Compliance Checklist 2005 - Summary: This checklist was designed as a "quick glance" resource to help you meet plan reporting and disclosure requirements for plans subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of ERISA. This easy-to-follow checklist should help you provide timely and complete information to individuals and appropriate government agencies. Located at: Prudential (PDF file). Click on headline for full article.
The Future of Retirement - Summary: The Future of Retirement research, commissioned and undertaken between September and October 2004, researches global attitudes and approaches to later life. It is the largest global study to date that investigates the issues that really matter to people; their hopes, dreams, priorities, aspirations and fears for later life. It also examines the ways people of different generations across the globe prepare for later life. The results are compelling and show how societies are evolving, with many of us choosing new ways of living and working. Located at: HSBC.com (PDF file). Click on headline for full article.
The Silent Generation Speaks - Summary: New study points to correlation between guaranteed income from pensions/annuities and an increased feeling of comfort in retirement. Leaving an inheritance is not a priority for the silent generation; "Silents" have saved, but still lack some basic knowledge. Located at: 401khelpcenter.com. Click on headline for full article.
7 Most Common 401k Blunders - Summary: Not contributing at all is probably the biggest mistake people make, but there are others that can cost you in more ways than you know. Located at: MSN Money. Click on headline for full article.
Report Highlights Bad Retirement Decisions - Summary: New York Yankees sage Yogi Berra once said, "If you don't know where you're going, you're likely to end up someplace else." Mathew Greenwald, a strategic planner and marketer, used that analogy Monday to describe the current state of American thought on retirement planning, outlined in a report by The American Academy of Actuaries. Located at: Lexington Herald-Leader. Click on headline for full article.
Appeal of Separately Managed Accounts Grows - Summary: Separately managed accounts, which allow investors to customize portfolios of stocks, bonds and cash that are guided by professional investment managers, have started to appear in the retirement plans of some employers. What are the Pros and Cons? Located at: Benefitnews.com. Click on headline for full article.
Adding a Roth Account Option to 401k and 403(b) Plans - Summary: The attractive Roth features must be balanced against the cost of even more administrative complexity. The lead time to think through the new rules is short. IRS regulations were late to appear, and it is clear that simple transactions, such as paying out tax-free benefits, will have layers of complexity. Located at: Rackemann, Sawyer & Brewster. Click on headline for full article.
COMMENTARY: Kill Social Security Privatization; Reform 401ks - Summary: In order for Social Security and retirement savings reforms to work in tandem, legislators need to craft a comprehensive package that builds benefits within successful plans instead of taking them away in new accounts that won't work. Located at: Bloomberg.com. Click on headline for full article.
Pension Reform
Towers Perrin Legislative Tracking Charts - Retirement - Summary: These charts summarize selected federal legislation that would affect employee benefit programs. The bills included on the charts are based on judgments regarding the prominence of the issue, the likelihood of enactment, and the influence of the sponsors. Located at: Towers Perrin (PDF file). Click on headline for full article.
Fiduciary Issues
Whose Lifestyle, Which Targets? A Few Questions for Fiduciaries - Summary: Recently, the number of retirement plans offering lifestyle and target funds has grown dramatically. This growth is based on the concept that certain participants need to diversify their retirement plan accounts in a way that is simple, easy and convenient. Simplicity, ease and convenience are words that are not usually found in the plan's Investment Policy Statement as investment criteria. A plan fiduciary's first priority is to follow those investment policies and procedures that minimize their liability. Located at: McHenry Group. Click on headline for full article.
Risk Management in 401k Plans - Summary: Too many 401k plan fiduciaries believe that their plan management functions are relatively static. This view is naive and illustrates a fundamental flaw in understanding the responsibility of an ERISA fiduciary. Located at: Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance Journal. Click on headline for full article.
401k Retirement Plans Get New Safeguards - Summary: In response to a wave of lawsuits, a growing number of companies are hiring outside consultants to oversee the handling of company stock held in employee retirement plans. These independent fiduciaries are taking the place of company executives who have traditionally monitored the company-stock component of those plans on behalf of the employees. Located at: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Click on headline for full article.
Department of Labor and IRS Issues
IRS Employee Plans News - Summer 2005 - Summary: Beach Materials: Sun Block and the Federal Register; EP Connections: Interview with Donna Prestia; Critical FewPoints...by Michael Julianelle; It's Not Too Late to Register! - The 2005 IRS Nationwide Tax Forums; Volume Submitter Program Follow-Up; We're Glad You Asked: SIMPLE IRA Plan Exam Program Update; New Tax Shelter Reporting Rules; ACT IV - The Trilogy Continues; Actuary Extraordinaire; PBGC Insights; DOL Corner; Mailing Address is Now the Same for M&P Plans and VS Plans; 2005 Central and Mountain States Benefits Conference; 2005 Northeast Employee Benefits Conference Review; 2005 Mid-Atlantic Employee Benefits Conference Review; 2005 Great Lakes Area IRS/ASPPA Benefits Conference. Located at: IRS (PDF file). Click on headline for full article.
Highlights of the 415 Regulations - Summary: Expanded highlights of the proposed 415 regulations issued May 31, 2005. Containing all of the rules on maximum benefits and contributions, the proposed 415 regulations - when finalized - will provide the benefits community with a one-stop resource for their questions on this oft confusing section of the Code. Located at: IRS (PDF file). Click on headline for full article.
Services 
