Retirement Plan Administrator
Noble-Davis Consulting, Inc.
in OH, Telecommute

Defined Benefit Specialist
RPC Fresno, Inc.
in CA

ERISA/Employee Benefits Attorney
Nixon Peabody LLP
in CA, IL, NY

?See All Jobs

?Post a Job

?See 81 Upcoming Webcasts and Conferences

?See 1393 Recorded Webcasts

New Topics on the BenefitsLink Message Boards

New Comments and Topics

All Topics , Grouped by Forum

Issues for TPAs in DOL Investigations of Client Plans

"[M]any E&O policies require notification to the insurer of potential liability, but differ on when the TPA is required to provide notice (e.g., discovery of the problem or the assertion of a claim).... [S]ome E&O policies contain provisions that say that an admission of fault or wrongdoing results in the loss of coverage." Drinker Biddle

Understanding Revenue Sharing and the Flow of Money in Retirement Plans (PDF)

"[It is] critical for employers to understand the various components of their retirement plans' fees, particularly indirect fees like revenue sharing arrangements.... In the employer-sponsored retirement plan industry, all components of the gross expense ratio, with the exception of investment management fees, are generally classified as revenue sharing.... Some recordkeepers have the ability to credit back revenue sharing fees to the plan. Often, this is done by creating an escrow account, known as an ERISA budget account, within the plan." Grinkmeyer Leonard Financial

Performance of 401(k) Plans and Sponsors' Profitability May Be Correlated

"[C]ompanies with higher-performing plans, those ranked 'great' by independent retirement plan ratings firm BrightScope, tended to have higher gross margins and be more profitable than their peers with lower-rated plan performance.... The study also cited net income per employee as evidence that sponsors investing in their 401(k) plans could correlate that expenditure to increased overall profitability." HR Daily Advisor

Target Date Funds Risk Missing the Mark for Retirees

"Data released in July ... show it will cost $8.57 to secure $1 of replacement income every year of retirement from 2038 to 2058.... [T]he key shortcoming with target date funds ... is the fact that the bond allocation, intended to be the safe portion of the portfolio, is often risky." Financial Times

Learning to Love Your Defined Benefit Plan (PDF)

"Corporations have generally chosen to use strong cash flows and ready access to debt to fund share buybacks rather than make discretionary contributions to their pension plan. In response to this perceived problem, many pension advisors and actuaries are aggressively recommending partial or full pension risk transfer strategies for plan sponsors.... [P]lan sponsors and their committees may be well served by remaining patient, recognizing that many of these benefit payments are far out in the future, and that amongst all the corporation's future expenditures, pension payments are probably among the very few that are currently well-funded." SEI

Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans: A Primer (PDF)

"Multiemployer DB plans are of current concern to Congress for several reasons ... Possible solutions to plan underfunding could involve some combination of increased contributions from the employers that sponsor pension plans, cuts in future benefits to plan participants who are currently working, cuts in current benefits to retired participants, or financial assistance from the U.S. government." [Report R43305, Sept. 24, 2018] Congressional Research Service [CRS]

State Public Pension Funds' Investment Practices and Performance: 2016 Data Update

"61 percent of plan portfolios in 2006 were made up primarily of equities, with only 11 percent allocated to alternative investments. A decade later, allocations to alternative investments had more than doubled to 26 percent of the average plan portfolio.... Ten-year total investment returns for the 44 funds in our study that report performance net of fees as of June 30, 2016, ranged from 3.8 percent to 6.8 percent, with an average yield of 5.5 percent. Given that the average target return for these plans was 7.5 percent, the long-term variability is significant." The Pew Charitable Trusts

House Passes Bill with Many Savings Arrangement Enhancements

"[T]he Family Savings Act of 2018 would make significant changes to the landscape of tax-advantaged savings arrangements. Included in it are provisions affecting employer-sponsored retirement plans, IRAs, 529 college savings programs, as well as a new all-purpose tax-free savings arrangement known as the Universal Savings Account." Ascensus

Policing Pensions: How Far Some Public Unions Will Go to Protect Their Contracts

"The League of California Cities recently reported that their members expect pension costs to rise by at least 50 percent over just the next half-decade. Cities employing police officers and firefighters will face the highest burdens: for every $100 spent in salary on current employees, they will soon have to shell out at least $54 to the state's pension fund, CalPERS.... Police unions have used bareknuckle methods to fight pension reform, not just in Costa Mesa, but across California." City Journal

Nondiscrimination Testing in an Early Retirement Window: Fail-Safe Provision in Amendment?

We are setting up an early retirement window in our pension (DB) plan -- retire within a specified time an you get two additional years credited service and two additional years age. Our actuaries are wondering if it would make sense to add a statement in the early retirement window amendment that the early retirement window enhancements are subject to meeting nondiscrimination testing requirements. BenefitsLink Message Boards

DFVC Filing for Large Plan; 6 Missed 5500s; 6 Audits Needed?

A transitioned from small (5500-SF) to large (5500) in 2012. Nothing was ever filed on the plan after the 5500-SF for 2011. Apparently due to a personnel change, the sponsor has become aware of the missed filings and contacted us. If we bring them into compliance, it would involve a DFVC filing for 2012?2017 (6 years). Does the sponsor need to get 6 separate audits -- one for each year -- or only one comprehensive audit covering the entire 6-year period? BenefitsLink Message Boards

? Subscribe to the BenefitsLink Message Boards Digest — a free daily email of all new discussions (not just the selected few shown above). View a sample issue .

Press Releases

Cash Balance Coach? Certification Program Celebrates 10 Years of Success Ascensus

View All Press Releases

Most Popular Items in the Previous Issue

Draft of 2018 IRS Form 8955-SSA: Annual Registration Statement Identifying Separated Participants with Deferred Vested Benefits (PDF) Internal Revenue Service [IRS]

Draft of 2018 IRS Form 5500-EZ (PDF) Internal Revenue Service [IRS]

Approaching the Decumulation Phase of Retirement (PDF) Pentegra