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August 9, 2007
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Be a part of it all at ASPPA's Annual Conference this year. Join over 1,500 retirement professionals, choose from over 60 workshops, attend numerous networking opportunities and participate in ASPPA's bi-annual march to the hill. All this and more await you at the Hilton Washington, October 21-24, 2007. Register Now.
U.S. Labor Department Publishes Civil Penalty Rules Under Pension Protection Act
To be published in the Federal Register on Friday, August 10. (U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA))
Delta Pilots Say Airline Owes Them $100 Million in Pension Benefits
Excerpt: "About 1,000 retired Delta Air Lines pilots asked a federal bankrup.tcy judge Tuesday to award them at least $100 million in pension benefits they say Delta hasn't paid them. The pilots say in filings made in the U.S. Bankrup.tcy Court for the Southern District of New York that Delta hasn't paid the benefits because the company is misinterpreting federal tax law." (Daily Report)
Overview: Miller Bill Would Require Enhanced Disclosure of 401(k) Fees and Conflicts of Interest
Excerpt: "Legislation introduced by Rep. George Miller (D-CA), Chairman of the House Committee on Education and Labor, would require 401(k) plan service providers to clearly disclose to plan sponsors all fees and potential conflicts of interest on an annual basis. The legislation would seem to require the disclosure of revenue sharing arrangements between service providers." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)
Leave the Job Behind, and Maybe the Retirement Money
Excerpt: "Summer is often a time of transition. Many employees switch jobs during the summer and many wonder: Should I let the money I've accumulated in my company retirement plan stay in the old plan?" (The Washington Post; free registration required)
American Benefits Council Fast Facts on 401(k) Plans - Automatic enrollment (PDF)
1 page. Excerpt: "While automatic enrollment has been explicitly permitted since Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Revenue Ruling 98-30 allowing 'negative election' programs in 1998, the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA) made important provisions for these programs, establishing a new nondiscrimination testing safe harbor and directing the U.S. Department of Labor to issue guidance on selecting prudent default investments." (American Benefits Council)
Overview: IRS Guidance for Part-time Employee Exclusions Under 401(k) Plans
Excerpt: "Plan sponsors may design their plans to take advantage of this part-time employee guidance to reach their objectives regarding the classification of employees covered by their 401(k) plans." (The New York State Society of CPAs)
Opinion: What You Don't Know Can Hurt You as a 401(k) Plan Sponsor
Excerpt: "Plan providers, including many of the biggest industry names, have mastered the art of hiding fees within their marketing materials and complex plan documents, making it virtually impossible for employers to make sound judgments regarding 401(k) fees. In many cases, the language in the plan documents and other materials borders on illegal, and is certainly unethical." (Financial Advisor)
Investment Slump Hits Pension Funding Levels
Excerpt: "Falling stock prices and falling interest rates combined to hurt the funded status of employers' defined benefit pension plans in July. Researchers at BNY Mellon Asset Management, a unit of Mellon Financial Corp., Pittsburgh, have published that conclusion in its latest monthly pension status update." (The National Underwriter Company; free registration or paid subscription required)
Study Sees U.S. Retirement Wealth Up Sharply by 2040
Excerpt: "The average value of Americans' 401(k) plans will be substantially higher in real terms by the year 2040 even if stock market returns fall short of their historical values, according to new research by a team of economists from MIT, Harvard and Dartmouth." (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
St. Louis City Defends $125m Bond Issue to Cover Pension Liabilities
Excerpt: "The city's plan to meet its liabilities is based half on reducing benefits and half on increasing revenues. This could include raising sales taxes in the city and changing the assumptions the schemes had been working to in recent years." (Global Pensions)
How Does Your Retirement Plan Stack Up for 2006?
Excerpt: "Mercer Human Resource Consulting has completed its annual survey of the retirement programs sponsored by the companies in the S&P 500, using information primarily reported in 10-K filings for fiscal year 2005." (Mercer Human Resource Consulting LLC and Mercer Investment Consulting, Inc.; free registration required)
Senate Leaders Urge Changes in PBGC Governance
Excerpt: "As the Senate Finance Committee prepares to consider the qualifications of President Bush's nominee to head the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), the committee's top lawmakers urged the Agency to change its governance structure to better protect pension holders. Charles E.F. Millard, nominated to serve as PBGC director, appeared before the Senate panel on July 25, 2007." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)
Easing Federal Employees into Retirement Fairly
Excerpt: "[K]eep an eye on S. 2003. That's the number of the Senate bill which . . . would permit federal agencies to keep feds on the payroll, or let retirees return, to work part-time. President Bush likes the plan, good-government groups call it a win-win proposition, and the Partnership for Public Service refers to it as a 'knowledge transfer' program that would minimize the problems of any upcoming braindrain by permitting older, experienced workers to mentor new people . . . ." (Federal News Radio)
The Upside of Double-Dipping -- Take a Job with Uncle Sam
Excerpt: "The biggest lure Uncle Sam offers aging outsiders is the ability to earn a pension large enough to pay for FEHBP, the government's cradle-to-grave health insurance program." (Federal News Radio)
Disaster Relief Announcement 07-12 in Response to Severe South Dakota Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding
Excerpt: "The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation is waiving certain penalties and extending certain deadlines in response to the severe storms, tornadoes and flooding that occurred on May 4, 2007, in South Dakota." (Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation)
Recent Development on Service Provider Gifts and Entertainment
Excerpt: "The International Foundation has been made aware of what appears to be a stricter enforcement initiative by some offices of the Employee Benefits Security Administration of the Department of Labor ('EBSA') regarding service provider gifts and entertainment for multiemployer plan trustees or administrators." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)
Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide Updated as of August 7, 2007, for Retirement Plans (PDF)
9 pages. This Federal Legislation Quick Guide provides short updates on federal legislation that is currently under active consideration by Congress or has recently been enacted into law regarding retirement plans. (Hewitt Associates)
Interview with Lynn D. Dudley of the American Benefits Council
Excerpt: "Ms. Dudley, vice president of retirement policy for the Washington-based organization, comes well prepared. In addition to her extensive knowledge about retirement issues, 'she's very practical in thinking through the ramifications of policy proposals,' said James Delaplane, a partner with Washington law firm Davis & Harman LLP, who worked with her at the American Benefits Council from 1998 to 2002." (Investment News; free registration required)
Overview: Plans that Missed EGTRRA Deadline
Excerpt: "Revenue Procedure 2007-49 addresses the process for GUST preapproved plans that missed being on a preapproved provider list for the EGTRRA document round by the January 31, 2006 deadline." (McKay Hochman Co., Inc.)
Income Annuities Best Address Retirement Income Longevity Risk, According to Study
Excerpt: "A new study co-sponsored by the Wharton Financial Institutions Center at the University of Pennsylvania and New York Life Insurance Company suggests lifetime income annuities are the most cost-effective and least risky asset class for generating retirement income that will last for an individual's lifetime." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
IRS Defined Benefit Listing of Required Modifications and Information Package (PDF)
162 pages. Excerpt: "This information package contains samples of plan provisions that have been found to satisfy certain specific requirements of the Internal Revenue Code as amended . . . ." (Internal Revenue Service)
Society of Actuaries' Effort Explores More Flexible Retirement Systems
Excerpt: "A new report from the Society of Actuaries looks at envisioning new retirement systems for the 21st century -- systems that could meet the needs of baby boomers as well as all future retirement needs, without generational limitation." (Society of Actuaries)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Excellent Resource for Breaking Courts of Appeals Cases on ERISA Matters
The link we've provided for you sorts the cases by date; newest cases appear up top. Definitely one to bookmark! (FindLaw.com)
Opinion: FASB Should Revise Stock Options' Earnings Rule
Excerpt: "FASB should recognize that using a full 10-year term is unrealistic, and it should mandate a reasonable percentage discount from the full-term option value. That discount should be imposed on every company using 10-year options." (Graef Crystal via Bloomberg News)
Excellent Resource for Breaking Courts of Appeals Cases on Labor & Management Matters
The link we've provided for you sorts the cases by date; newest cases appear up top. Definitely one to bookmark! (FindLaw.com)
Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide for August 7, 2007, on Human Resources & Employment Law (PDF)
13 pages. This Federal Legislation Quick Guide provides short updates on federal legislation that is currently under active consideration by Congress or has recently been enacted into law regarding human resources and employment law. (Hewitt Associates)
ERISA Plan Record Retention: How Long Is Long Enough?
Excerpt: "Attorney Rush Nigot blogging about Document Retention and Electronic Discovery on his new Blog, Rush on Business, tells us that in today's business environment, organizations need to respond to an increasing number of document requests, from regulatory compliance issues to internal investigations to full-scale litigation." (Retirement Plan Blog)
Overview: IRS Clarifies 409A NQDC Rules' Impact on Teacher Compensation
Excerpt: "The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued new publications to explain how the 409A nonqualified deferred compensation rules may apply to school district employees who are able to elect to spread their school-year compensation over a 12-month pay period and similar arrangements of taxpayers with part-year work periods." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Newly Posted Events
Advanced ESOP Valuation
Nationwide on September 18, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
Communicating Your ESOP
Nationwide on September 27, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
ESOPs as a Business Transition Tool
Nationwide on October 11, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
Executive Compensation for ESOP Companies
Nationwide on November 20, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
Handling the ESOP Repurchase Obligation
Nationwide on December 11, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
Is an ESOP Right for You? Finance, Valuation, and Culture
Nationwide on December 6, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
Is an ESOP Right for You? The Basics
Nationwide on December 4, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
Navigating the 409A Deferred Compensation Plan Rules
Nationwide on November 29, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
Predictive Modeling for Population Health and Secondary Prevention
in California on September 5, 2007
presented by DST Health Solutions
S Corporation ESOPs
Nationwide on November 13, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
Using ESOPs as an Acquisition Strategy
Nationwide on November 6, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
What You Need to Know as an Internal ESOP Fiduciary
Nationwide on November 27, 2007
presented by National Center for Employee Ownership
Newly Posted Press Releases
Ambling Companies, Inc. and MassMutual Offer Free Life Insurance to Working Parents in Georgia
MassMutual
30-Day Open Enrollment Period Allows Self-Employed to Shop for Guaranteed Issue Health Insurance
Florida Association of Health Underwriters
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
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Defined Contribution / 401-K Plan Administrator
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in NY
Daily Record Keeping Specialist
for AKT Retirement Plan Services LLC
in OR
Handy Links:
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- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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