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In Part 1 of this three-part series, I reviewed a recent Wall Street Journal (WSJ) article that suggested today’s retirees are less prepared than prior generations as well as other articles that suggested tens of millions of older Americans will soon live in poverty. The 401k was named as a culprit...
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Two Republican and two Democratic senators have introduced a package of bills that would make “needed reforms” to improve retirement and economic security for individuals and families.
Citing reports that nearly half of American families do not have any retirement savings and more than a third of...
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A recent report suggests that participants are “clueless” about decumulation. And who can blame them?
Actually, the issue is perhaps more basic than a decumulation strategy. The report – by Cerulli Associates – based that conclusion on a survey that merely asked 401(k) investors who were at least...
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In addition to being an administrative headache, the inability to locate terminated participants of qualified retirement plans can result in heightened legal risks, a recent blog post reminds readers.
The law firm of Bond, Schoeneck & King in its post, “Legal Risks Associated with a Retirement...
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Are you tired of the everyday grind? Looking for an opportunity to take a step back and re-energize yourself? Earn those final CE credits needed by attending the last of the only two live regional conferences offered during the 2018 continuing education reporting cycle. The ASPPA Cincinnati...
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The Pension and Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has published a proposed rule it intends to improve the efficiency of reporting and disclosure of plan information by terminated and/or insolvent multiemployer plans not only to the PBGC, but also to plan participants and beneficiaries.
Certain...
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An excessive fee suit that had alleged “astronomical” fees in a $25 million plan has been dismissed.
The suit, filed in 2016 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio against payday lender CheckSmart Financial LLC’s 401(k) plan by plan participant Enrique Bernaola, claims that...
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The American Retirement Association will be performing scheduled maintenance on its digital learning products. Beginning at 8:00 a.m. EDT on Friday, July 20 through 9:00 a.m. EDT on Monday, July 23, online exams, modules, recorded webcasts and digital study material will be unavailable.Programs...
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A new study reveals a number of remarkable developments in plan design trends and participant savings behaviors among small business defined contribution plans.In Vanguard’s fifth annual “How America Saves: Small business edition,” small business DC plans experienced a surge in coverage — from...
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Plan sponsors sometimes wonder what expenses can be paid from retirement plan assets and what expenses must be paid from business assets. (Here, we will consider the plan sponsor and plan administrator to be identical.) The Department of Labor has provided some guidance to answer this question....
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I have been blessed to be part of a quickly growing TPA and actuarial firm. I love the energy and opportunities. However, growth does come with its own set of challenges. One of our biggest challenges has been hiring experienced administrators. So, 5 years ago, we embraced hiring remote employees....
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Remember the ASB’s request in July of 2014 for comments on the topic of ASOPs and Public Pension Plan Funding and Accounting? If you are like me and do not focus on public plans, you probably did not pay any attention to the Pension Task Force that was established in December 2014 to develop...
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A bipartisan bill that its sponsors say will provide greater flexibility and access to small business employees and their employers seeking to utilize SIMPLE plans as an option for saving for retirement has been introduced in the U.S. Senate.
The SIMPLE Plan Modernization Act, introduced July 13 by...
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A good offense is often the best defense. A maxim used in many contexts, and a July 10 ASPPA Webcast suggests that taking extra care to ensure that your Form 5500 is correct is one of them.In “Resolving 5500 Filing Issues,” Kristina G. Kananen, QPA, QKA, DC Customer Support for DATAIR Employee...
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You’ve doubtless at some point in your career had someone walk up to you and say “I’ve got good news, and I’ve got some bad news.” Well, there was good news – and some not-so-good news about plan designs and participant behaviors in a recent industry survey.
According to T. Rowe Price’s 10th...
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A recent Wall Street Journal article raises the spectre of a retirement “crisis” in America. The WSJ article specifically claims Baby Boomers are less prepared for retirement than prior generations. In fact, society in general is much better off today than in the past. The article misrepresents the...
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Many American workers are still recovering from the Great Recession, but most are focused on saving for retirement and have varying degrees of confidence they will be able to retire comfortably, according to a comprehensive study on worker perspectives.
The Transamerica Center for Retirement...
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With concerns about healthcare costs looming large for American workers, a key congressional committee just took a major step to boost health savings accounts.
The powerful House Ways and Means Committee over two days (July 11-12) separately approved a package of 11 bills aimed at expanding...
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It is not required that participants be educated. Nonetheless, there is an argument to be made that it is worthwhile to educate them, and research has bolstered its importance in building participants’ retirement readiness. A recent blog entry has offered some tips on how to be effective in that...
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While few current retirees take a job in their “golden years,” a new study suggests that large percentages of future retirees expect to continue working during retirement, driven by uncertainty about Social Security and their own financial preparedness.PGIM Investments’ “2018 Retirement...
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