were surprised by the declines in their funds. For example, funds with a 2010 target date lost 30% on average in 2008, with losses ranging as high as 41%, [SEC commissioner] Luis A. Aguilar said in a speech to a retirement-planning summit in Washington last month.... 'The relentless growth in target-date funds is troubling because studies have shown that investors and industry professionals alike do not fully appreciate the risk these funds present,' Mr. Aguilar said. He cited as one example a 2012 study, sponsored by the SEC, on investors' understanding of target-date funds. It found only 36% of respondents were aware that these funds don't provide guaranteed income after retirement." (The Wall Street Journal; subscription may be required)  

[Advert.]

PPA Pre-Approved Plan Workshop – 2-day program

Are you ready for the PPA Restatement? Join us for a line-by-line review using the prototype volume submitter 401(k) Adoption Agreement, a review of the basic plan document, including completion of check-box and blank line options. 13 CE hrs. Register Now.

Empowering Women to Take Control of Their Retirement (PDF)
"Women comprise nearly 70% of the not-for-profit workforce, yet employers and retirement services providers have historically treated men and women alike when offering retirement guidance.... [W]omen are in fact different from men in how they think about, and act with, their retirement savings -- and in ways that deserve our attention.... [This report] provides plan sponsors with insights to help inform the design and delivery of more effective retirement education and guidance programs specifically tailored for women." (Fidelity Investments)  

Law Firm Implicated in New Suit Involving ESOP
"The nine-count complaint, filed Feb. 27 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, challenges a settlement agreement between [a company sponsoring an ESOP] and its liability insurers, which allegedly thwarted the plan's ability to collect on its $6.5 million judgment [against the company's owner].... According to the participant, the ... attorneys negotiated a settlement agreement between the company and its insurers that required the insurers to use the policy coverage to pay the company's legal fees in defending twin suits challenging the ESOP valuation. The defendants allegedly kept this agreement a secret from the plaintiffs in the ESOP suits, causing [the firm] to continue racking up legal fees that ultimately depleted the amount of promised coverage, leaving nothing left to pay the eventual $6.5 million judgment in favor of the plan." (Bloomberg BNA)  

Investing for the Long Term: Barriers Faced by Pension Funds
"[W]hereas investors at pension funds aspire to and conceptually believe in long-term investing, there are several barriers preventing these ideas from being put into practice. These roadblocks include a lack of clear long-term investment models, alignment difficulties in outsourcing and regulations requiring that risk be taken off balance sheets if solvency targets are not met." (Institutional Investor)  

Pension Funded Status Improves in February (PDF)
"The funded status of the 100 largest corporate defined benefit pension plans improved by $80 billion during February as measured by the Milliman 100 Pension Funding Index (PFI). The deficit fell to $303 billion from $383 billion at the end of January, due to an increase in the benchmark corporate bond interest rates used to value pension liabilities and robust investment gains. As of February 28, the funded ratio increased to 83.3%, up from 79.6% at the end of January." (Milliman)  

[Advert.]

11,000 members rely on our key retirement/HR news and analysis

With a user-friendly website, daily emails, and regular web briefings, Mercer Select members stay informed about retirement and other key benefit, comp and HR issues. Contact us for a free demo or guest membership.

Cumulative List of Non-US Pension Funds Exempted by FATCA Intergovernmental Agreements
"The Groom cumulative list of non-US pension funds exempt from FATCA has been updated through March 5, 2015 and revised to be in alphabetical order." (Groom Law Group, via Taxes The Tax Magazine)  

[Opinion]

Plan Sponsors: Beware Reliance on Non-Fiduciary 'Consultants'
"[T]he plan sponsor should get rid of all revenue-sharing payments. These create insidious conflicts of interest.... A fixed fee should be negotiated for services in establishing an Investment Policy Statement ... and for assistance in selecting investments.... [T]he plan sponsor should ascertain the process for selecting asset classes and then for selecting investment products in each asset class, given the needs of the plan, its participants, or the fund.... Follow that process -- with diligence and thoroughness." (Ron Rhoades)  

En Banc Sixth Circuit Overturns Equitable Relief Award of $3.7 Million
"The Court's holding can be easily summarized: Absent a showing that the remedy for denial of benefits remedy under 502(a)(1)(B) is inadequate to make plaintiff whole, a recovery under Section 502(a)(3) is unavailable. This decision was animated by concerns that otherwise successful ERISA plaintiffs could collect huge damage awards ... [A] strong dissent from Judge Stranch argues that there the defendant committed two distinct wrongs, allowing for both remedies." [Rochow v. LINA, No. 12-2074 (6th Cir. Mar. 5, 2015)] (Squire Patton Boggs)  

Retirement Plan Advisor Charles Williams, CFP®, CRPC®, AAMS, CRPS®, AIF® Joins the Retirement Advisor Council
Retirement Advisor Council

Retirement Plan Advisor Scott L. Schlappi, CEBS, AIFA® Joins the Retirement Advisor Council
Retirement Advisor Council

US Labor Department Files Suit to Recover Losses to, Appoint Independent Fiduciary for Albany, New York, Retirement Plan
Employee Benefits Security Administration [EBSA], U.S. Department of Labor

US Labor Department Secures Appointment of Independent Fiduciary for Abandoned Central Islip, New York, Profit Sharing Plan
Employee Benefits Security Administration [EBSA], U.S. Department of Labor

The Centurion Group, LLC is Certified for Fiduciary Excellence
Centre for Fiduciary Excellence [CEFEX]

Beltz Ianni Adds Robert C. Newton to Consulting Team
Beltz Ianni & Associates

Charles Schwab Launches Schwab Intelligent Portfolios
Charles Schwab Corporation

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