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ERISA Cyber Security – The Next Frontier
November 18, 2015 WEBCAST
(Wagner Law Group P.C.)

Best Behavioral Practices to Solve the DC Outcomes Crisis
November 19, 2015 in CA
(Western Pension & Benefits Council)

FMLA Update: Hot Topics and Avoiding Pitfalls
January 28, 2016 WEBCAST
(International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans [IFEBP])

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Today's Discussions on the BenefitsLink Message Boards

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[Official Guidance]

IRS Announces Changes to Enrolled Retirement Plan Agent (ERPA) Program
"Effective February 12, 2016, the [IRS] will no longer be offering the ERPA Special Enrollment Examination (ERPA SEE) to become an ERPA. Any current ERPAs will continue to hold the ERPA designation, allowing them to practice before the IRS. Anyone who has passed both parts of the SEE can still become an ERPA if they file the Form 23-EP, Application for Enrollment to Practice before the Internal Revenue Service as an Enrolled Retirement Plan Agent (ERPA). The application for enrollment must be filed within one year of passing both parts of the test. The final ERPA SEE testing window will begin January 5 and run through February 12, 2016.... Registration closes on January 4, 2016.... The program remains unchanged for current ERPAs." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

[Advert.]

The ERISA Outline Book: an invaluable resource for retirement plan business.

Both a reference book and a study guide on qualified plans, the ERISA Outline Book is now available in a special online edition, constantly updated to reflect the very latest developments. Search, take notes and bookmark content.

[Official Guidance]

PBGC Premium Rates Web Page Updated to Show Rates for 2016 and Later
"The per-participant flat premium rate for plan years beginning in 2016 is $64 for single-employer plans (up from a 2015 rate of $57) and $27 for multiemployer plans (up from a 2015 rate of $26). The increase in the single-employer rate was provided in The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013. The increase in the multiemployer rate is the result of indexing. For information about future rates [as increased by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015], see Scheduled increases for years after 2016[.]" (Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation [PBGC])  

[Guidance Overview]

DOL Clarifies Safe Harbor Guidance for Selecting Annuity Providers and Contracts for DC Plans
"[FAB 2015-02] does not address the extent to which, if at all, the Safe Harbor Rule applies to the selection of insurance companies and products providing for guaranteed payments other than an immediate annuity or a qualifying longevity annuity contract (a QLAC) option.... The FAB cites authority from a number of court cases in explaining that fiduciary prudence is to be 'evaluated with respect to the information available at the time the decision is made -- and not based on facts that come to light only with the benefit of hindsight.' " (Trucker Huss)  

Year-End Compliance Issues for Single-Employer Retirement Plans (PDF)
"By year-end 2015, sponsors of calendar-year single-employer retirement plans must act on necessary and discretionary amendments and perform a range of administrative procedures to ensure compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements. This [article] looks at key areas that such employers and sponsors of defined benefit (DB) or defined contribution (DC) plans should address by Dec. 31, 2015." (Milliman)  

Unpaid Employer Contributions Cannot Be Plan Assets; Debt Is Dischargeable in Bankruptcy
"Because the owner had full control over the company finances, he was personally responsible for making the required contributions. Moreover, he signed a promissory note for some $360,000 in payments that the company had failed to make. Then he filed bankruptcy.... The court noted that fiduciary status should not be imposed unless the individual is clearly aware of his status, and that a typical employer never has sufficient control over a plan asset to make it a fiduciary. The court further held that, no matter how one described the supposed 'asset' -- a right to collect payments, unpaid past-due contributions, or amounts that must be paid but are not yet due -- an employer did not have sufficient control over that asset to make it a fiduciary." [Bos v. Board of Trustees, No. 13-15604 (9th Cir. July 30, 2015)] (Begos Brown & Green LLP)  

[Advert.]

A creative co-op to elevate the conversation about why we're here.

Committed To Outcomes (C2O) is a retirement industry work group and creative co-op to elevate the conversation about our why we're here. C2O will leverage PR and social media channels while member firms share C2O original content under their own brands. Learn more.

Ninth Circuit: Company May Be Subject to Withdrawal Liability Under 'Successorship Doctrine'
"[T]he court explained that it had imposed liability for the seller's delinquent ERISA contributions on the purchaser because '[a]bsent the imposition of successor liability, present and future employer participants in the union pension plan will bear the burden of [the predecessor's] failure to pay its share,' which would threaten the health of the plan while the purchaser reaps a windfall.... The Ninth Circuit explained that although the composition of the workforce is important in successorship cases involving the duty to bargain under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), that factor is not of special relevance when considering MPPAA withdrawal liability." [Resilient Floor Covering Pension Trust Fund Bd. of Trustees v. Michael's Floor Covering, Inc. No. 12-17675 (9th Cir. Sept. 11, 2015)] (Trucker Huss)  

Mortality Rates Hold Steady (PDF)
"[Plan sponsors] should review the three levers of plan management (investment,funding, and benefit policies) with their advisors. Some considerations include: [1] Consider using available cash to fund plans now. Waiting for the new mortality basis increases the chance of future benefit restrictions and risks higher PBGC variable rate premiums, as well. [2] Review plan budgeting. Sponsors assuming a 2016 contribution increase may want to adjust cash flows to assume that change in 2017. [3] Aggressive investment policies could assist with potential shortfalls generated from mortality updates.... [4] Using different assumptions (e.g., mortality) for plan accounting and plan funding results in disparate funded statuses for each valuation." (Lockton)  

Climate Change and Pension Fund Investments
"The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board is in the process of developing ways of measuring the magnitude and probability of different types of economic and financial impacts of climate change. As those tools are refined and become applicable to all of the industries in which pension funds might invest, fiduciaries of those funds will be better able to deploy their funds' capital in ways that will ensure their ability to provide future retirement income by more clearly understanding the long-term risks and rewards presented by climate change." (Cooley LLP)  

Central States Rescue Pain Puts Spotlight on Retirees' Representative
"With many Central States Pension Fund retirees facing severe cuts to their retirement benefits, the person appointed to represent them as part of the process for the fund's rescue proposal has drawn bitter criticism from some of the fund's participants.... The controversy highlights some of the issues other financially troubled multiemployer plans may face as they seek to use provisions in a law passed in late 2014 allowing them to suspend benefits." (Bloomberg BNA)  

FINRA to Seek a 'Significant Fine' from MetLife Over Variable Annuity Sales
"MetLife Inc., the largest U.S. life insurer, said [FINRA's] staff has indicated the agency will seek a 'significant fine' from the company's broker-dealer unit as part of a probe into possible violations tied to variable annuities.... The probe focuses on potential violations 'regarding alleged misrepresentations, suitability, and supervision in connection with sales and replacements of variable annuities and certain riders on such annuities,' MetLife said[.]" (InvestmentNews)  

Bill Would Give One-Time Extra Social Security Payment to All Recipients
"Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., introduced a bill [Nov. 5] to give all recipients of Social Security a one-time payment in 2016 to offset no cost of living adjustment. It would be funded by eliminating the CEO performance pay tax break that allows corporations to write off executive bonuses as a business expense for 'performance pay.' The Seniors and Veterans Emergency Benefits Act (SAVE Benefits Act) would give about 70 million Social Security recipients an extra payment of $581, equal to the 3.9% raise CEOs of the top 350 firms receive[.]" (InvestmentNews)  

San Jose, Atlanta Pensions: A Tale of Two Rulings
"Two years ago a superior court judge ruled the San Jose employee contribution increase violated employee vested rights. The city dropped the appeal this year in a settlement of the lawsuits against Measure B, approved by 69 percent of voters in 2012. Last week the Georgia Supreme Court ruled the Atlanta employee pension contribution increase, approved by the city council four years ago, did not violate the vested rights of employees." (Calpensions)  

[Opinion]

States Are the Laboratories for Retirement Ideas
"So far, the voluntary adoption of the myRA program by small employers has been modest. On the other hand, the small business lobbies in certain states oppose any requirement for firms to connect their payrolls to the state version of the Automatic IRA. To diffuse this opposition, states should impose this requirement on firms having more than 25 employees as Illinois has done, rather than more than 5 or 10 employees." (The Brookings Institution)  

[Opinion]

ERISA: Have We Reached Paralysis by Regulation?
"[T]he majority of those representing various state initiatives made it clear that anything under ERISA was a no-go as far as they were concerned. That's not because they don't like consumer protection or don't want employers to be able to contribute if they choose. It's not because of any specific requirement contained within ERISA. It's not the parts that are the problem; it is the whole. There's forty years of regulatory baggage.... While the baggage is familiar for a private sector that has been working with it for forty years, it's easy to see why states would hesitate to embrace it when starting from scratch. It's too much." (Russell Investments)  

[Opinion]

American Academy of Actuaries Comments to IRS on QLACs (PDF)
"The final regulations were helpful in that inflation-indexed annuities were explicitly allowed. But an inflation-indexed annuity costs significantly more than a level-payout fixed annuity.... Alternatives such as variable or equity indexed QLACs would help provide a large, less expensive market and would thus encourage more participants to take advantage of the ability to pool longevity that QLACs create.... We appreciate that the regulation allows the Commissioner to issue additional guidance that would allow variable annuities to be considered QLACs. We urge that such guidance be issued[.]" (American Academy of Actuaries)  

FCE Benefits Strongly Denies Claims Made in Department of Labor Complaint
FCE Benefits

Effective, Low-Cost Wellness Service Expands Distribution
Field Goods

The SPARK Institute Announces 2015 SPARK Award Recipients
The SPARK Institute

Transamerica Launches FastTrack Retirement Offering for Smaller Companies
Transamerica Retirement Solutions

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