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The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation announced July 25 that it has launched a new web page that compiles PBGC officials’ responses to questions received from practitioners about Title IV requirements.
The questions and answers — 29 in all — cover issues in eight categories:
Section 430(k)...
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Big plans may have more assets (and larger fees), but new data suggests that there’s more promise in focusing sales efforts on small and mid-sized plans.
Those conclusions – from the 2018 Retirement Planscape, an annual Cogent Reports study by Market Strategies International-Morpace – said that...
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Building on the tax cuts enacted last year as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX), Chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee, released a "Tax Reform 2.0" framework July 24 that he plans to push this fall.
The two-page outline includes three main components: make the...
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The PBGC announced July 23 that the agency has changed its mailing addresses for premium payments and correspondence. The changes are effective immediately; see the updated Premium Filing Payment & Instructions page on the PBGC’s website for the new addresses.
The PBGC also announced...
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Having lost on claims of violating their fiduciary duty of prudence in failing to disclose sales practices that led to a drop in stock value in the firm’s 401(k) plan, plaintiffs got another shot regarding claims that Wells Fargo violated their duty of loyalty to plan participants.
The ruling comes...
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After many years of advocacy by the American Retirement Association’s Government Affairs Committee, the IRS has released final regulations allowing for the use of forfeitures to fund QNECs and QMACs.
In doing so, the IRS has corrected what the Government Affairs Committee believed to be an...
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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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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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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 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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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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The funded status of the 100 biggest private-sector defined benefit plans improved in June, Milliman reports.According to the Milliman 100 Pension Funding Index, those plans’ collective funding improved by $23 billion in June. The funded percentage improved since May by 1.2 percentage points from...
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