Retirement Plans Newsletter

August 13, 2015

BenefitsLink.com logo EmployeeBenefitsJobs.com logo LinkedIn logo Twitter logo Facebook logo
Get Health & Welfare News  |  Advertise  |  Previous Issues  |  Search

Employee Benefits Jobs

Sr. Plan Administrator/Consultant
Dallas Area TPA Firm
in TX

Defined Benefit Plan Administrator
Great Lakes Pension Associates, Inc.
in MI

Plan Administrator
NestEggs, Inc.
in FL

Retirement Implementation Manager
CUNA Mutual Group
in WI

Post Your Job

View All Jobs

RSS feed for jobs RSS Feed: All Jobs


Webcasts and Conferences

Mergers and Acquisitions
August 26, 2015 WEBCAST
(Multnomah Group)

Benefits for Same-Sex Spouses and Domestic Partners: Impacts From the Supreme Court and EEOC
September 9, 2015 WEBCAST
(Thomson Reuters / EBIA)

Legislative Update
September 17, 2015 in TX
(ASPPA Benefits Council [ABC] of Dallas/Fort Worth)

2015 Large Employer Reporting Seminar
September 22, 2015 in VA
(TFA Benefits)

2015 Large Employer Reporting
September 24, 2015 WEBCAST
(TFA Benefits)

Handling IRA Legal Issues
October 20, 2015 WEBCAST
(Ascensus)

2016 Business Management Conference
January 13, 2016 in AZ
(NIPA [National Institute of Pension Administrators])

View All Webcasts and Conferences


Subscribe Now to This Newsletter (free)

We also publish the BenefitsLink Health & Welfare Plans Newsletter (free): Subscribe Now


[Official Guidance]

Text of PBGC Monthly Interest Rate Update for September 2015
"The September 2015 interest assumptions under the benefit payments regulation will be 1.25 percent for the period during which a benefit is in pay status and 4.00 percent during any years preceding the benefit's placement in pay status. In comparison with the interest assumptions in effect for August 2015, these interest assumptions represent a decrease of 0.25 percent in the immediate annuity rate and are otherwise unchanged." (Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation [PBGC])  


[Advert.]

Start your FREE Trial Today: Benefits Practice Resource Center

Sponsored by Bloomberg BNA

The Benefits Practice Resource Center is the authoritative, integrated solution that brings you time-saving answers. Start your trial and get Bloomberg BNA's report, Anthem Data Breach: Benefit Plan Fiduciaries -- Managing and Controlling Plan Records.



[Guidance Overview]

Pension Plan Sponsors: Whether Your Pension Plan Is Frozen, Partially Frozen or Freeze Dried, Don't Forget Those PBGC Reportable Events
"Although there may be a few reportable events that are not likely to occur if a pension plan is frozen, most ... can occur regardless of a pension plan's status. These ... include, among others, [1] a distribution to a substantial owner from the plan, [2] a change in the plan's controlled group (including a merger or consolidation within the controlled group ...), [3] liquidation of any member of the plan's controlled group, [4] an extraordinary dividend or stock redemption by any member of the plan's controlled group[.]" (Morgan Lewis via Lexology)  

[Guidance Overview]

IRS Announces End of 5-Year Determination Letter Remedial Amendment Cycles
"After December 31, 2016, the IRS anticipates that determination letter applications for individually designed plans, other than new plans or terminated plans, will be accepted only in limited circumstances ... The Announcement does not elaborate on what these 'limited circumstances' might be. However, it seems likely that the IRS will establish a special determination letter application period following the enactment of a tax act that significantly affects qualification requirements for retirement plans." (Drinker Biddle)  

IRA Required Minimum Distribution Worksheet (PDF)
"IRA Required Minimum Distribution Worksheet: Use this worksheet to figure this year's required withdrawal for your traditional IRA unless your spouse is the sole beneficiary of your IRA and he or she is more than 10 years younger than you." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

IRA Required Minimum Distribution Worksheet: Younger Spouse as Beneficiary (PDF)
"If your spouse is the sole beneficiary of your IRA and he or she is more than 10 years younger than you, use this worksheet to calculate this year's required withdrawal for your traditional IRA." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  


[Advert.]

State and Local Government Benefits Association (SALGBA)

Sponsored by State and Local Government Benefits Association [SALGBA]

(SALGBA) is the premier organization providing educational and collaborative support for public sector employee benefits professionals, such as national and regional conferences, member directory, and more. For a complete list visit www.salgba.com.



DOL Provides Recorded Video of Hearings on Conflict of Interest Rule
Target page now includes individual links to: [1] Public Hearing Webcast Archive; [2] Written Testimony and Hearing-Related Materials; [3] Requests to Testify at Public Hearing; and [4] Public Comments. (Employee Benefits Security Administration [EBSA], U.S. Department of Labor [DOL])  

Plan Sponsor Advocate Pushes for Exemption in DOL Fiduciary Rule
"Advisers whose compensation does not vary based on the investments they recommend for retirement plans should be carved out of a Labor Department proposal to raise advice standards [said] Marcy Supovitz, president-elect of the American Retirement Association ... [The best interests contract] exemption and the related compliance requirements should not apply to advisers who receive level compensation regardless of the assets in a retirement account, Ms. Supovitz said, even if that money is rolled from a cheaper 401(k) to a more expensive IRA." [Her written testimony is available online.] (Investment News)  

DOL Hearings Delve Into Tales of Investor Woes and Advisor Fears
"Accounts of abused investors and high-living brokers competed for sympathy with brokers' professed fears about their businesses in the debate about a proposed fiduciary rule on day two of the Labor Department's hearings ... One former broker explained how that standard worked in practice at a former firm, where he said the CEO urged brokers like him to develop a plan and stick with it." (Financial Planning)  

The Fiduciary Duty to Monitor 401(k) Plan Investments
"In a 'traditional' defined benefit plan, the duty to monitor looks a lot like the duty to monitor investments in a traditional trust.... [I]mplementation of a 404(c)-401(k) plan frames the duty to monitor in a unique way. In this sort of plan, the plan fiduciary must [1] monitor for continued compliance with 404(c), [2] if the fiduciary is satisfied that the plan complies with 404(c), then its obligation to monitor individual (participant) investment decisions (e.g., with respect to asset allocation) is generally eliminated, but [3] the fiduciary does have a residual obligation to monitor for the ongoing prudence of the inclusion of the funds in the fund menu." (October Three Consulting)  

Defined Contribution Retirement Plans Are Cost-Effective
"Critics of DC plans argue that DB plans are more cost-effective because the latter deliver higher investment returns and convert retirement savings into annuities. This paper investigates whether such assertions hold up to empirical scrutiny.... DB plans are not structurally more cost-effective than DC plans.... DC plans achieve similar investment returns.... DC plans can -- and do -- offer annuities.... Pension debt is a significant cost driver for DB plans.... DC plans are a good option for providing retirement security." (Manhattan Institute for Policy Research)  

Big Changes Ahead for Small-Business Retirement Plans
"Roughly half of the U.S. states are working to create government-sponsored automatic individual retirement account (IRA) plans that would enroll workers without access to employer-sponsored retirement plans.... The states argue that fiduciary liability can be taken on by the boards governing the plans, and by third-party financial services companies that are hired to run them.... Labor Department officials have expressed concern about letting the plans proceed without the regulatory protections of ERISA, and the Obama administration preferred to focus on its own national auto-IRA plan." (The Fiscal Times)  

How Much Longer Do People Need to Work?
"[T]his paper, using data from the Health and Retirement Study, specifies how much longer households in each SES quartile would need to work to maintain their pre-retirement standard of living and compares those optimal retirement ages with their planned retirement ages to calculate a retirement gap.... The analysis shows that households in lower-SES quartiles have larger retirement gaps, and this pattern remains true even after controlling for late-career shocks. In short, the most vulnerable have the largest retirement gaps, and these gaps arise from poor planning rather than late-career shocks." (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)  

Chicago Public Schools to End Employee Pension Contribution Pickup for Certain Workers
"Beginning with the Aug. 24 pay period, certain existing employees will contribute 4%, saving the cash-strapped school district an estimated $2.9 million for this fiscal year. In fiscal year 2017, which starts June 30, 2016, employees will contribute 6% for a savings of $6.8 million and in fiscal year 2018, employees will contribute the full 9%. The changes, once fully implemented in fiscal year 2018, will save CPS an estimated $11.1 million annually." (Pensions & Investments)  

Benefits in General; Executive Compensation

[Guidance Overview]

SEC Issues Final CEO Pay Ratio Rule (PDF)
10 pages. "The SEC clearly tried to further address registrants' concerns regarding the feasibility and cost of determining the median annual total compensation of all employees and gave registrants the ability to use the median employee identified for up to three years unless there has been a change in its employee population or employee compensation arrangements that the company reasonably believes would result in a significant change to its pay ratio disclosure." (ExeQuity)  

Press Releases

PSCA Provides Free DC Plan Benchmarking Data
PSCA [Plan Sponsor Council of America]

Connect   LinkedIn logo   Twitter logo   Facebook logo

Additional useful links:

BenefitsLink.com, Inc.
1298 Minnesota Avenue, Suite H
Winter Park, Florida 32789
Phone (407) 644-4146
Fax (407) 644-2151

Lois Baker, J.D., President
David Rhett Baker, J.D., Editor and Publisher
Holly Horton, Business Manager

Copyright 2015 BenefitsLink.com, Inc. — but feel free to forward this newsletter without further permission from us, if you do not modify the newsletter in any way (including this lower portion).

All materials contained in this newsletter are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of BenefitsLink.com, Inc., or in the case of third party materials, the owner of that content. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content.

Links to websites other than those owned by BenefitsLink.com, Inc. are offered as a service to readers. The editorial staff of BenefitsLink.com, Inc. was not involved in their production and is not responsible for their content.

We are proud of our Privacy Policy.

Thanks for reading this newsletter!