Benefit Planning Counselor
Principal Financial Group
in NY

RetireSecure Employee Benefit Specialist
Principal Financial Group
in MA

Retirement Plan Sales & Support Specialist
The R.O.W. Group
in TN

Senior Investment Advisor
The PrivateBank
in IL

Business Development Officer
The PrivateBank
in IL

Vice President, Information Technology
Pentegra Retirement Services
in NY

Plan Document Analyst
T. Rowe Price
in MD

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Special Training Session ? New Information for the February Marketplace Payment Processing Cycle
January 13, 2014 WEBCAST
(Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS))

Education Session
January 15, 2014 WEBCAST
(Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB))

"401(k) Testing Techniques 2014" Web Seminar
January 29, 2014 WEBCAST
(SunGard Relius)

Top 10 Plan Designs for the Small Employer, and Creative Plan Corrections ? Minneapolis
January 31, 2014 in MN
(SunGard Relius)

Plan Administrator Skills Workshop
March 7, 2014 in TX
(SouthWest Benefits Association)

View All Webcasts and Conferences

IRS Guidance Issued on In-Plan Roth Rollovers to Designated Roth Accounts (PDF)
"The IRS Notice also provides guidance on: limiting the type of contributions eligible for and the frequency of in-plan Roth rollovers; discontinuing in-plan Roth rollovers in an ongoing qualified Roth contribution program; the five-year holding period required for qualified distributions when an in-plan Roth rollover is the first contribution made to an employee's designated Roth account; accounting for in-plan Roth conversions in determining the present value of accrued benefits for top-heavy status; and distribution of excess deferrals, excess contributions, or excess aggregate contributions from a Roth account consisting of rolled over amounts from other accounts in the same plan." (Milliman)

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IRS Notice Prescribes New Rules for In-Plan Rollovers to Roth Accounts
"The effective date of the amendment must be prior to or on the date the plan first operates in accordance with the amendment. So, if calendar-year plans allowed in-plan Roth rollovers of otherwise nondistributable amounts in 2013, an amendment to the plan must be adopted no later than December 31, 2014. Notably, this guidance also provides a window until December 31, 2014, for 401(k) safe harbor plans to implement a mid-year amendment (generally prohibited under the 401(k) safe harbor rules) to allow in-plan Roth rollovers." (Troutman Sanders)

District Court Checks Out of Proposed Marriott Class Certification in ERISA Lawsuit
"Judge Roger W. Titus of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland recently squashed a bid for class certification by former Marriott International employees, who claimed that the hotel giant failed to fulfill various obligations under a Retirement Deferred Stock Bonus Awards program.... Judge Titus found that the plaintiffs' proposed Top Hat Class did not satisfy Rule 23(a)'s commonality requirement.... Judge Titus went on to find that the circumstances barring commonality for the plaintiffs' proposed classes also defeated Rule 23(a)'s remaining two requirements of typicality and adequacy of representation." (Alston & Bird, LLP)

Can I Combine My IRAs? Should I?
"Thou shalt not combine a traditional IRA with a Roth IRA.... Thou shalt not combine your own IRA with an inherited IRA.... Thou shalt not combine an IRA inherited from one decedent with an IRA inherited from another decedent.... If you are concerned about potential creditors' claims or bankruptcy, that would be a good reason to keep your rollover IRA separate.... If you are leaving your IRA to individuals as well as charitable beneficiaries, there is a reason to consider using separate IRAs ... [If] you have reason to fear that your beneficiaries will feud with each other rather than cooperating in the division of the inherited IRA, it may be wiser to leave each one a separate IRA." (Natalie Choate in Morningstar Advisor)

Accounting for Pensions and Other Post Retirement Benefits, 2013
25 pages. Excerpt: "This report summarizes the assumptions used by companies to calculate pension costs and obligations, the disclosure of pension assets and obligations under ASC 715, and disclosures regarding postretirement benefits other than pensions -- primarily retiree health and life insurance benefits.... For fiscal-year-end (FYE) 2012, the discount rate used to calculate the present value of pension obligations ranged from 2.70% to 5.50%. At the end of 2012, 70% of companies had a projected benefit obligation funded status of less than 80%. The average return for plan sponsors at FYE 2012 was 12.33%." (Towers Watson)

Think Twice Before Rolling Over Your 401(k)
"Fees are one of the most important determinants of long-term portfolio performance, so it's important to compare expenses in the 401(k) you'd be leaving behind with those in the IRA.... Your 401(k) plan sponsor has a fiduciary responsibility to vet investment options -- and the plan can serve as a sort of guardrail against bad investments.... If multiple 401(k) accounts are trailing you around from previous jobs, it makes sense to consolidate -- either by rolling into your current 401(k), or to an IRA, if your current employer's plan isn't up to snuff." (Reuters)

Wall Street Watchdogs Target Bad Rollover Advice
"Brokers should recommend a rollover only after thinking about several factors for the investor, such as low-cost funds available through some 401(k) plans and differences in fees between the two types of accounts, FINRA said. Violations can lead to fines, suspensions or being thrown out of the industry. FINRA's announcement marked the second time in less than a week that the regulator sounded an alarm bell about retirement plan rollovers." (Reuters)

How Do Subjective Longevity Expectations Influence Retirement Plans?
"The estimates in this paper suggest a large and statistically significant relationship between subjective life expectancy and retirement expectations: a one-standard-deviation increase in optimism about living to ages 75 or 85 is associated with an 8-percent to 24-percent increase over the mean probability of working at these ages. Actual retirement behavior also increases with subjective life expectancy, but the relationship is somewhat weaker.... [I]ncreases over time in subjective life expectancy are associated with increases in the probability of planning to work at ages 62 and 65." (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)

Would a Retirement Plan Overhaul Fix Our Savings Shortfall?
"The solutions that we have to choose from fall into one of two main categories. The first course of action is to increase our personal rate of saving, while the other avenue would be substantially to strengthen the Social Security system.... There are pros and cons to both ideas, and many experts recommend that some combination of these two possibilities be implemented." (Investopedia via Yahoo News)

Handicapping the CEO Pay Ratio Comments: Odds on Which Suggestions the SEC May Adopt
"Our review of the public comment letters to the [SEC] on the CEO pay ratio proposal found widespread support for the rules among public pension funds and other activists -- and strong opposition from the various business organizations, many of which called for the proposal to be scrapped entirely. This article focuses on the more technical comments received by the SEC to review suggestions that may relieve compliance burdens and costs if adopted. We also offer our take on the odds of these recommendations being adopted, with the caveat that these are purely guesses and reflect no insight into the thought process of the SEC staff or the commissioners." (Towers Watson)

Employee Attitudes and Behavior About Equity Compensation (PDF)
"When asked how they view their equity compensation, nearly half of participants (47%) see it as a way to build wealth. However, one out of five view their award as a 'lottery ticket,' largely devoid of meaningful value. Vesting experience plays a significant role in the view of equity compensation: A majority of those who have experienced six or more vestings consider equity as a way to build wealth." (UBS Global Asset Management)

Text of Comments by American Benefits Council to SEC on Proposed Pay Ratio Rules (PDF)
"We believe supporters of the Proposed Rule underappreciate the compliance challenges that issuers face and the substantial costs that will be borne by their shareholders, especially on a multinational level ... [M]any of our members (especially those with large multinational operations) are unwilling to incur significant costs for their shareholders now to analyze the information technology changes, consolidation of payroll systems, and application of foreign data privacy laws that the Proposed Rule will impose on them. As a result, the Proposed Rule poses significant risks of unforeseen costs and complications for issuers and their shareholders." (American Benefits Council)

Prudential Simplifies Offering In-plan Guaranteed Retirement Income Solutions Prudential Retirement

PenSys, Inc. Acquires California Central Coast TPA, San Luis Pension Consultants PenSys, Inc.

MassMutual Retirement Services? Taft-Hartley Business Reaches New Milestone MassMutual

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