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Technical Resources
The funded status of private- and public-sector pension plans is a classic example of bad news/good news. To wit: Corporate pensions’ funded status fell in April, but only very slightly; and some states’ pensions are in bad shape, but funding of public-sector pension plans overall is improving. As...
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The Office of Management and Budget has approved revisions to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation’s standard termination, distress termination and missing participants forms and instructions. The new forms and instructions can be found on the Plan Terminations page of PBGC’s website. These new...
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The Great Recession wrought a lot of havoc — and 401(k)s did not escape the maelstrom. Many consider the recovery of the U.S. economy to be very gradual; a recent report by Gallup indicates that the same may be said for that of confidence of those not yet retired in 401(k)s as a primary source of...
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The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation has revised two schedules to be used with 2014 Form 5500 filings. The PBGC modified the Schedule MB (multiemployer defined benefit plan actuarial information) and the Schedule SB (single-employer defined benefit plan actuarial information) and related...
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Pension plans have a lot of adjustments to make in order to comply with the PBGC premium payment rules, which the PBGC amended for plan years beginning in 2014 and beyond. And even if a plan does not owe the PBGC a premium, it still must make a premium filing. Highlights of the changes the PBGC...
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Reacting to a forensic investigation initiated by state employees, North Carolina’s $87 billion state pension system may be moving from a sole trustee to a board soon. As reported in P&I, a panel convened by State Treasurer Janet Cowell (D) is recommending the change amid allegations set forth...
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House Committee on Education and the Workforce Chairman Rep. John Kline (R-Minn.) didn’t mince words at a May 1 event on multiemployer pension plan reform: the current state of affairs “will inflict a lot of pain on homes and workplaces,” and something needs to be done. He made his remarks at an...
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The Moving Ahead for the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) pension-funding stabilization provisions, which have been in effect for two years, are most likely to be applied to the determination of funding requirements of larger plans, those with lower funding ratios and plans with a higher number of...
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With another testing season in the rearview mirror and PPA restatements looming on the horizon, there are sure to be plenty of questions on everyone’s mind, and ASPPA’s IRS Q&A subcommittee wants to hear them! We are currently gathering questions to go on the list that will be submitted to our...
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Target date funds play an increasingly important role in retirement plans, and monitoring a plan’s TDF options is fast becoming one of the most important fiduciary obligations plan sponsors face in managing their retirement plan investment lineup. According to a white paper by Cammack Retirement...
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More and more employers are making Roth accounts available within their DC plans — and more employees are taking them up on the offer, according to a new white paper from Aon Hewitt. The number of employers that offer Roths within their DC plans more than quadrupled over the last six years, hitting...
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Defined contribution plans that were rewritten between May 1, 2008 and April 30, 2010 and that the IRS pre-approved need to be restated with the IRS. The six-year restatement period begins May 1, 2014 and ends April 30, 2016. The IRS issued a reminder in Announcement 2014-16.Employers using pre-...
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In two recent pronouncements, the IRS issued plan document guidance for pre-approved defined contribution plans being restated for the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (Announcement 2014-16), as well as 403(b) arrangements (Revenue Procedure 2014-28). According to the latest ASPPA asap, written by...
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Qualified retirement plans offer employees significant tax savings and have become a mainstay of most group benefits. But to maintain their qualified status, they must comply with a set of comprehensive rules and regulations. Failure to comply can result in the immediate taxation of all...
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A recent report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that while 81,000 new employer-sponsored retirement plans were formed during the 3-year period between 2009 and 2011, the overall trend was negative due to plan terminations — even with increased tax incentives. In addition, new...
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Just under half of employers in a study by the LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute say that the Affordable Care Act has affected the way they run their retirement plans and how much they spend on them. According to the LIMRA study, 55 percent of the employers that have made changes because of the ACA...
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The Internal Revenue Service can do more to identify improper deductions for contributions the self-employed make to their simplified employee pension (SEP) plan retirement accounts. And it could bring in $71 million over five years if it does, says the Treasury Inspector General for Tax...
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Pension funding status slipped in March and liabilities grew, says a report by consulting and actuarial firm Milliman, Inc. Milliman reports that for 100 of the largest U.S. DB plans, pension liabilities grew to the tune of a collective $5 billion. Milliman blamed a drop in the monthly discount...
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In an exclusive interview with Christopher Carosa of FiduciaryNews, ASPPA Executive Director/CEO Brian Graff reaffirms his strong support, and that of ASPPA and its sister organizations, for real and tangible action to ensure a secure retirement for working Americans. Graff tells Carosa that a...
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The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation has proposed allowing an employee to roll over funds from a DC plan into a DB plan. The proposal, which the PBGC issued on April 1 and was published in the Federal Register on April 2, is intended to increase returns by making rollovers easier and removing...
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