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Bates & Company
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N.A. Falcone & Associates, Inc.
in PA

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Qualified Plan Administrators, Inc.
in GA

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John Hancock
in ANY STATE, CA

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Pension Investors Corporation of Orlando, Inc.
in FL

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General ACA Information Returns Discussion
December 15, 2015 WEBCAST
(IRS [Internal Revenue Service])

DOL Presentation on EBSA Investigation of Employee Plans
January 21, 2016 in MI
(ASPPA Benefits Council [ABC] of Detroit)

Establishing and Amending IRAs
March 22, 2016 WEBCAST
(Ascensus)

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[Official Guidance]

Text of 2015 IRS Form 5329 (PDF)
"If you only owe the additional 10% tax on early distributions, you may be able to report this tax directly on Form 1040, line 59, or Form 1040NR, line 57, without filing Form 5329. See the instructions for Form 1040, line 59, or for Form 1040NR, line 57." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

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[Guidance Overview]

Economically Targeted Investments: DOL Guidance Leaves Many Questions Open
"In determining the risk and return ratio of an ETI versus another investment option, it is appropriate to consider risk factors specific to the industry (such as the prospect of legislation or litigation that might affect the value of stock in tobacco companies) ... Fiduciaries must consider the consequences to future retirees as well as current retirees. For example, they should take into account societal shifts that may affect investments over the long term, even if not in the short term." (Calhoun Law Group, P.C.)  

2016 Reporting and Disclosure Requirements for Ongoing Calendar-Year Qualified Plans
2-page chart of compliance requirements for qualified retirement plans, categorized by recipient, description and due date. (Towers Watson)  

2015 End of Year Plan Sponsor 'To Do' List for Qualified Retirement Plans
Compliance items are listed for qualified plans in general (4 items), section 401(k) plans (9 items), other defined contribution plans (5 items), defined benefit plans (6 items), and section 403(b) plans (9 items). (Snell & Wilmer)  

Retirement Plan Year-End Action Items
"[This] non-exhaustive list describes year-end action items and the annual notices for retirement plans that generally must be distributed within a reasonable time prior to the start of the plan year. For calendar year plans, providing the notices ... by December 1 will meet this requirement in most cases." (Haynes and Boone, LLP)  

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2015 Plan Sponsor Sentiment Survey (PDF)
40 pages. "RIAs are 64% more likely to offer general investment advice; 60% more likely to advise on plan selection and design; and 34% more likely to handle enrollment. Plan Sponsors are satisfied with RIAs -- particularly when it comes to things like knowledge on investment choices, meeting fiduciary requirements and investment advice to participants.... Only 28% of Plan Sponsors use a RIA. One in four Plan Sponsors that do not use an RIA say they have never been approached by one. Sixty percent are on the fence about staying with their current plan provider over the coming year. Lower plan fees and more diverse investment choices are top reasons to switch providers." (TD Ameritrade)  

Pension Plan Structures Before and After the Pension Protection Act of 2006
"This study ... shows that autoenrollment and employer contribution rates increased after the PPA was implemented.... [T]he PPA itself did not directly affect autoenrollment and actually reduced the preset and default employee contribution rates plans use for automatically enrolled employees. These default contribution rates are typically lower than what employees would need to contribute to obtain the maximum employer match." (Urban Institute)  

Prescience 2019: Expert Opinions on the Future of Retirement Plans
28 pages. "[By] 2019, more than half (55%) of plan sponsors will be using automatic enrollment. Moreover, nearly half (45%) of plans will automatically enroll participants at a default contribution rate of 6% or more.... Another promising development will be the rise to 75% or more of the small private employer market (50-100 employees) that will have defined contribution plan coverage, a 12 percentage point improvement over the level today." (Transamerica; free registration required)  

Nine Gifts to Help Employees Get Ready for Retirement
"In a season of lists, it only makes sense that retirement plan fiduciaries consider sharing a checklist for retirement readiness with retirement savers all over this (soon to be) winter wonderland.... [1] Accept personal responsibility ... [2] Be the ball (know your goal) ... [3] A marathon, not a sprint ... [4] Think in small steps ... [5] Think holistically ... [6] Create an emergency fund ... [7] Put stock in your future ... [8] Avoid loans ... [9] Do Nothing." (Fiduciary News)  

How is Retirement Wealth Affected by an Option to Delay an Increase in Savings?
"Relative to employees who are offered a convenient mechanism for increasing their contribution rates immediately, employees who are offered a convenient mechanism for increasing their contribution rates immediately or at a delay are no more likely to agree to an increase. In fact, the latter group exhibits lower savings rates over the coming months, as the delayed option attracts some employees. However, when the delayed option is framed as being implemented after a psychologically meaningful moment, such as an employee's next birthday, the negative effect of offering a delayed option is undone." (Pension Research Council, Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania; free registration required)  

Recent Changes to Social Security Claiming Strategies
"Since 2000, several Social Security claiming strategies have been available that have allowed filers to 'claim now, claim more later' under certain circumstances involving spousal benefits. The current administration has made it clear that it considers these strategies to be unintended 'loopholes' and in the past has advocated closing them. Somewhat unexpectedly, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, signed into law by President Obama on November 2, 2015, included a provision that eliminates these claiming strategies." (Manning & Napier)  

E Pluribus Unum? Recordkeeper Consolidation in Multi-Vendor 403(b) Plans
"Evaluating and selecting service providers is an ongoing fiduciary responsibility, and plan sponsors must make decisions using a process focused on the best interests of participants. This article sets out a framework to help plan sponsors evaluate multiple-recordkeeper plans through this lens.... [T]here is no single right answer for all institutions. Factors related to the plan's current state, as well as the institution's long-term objectives, will influence this decision." (CAPTRUST Financial Advisors)  

Pension Indicator, November 2015
"During November, choppy capital markets were secondary news compared to developments regarding slower than expected improvements in life expectancy assumptions and higher [PBGC] premiums." (Findley Davies)  

Spending Bill Rider Would Delay DOL Fiduciary Rule by Adding Comment Period
"Lawmakers are attempting to attach a rider to the omnibus spending bill that would require the Department of Labor to publish its fiduciary rule for another comment period before finalizing the rule. The Financial Planning Coalition told members of Congress ... that 'vigorously advocating for a rider on the year-end spending bill ... may sound harmless, but it is not.' Adding another comment period 'will run out the clock on this Administration's ability to promulgate a final rule, which will as a practical matter defeat the rule.' " (ThinkAdvisor)  

[Opinion]

Will State-Sponsored Retirement Plans End the Fiduciary Rule Civil War?
"There have been rumblings since at least the beginning of the year that the entire fiduciary debate has been a ruse by the government. By getting competing financial professionals busy fighting with each other, the government opened the door to begin a long orchestrated takeover of the retirement plan industry[.]" (Chris Carosa, in BenefitsPro)  

[Official Guidance]

Text of IRS Form 2848, Revised December 2015 (PDF)
"A separate Form 2848 must be completed for each taxpayer. Form 2848 will not be honored for any purpose other than representation before the IRS." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

Nothing (Still) Matters: ERISA Preemption Returns to the Supreme Court
"As a practical matter, what the Court decides may not mean much for All-Payer Claims Databases. If Vermont prevails and other states pile on, large national employers can ask the [DOL] to issue reporting regulations that would render conflicting state requirements invalid. If Liberty Mutual prevails, Vermont can ask the [DOL] for a formal waiver (which it probably has authority to grant) allowing its law to be enforced. These possibilities also demonstrate that ERISA federalism, like other evolving areas of law, is no longer a simple question of state versus federal control but has become subject to shared governance based on statute." [Gobeille v. Liberty Mutual Ins. Co., (2d Cir. Feb. 4, 2014, oral arg. Dec. 2, 2015)] (Health Affairs)  

Code Sec. 162(m) Trap for Smaller Reporting Companies
"[Chief Counsel Memorandum 2015 43003] concluded that the CFO of a smaller reporting company is a covered employee if the CFO is one of the two most highly compensated executive officers other than the CEO who were serving as executive officers at the end of the year." (Winston & Strawn LLP)  

A Summary of Compensation-Related Updates to the Proxy Voting Guidelines of ISS and Glass Lewis (PDF)
9 pages. "As was the case in 2015, neither ISS nor Glass Lewis has adopted major changes to their voting guidelines. Although companies should be aware of and consider the policy recommendations of each advisor, these recommendations should not overrule the judgment of the companies' directors on compensation policy." (Shearman & Sterling LLP)  

Five Things Compensation Committee Members Need to Know
"[1] Anticipate that investors are three times more likely to vote against compensation committee members at companies with low [Say-on-Pay (SOP)] support. [2] To drive higher SOP support, focus on providing clear disclosures around pay practices and programs first, then consider purposeful engagement and meaningful responsiveness to shareholder concerns. [3] To enhance company-investor dialogue about pay issues, involve a knowledgeable independent board leader, compensation chair and/or committee member in the conversation. [4] Anticipate that investors will continue to file shareholder proposals on pay and campaign for specific pay-related changes and disclosure. [5] Start to evaluate new and pending pay-related requirements and consider how to best communicate to investors." (EY)  

Koresko-Connected Law Firm Dodges ERISA Claims
"A law firm connected to John Koresko's lawsuit-plagued multiple employer welfare arrangements successfully defeated claims that it violated ERISA, a federal judge ruled. However, Portland-based Samuels Yoelin Kantor LLP must still defend state-law claims of malpractice and fiduciary breach stemming from its work representing Koresko's arrangements." [Kalan v. Farmers & Merchants Trust Company of Chambersburg, No. 15-1435 (E.D. Penn. Dec. 3, 2015)] (Bloomberg BNA)  

Segal Hires National Director of Content, Marketing and Sales Support
The Segal Group

US Labor Department Obtains Consent Judgment to Recover more than $500K for 401(k) Plan of Largo, Maryland, Defense Contractor
Employee Benefits Security Administration [EBSA], U.S. Department of Labor

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