DATAIR Employee Benefit Systems, Inc.

Sr. Relationship Manager, Retirement Plan Solutions
TD Ameritrade
in CO

Benefits Administrator
Universal Health Services, Inc.
in PA

Account Manager - Institutional Accounts
Nolan Financial
in MD

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IRA Required Minimum Distributions
RECORDED
(Ascensus)

Introduction to Qualified Retirement Plans
December 10, 2015 WEBCAST
(Ascensus)

Trusts as Beneficiaries of IRAs
January 19, 2016 WEBCAST
(American Bar Association [ABA])

2016 Enrolled Actuaries Meeting
April 10, 2016 in DC
(Conference of Consulting Actuaries)

2016 CCA Health Reform Meeting
April 13, 2016 in DC
(Conference of Consulting Actuaries)

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Today's Discussions on the BenefitsLink Message Boards

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Text of Treasury Department Notice: Central States Pension Plan Application to Reduce Benefits -- Reopening of Comment Period
"On September 25, 2015, the Board of Trustees of the Central States, Southeast and Southwest Areas Pension Plan (Central States Pension Plan) submitted an application for approval to reduce benefits under the Central States Pension Plan.... [A previous] notice provided that comments must be received by December 7, 2015.... Comments are requested from interested parties, including contributing employers, employee organizations, and participants and beneficiaries of the Central States Pension Plan. Consideration will be given to any comments that are timely received by Treasury on or before February 1, 2016." (U.S. Department of the Treasury)

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Text of IRS Notice 2015-86: Application of Obergefell to Qualified Retirement Plans and Health and Welfare Plans (PDF)
"This notice provides guidance on the application of the decision in Obergefell v. Hodges to retirement plans qualified under section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) and to health and welfare plans, including cafeteria plans under section 125 of the Code. This guidance relates solely to the application of federal tax law with respect to same-sex spouses." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])

DOL Releases 2015 Form 5500 Including New IRS Compliance Questions
"[A]nswering the new questions is optional for the 2015 plan year. Nonetheless, reviewing and answering them now, even if only internally and informally, can serve at least two purposes for employers who sponsor retirement plans. [1] The new questions can serve as a 'mini-audit' which may identify issues that can be addressed either through self-correction or through a formal submission to the IRS Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System prior to any IRS-initiated enforcement action. [2] Although the scope of any IRS audit need not be limited to the new questions, they can nonetheless provide a guide to the types of issues that might arise on audit." (Caplin & Drysdale)

Final PBGC Regs Will Affect Default Risk for Borrowers with Pension Plans
"The final regulations are intended to limit reporting to plan sponsors and pension plans presenting the most substantial risk of involuntary or distress termination and reduce the burden on a plan sponsor of determining when a reportable event occurs. The PBGC anticipates that approximately 94% of plan sponsors and pension plans will be exempt from many reporting requirements. [This article provides] an overview of the key changes to the reportable event requirements and a discussion of how these changes will impact the rights and obligations of parties to credit agreements and transaction agreements." (Bloomberg BNA)

Employer Not Vicariously Liable for Alleged Fiduciary Breach of Duty by Plan Committee
"Fiduciary status under ERISA 'is not an all-or-nothing concept,' according to a recent federal district court ruling that found BP and its North American unit were not liable for their retirement plan employees' breaches of fiduciary duty. The lawsuit arose from a BP company stock plan available as investment to plan participants that plunged in value after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill involving the U.K.-based oil company." [ In re B.P. ERISA Litigation , No. 4:10-cv-4214 (S.D. Tex. Oct. 30, 2015)] (Thompson SmartHR Manager)

2015 Stable Value Study: A Survey of Plan Sponsors, Stable Value Fund Providers and Advisors (PDF)
27 pages. "Most plan sponsors (82%) surveyed for this study currently offer stable value funds as an option within their DC plans.... A key reason among plan sponsors for not offering stable value is that it has not been recommended by their advisor, consultant or TPA (31%). Some also say their participants do not know enough about stable value (22%) or they as plan sponsors are not well-informed about it (11%)." (MetLife)

How Digital Players Are Digging Into the 401(k) Space
"Call center and website tools are the standard ways employees get investment advice in their 401(k) plans today. But they appeal primarily to highly engaged employees, the do-it-yourself investors. Those employees who want to be more hands-off and have someone do it for them can use a managed account service, but only if it's an option their employer offers. And there's an additional fee, usually asset-based." (Financial Planning)

Wall Street Mounts Final Push to Kill Proposed Conflict of Interest Rule
"While financial firms trying to kill the regulations still face long odds, the industry's new life could come from a provision that Republican lawmakers and some Democrats are trying to tuck into the $1.1 trillion government spending bill being debated in Congress ... The amendment would force the Obama administration to give brokers, insurers and other companies that sell investment products 30 more days to weigh in on the rules before they could be finalized[.]" (Bloomberg)

Completion Management: The Capstone of an LDI Strategy (PDF)
12 pages. "Completion management can be thought of as a special case of the multi-level benchmarking approach. It is a manager level assignment that goes beyond the traditional fixed income investment process and focuses instead on the plan level liability hedging objectives.... [T]he additional oversight on key risk factors driving funded status volatility improves investment governance in the achievement of the liability hedging objectives.... [P]lan sponsors should evaluate the many facets of completion management thoroughly to determine whether the plan could benefit from this strategic partnership over time." (Standish)

How to Formulate a Retirement Spending Plan
"This research brief offers a starting point for older workers wondering how they should think about withdrawing from savings in order to finance a secure retirement.... Step 1: Establish your baseline ... Step 2: Evaluate your planning horizon ... Step 3: Think about other income ... Step 4: Make adjustments." [The article is accompanied by an online retirement withdrawal calculator .] (American Institute for Economic Research [AIER])

Salvaging the 2015 Roller Coaster Ride with Your Retirement Accounts: Roth IRA Conversion
"Your retirement account's weak performance offers the opportunity to save some taxes ... through converting your traditional [IRA] to a Roth IRA.... A few things to consider ... [1] Will your income tax rate be lower now, or during your future retirement years? ... [2] Do you have a source of funds to pay the income taxes, other than the converted funds? ... [3] Are you converting an IRA that owns different kinds of assets? ... [4] Make sure that if you do decide to recharacterize, you implement your recharacterization within the required timeframe." (Ivins, Phillips & Barker)

The Most Important Question to Ask a Beneficiary
"Were you named on the beneficiary form? ... A non-designated IRA beneficiary cannot use their own life expectancy for calculating required minimum distributions (RMDs) on the inherited IRA.... A non-designated employer plan beneficiary cannot transfer the inherited plan assets to an inherited IRA." (Slott Report)

Pennsylvania Senate Approves Bill for Hybrid Retirement Plan for New Employees
"The bill would require new state and school employees to enroll in a hybrid plan consisting of a traditional pension fund and a 401(k)-style plan ... The $51.7 billion Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System and $27 billion Pennsylvania State Employees' Retirement System, both based in Harrisburg, together have an unfunded liability of $60.1 billion." (Pensions & Investments)

Text of IRS Instructions for Form 2848: Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative (PDF)
Revised Dec. 2015. "What's New: ... Updated the description and representation requirements for unenrolled return preparers (designation h). Removed registered tax return preparer (designation i). The unenrolled return preparer designation includes individuals who passed the IRS registered tax return preparer competency test that was offered between November 2011 and January 2013." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Acquires McPherson Benefits Group Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Natixis Global Asset Management Launches Student Loan Repayment as a Benefit for Employees Natixis Global Associates

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