DATAIR Employee Benefit Systems, Inc.

Account Manager
ASPire Financial Services LLC
in FL

Junior DC Plan Administrator
The Retirement Plan Company, LLC
in ANY STATE, OH, SC, TN

Regional Sales Manager
ASPire Financial Services LLC
in TX

Retirement Plan Analyst
United Retirement Plan Consultants
in WA

Senior Plan Administrator
Actuarial Consulting Services
in NJ

Post Your Job

View All Jobs

RSS Feed: All Jobs

What the New Healthcare Law Means for Your Small Business
July 3, 2014 WEBCAST
(Small Business Majority)

Private Exchanges: Build Your Technology Foundation
July 17, 2014 WEBCAST
(Benefitfocus)

View All Webcasts and Conferences

Text of New Jersey Opinion: Public Employees Have Protected Contractual Rights to Pension COLAs (PDF)
"Mindful of our required hesitancy to infer legislative contracts, and the practical difficulties the Court described in Spina, we nonetheless find that the non-forfeitable rights statute enacted in 1997 created a contractual right.... For all of these reasons, we conclude that the non-forfeitable right provision, which creates a contractual right to receive pension benefits, applies to COLAs." [Berg et al. v.Christie, Nos. A-5973-11T4 A-6002-11T4 A-0632-12T1 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. June 26, 2014)] (Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division)

[Advert.]

ASPPA Annual Conference on October 26-29 in Washington DC

We don't just set the bar, we're constantly raising the bar for America's Retirement. And we unleash that tenacity at every ASPPA Annual Conference.

What the Supreme Court's Dudenhoeffer Decision Means for ESOPs
"The ruling does not mean that company stock can no longer be held in these plans, but it is likely to alter the landscape for ESOP companies and trustees... Dudenhoeffer distinguished between relying on inside information to sell company stock (which it classified as illegal insider trading and thus not required by the duty of prudence) and refraining from buying more company stock (which might be a fiduciary violation).... Given the very strong bipartisan support for ESOPs, it is possible that Congress will act to clarify the law to protect ESOPs, at least for closely held companies." [ Fifth Third Bancorp v. Dudenhoeffer , No. 12-751 (U.S. June 25, 2014)] (National Center for Employee Ownership [NCEO])

Supreme Court Rejects Presumption of Prudence for ESOP Fiduciaries
"According to the Court, ERISA's requirement that fiduciaries exclusively pursue the provision of 'benefits' to plan participants and their beneficiaries refers only to financial benefits, not 'nonpecuniary benefits like those supposed to arise from employee ownership of employer stock.' The Court likewise rejects the petitioners' related argument that the plan's mandate that fiduciaries invest in Fifth Third stock 'waive[s]' the usual ERISA duty of prudence. The opinion concludes that 'by contrast to the rule at common law, trust documents cannot excuse trustees from their duties under ERISA.'" [ Fifth Third Bancorp v. Dudenhoeffer , No. 12-751 (U.S. June 25, 2014)] (SCOTUSblog)

Supreme Court Rejects the Moench Presumption, But Gives Some Comfort to ERISA Fiduciaries
"The Court expressly recognized that a goal of Congress is to encourage the establishment of ESOPs ... The Court stated that plaintiffs should be unable to survive a motion to dismiss and thereby engage in discovery merely by alleging that the fiduciaries should have taken action to protect publicly-traded company stock in light of publicly available information.... [P]laintiffs will not enter the discovery door without strong allegations that the fiduciaries breached their duties on the basis of inside information ... [and] cannot survive a motion to dismiss without plausible allegations of conduct the fiduciaries should have undertaken." [ Fifth Third Bancorp v. Dudenhoeffer , No. 12-751 (U.S. June 25, 2014)] (Seyfarth Shaw LLP)

Supreme Court Lessens Fiduciary Protection for Investment in Employer Stock
"Fiduciaries can no longer rely on the Moench presumption that the investment would be prudent as long as the documents required the employer stock and the employer was not experiencing 'dire' or other extreme circumstances. Instead, fiduciaries must evaluate all of the circumstances of the employer, within the confines of securities laws, and determine on that basis whether employer stock is a prudent investment under the plan. In other words, fiduciaries must treat an employer stock investment just like every other investment offered under the plan." [ Fifth Third Bancorp v. Dudenhoeffer , No. 12-751 (U.S. June 25, 2014)] (Holland & Hart LLP)

[Advert.]

Designed for CIO's from US Foundations, Endowments and Pensions

Are you looking to develop innovative asset allocation strategies? Speakers alone contribute to 1.8 trillion AUM. Learn new solutions to your immediate challenges. September 8-9, Atlanta.

ERISA Stock-Drop Class Actions: As One Door Opens for Plaintiffs, Another Closes
"The Court's decision fundamentally reconfigures the landscape for ERISA stock-drop class actions. Although the rejection of the presumption of prudence is likely to result in more suits against retirement plan fiduciaries, the Court's substantive guidance arms class-action defendants with potent defenses that can be invoked at the motion-to-dismiss stage. The main issue left open by the Court -- when, if at all, fiduciaries must act on nonpublic information -- will be litigated extensively in the lower courts[.]" [ Fifth Third Bancorp v. Dudenhoeffer , No. 12-751 (U.S. June 25, 2014)] (Mayer Brown)

Ten (Not So) Simple Steps to Claiming a Deduction for a Roth IRA Loss
"If you've actually made it [through the preceding 9 steps] and are one of the lucky -- or perhaps, not so lucky -- few who can claim a deduction for a Roth IRA loss, then take a complete distribution of all your Roth IRAs. Note that while this must be done in order to take a deduction for a Roth IRA loss, it also means the end of your Roth IRA accounts. You will be giving up any tax-free appreciation that may have occurred in later years in the Roth, so just be sure that you weigh the pros and the cons of this move before you take any action." (The Slott Report)

A New Summer Pastime: Get a Benchmark of Your 401(k)
"75% of the 401k plans audited by the DOL last year resulted in plan sponsors being fined, penalized, or forced to make reimbursements for plan compliance errors.... Similar to getting an annual physical to determine the current state of your health, your 401k plan will be served well by fully articulating the services being provided and determining whether there may be an opportunity to significantly reduce investment-related expenses." (Tom Zgainer, America's Best 401k)

What Is the Ideal Deferral Rate a 401(k) Fiduciary Should Ask Employees to Work Towards?
"There is a 'textbook' answer, and it's based on a number of fairly common assumptions. Jonathan Leidy, Principal at Portico Wealth Advisors ... says, 'The generally accepted replacement ratio in retirement is 80% ... If one assumes a 20% savings rate and both a constant salary and rate of return, e.g. 5%, an annual draw equal to an 80% replacement ratio should last about 35 years, which is at the longer end of most people's expected retirement window.'" (Fiduciary News)

Text of JCT Description of Proposed Modification to the 'Preserving America's Transit and Highways Act of 2014'
Includes changes to proposed modifications of required beginning dates for 5% owners and for rollovers from governmental and collectively bargained plans, as well as a proposal to modify the definition of normal retirement age for in-service distributions in DB plans. JCT cost estimate is also available . (U.S. Congress, Joint Committee on Taxation [JCT])

Social Security Minimum Benefit Proposals and Their Estimated Effects (PDF)
20 pages. Excerpt: "Because wages generally grow faster than prices, the Special Minimum PIA affects fewer beneficiaries every year.... The Social Security Administration (SSA) estimates that provision will have no effect on workers turning 62 in 2019 or later.... Some recent proposals would reinstitute a minimum benefit.... Increases in Social Security benefits targeted at people with greater need could be implemented in various ways." (Congressional Research Service [CRS])

There Is More Than One Way to Derisk a Pension Plan
"[R]educing risk using absolute-return strategies is typically more effective at protecting and improving the funding ratio than are LDI strategies ... [A]bsolute-return strategies may be an effective alternative to long-duration bonds in a rising interest rate environment and will help managers best protect their newly earned gains." (Institutional Investor)

Pension Annuitization Attractiveness Takes a Dip
"Dietrich & Associates, Inc.'s Pension Risk Transfer Index ... fell for the second month in a row. As of June 1, 2014 the Index moved to 90.32; down almost 2 points from May. The annuity discount rate proxy lost a little ground (3.00%); the Index's change is due in most part to continued erosion in plan funding levels as a result of low interest rates." (Dietrich & Associates)

Summary of the Quarterly Survey of Public Pensions for First Quarter 2014 (PDF)
"For the 100 largest public-employee pension systems in the country, cash and security holdings totaled $3,218.2 billion in the first quarter of 2014, reaching the highest level since the survey began collecting data in 1968. Cash and security holdings had a quarter-to- quarter increase of 0.5 percent, from $3,200.8 billion last quarter, and a year-to-year increase of 9.4 percent, from $2,941.2 billion in the first quarter of 2013. (Refer to Figure [1] Earnings on investments totaled $73.2 billion in the first quarter of 2014." (U.S. Census Bureau)

Senate Panel Backs Changing TSP Default Settings to More Lucrative Funds
"A Senate committee [has] approved legislation that would automatically enroll new federal employees in a more diverse, age-appropriate retirement fund rather than the safer government securities offering.... The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee approved that chamber's companion bill in March." (Government Executive)

Gov. Christie Wins Legal Battle Over Cuts in N.J. Pension Contributions
"Unions for teachers, firefighters and other public employees sued to stop [New Jersey Gov. Chris] Christie, seeking full payment into a pension system underfunded by $38 billion. Christie ... said an unanticipated drop in revenue forced him to trim pension payments to balance the budget, as required by law. 'The governor complied with the statutes to the extent he determined to be reasonable given the nature and extent of the emergency,' [Superior Court Judge Mary] Jacobson ruled. 'He took a measured response compelled by the exigencies of the circumstances.'" (Bloomberg)

Britain Publishes Draft Laws Fleshing Out Pension Reform
"The new rules ... will allow pension providers for the first time to pool the assets bought by fund members to reduce risks and cut costs. Such pooling is already used in other European countries like the Netherlands and Sweden. The government said that the reforms were supported by the industry and were needed to provide more choice and retirement income security for workers." (Reuters)

Detroit's New Hybrid Plan Solution?
"[F]aced with crumbling public finances and overstretched taxpayers, most U.S. cities will have little choice but to implement some sort of risk sharing in their pension plans, forcing workers to share the pain of their plan if it fails to meet its actuarial target." (Pension Pulse)

Same-Sex Couple Benefits: The DOMA Decision One Year Later
"Beyond the compliance mandates, more than half of surveyed employers are reporting a desire to be more inclusive of different types of families as part of their corporate culture.... The decision resulted in a 34% increase in same-sex benefits from last year, including: Health care, Life insurance beneficiary, Employee assistance plan services, Family/sick/bereavement leave, [and] Pension/retirement plan beneficiary." (Word on Benefits Blog, International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans [IFEBP])

IRS Begins 409A Audits
"The audits will focus on three issues: [1] Initial elections to defer compensation, including elections as to time and form of payment; [2] Subsequent deferral elections to re-defer compensation; and [3] Payments under 409A, including the six-month delay imposed on specified employees of public companies." (McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP)

IRS Begins Section 409A Compliance Initiative
"The limited scope of this project means that the vast majority of employers will not be audited yet, but it well could be the first step toward the development of a broader compliance project. Many 409A issues can be corrected under the IRS's 409A corrections programs." (Ogletree Deakins)

ESOP Association: Supreme Court Decision is a Disappointing Mish-Mash ESOP Association

Cheiron states IRS Approval of Hybrid Pension Plan adopted by The New York Times is Favorable to Employers and Employees Cheiron

Web Savvy Not Required for Self-Service Benefits Success, According to Spotlite Choice User Surveys Spotlite

National Business Group on Health Honors Fidelity for Exemplary Wellness Programs for Employees Fidelity Investments

Northwestern Mutual Agrees to sell Russell Investments to London Stock Exchange Group Northwestern Mutual

bswift and GetInsured Announce Private Health Insurance Exchange Partnership bswift

Wells Fargo Insurance Announces New Regional Leadership for Employee Benefits National Practice Wells Fargo

View All Press Releases