Compliance Checklist 2010 This Checklist is a quick glance resource to help you meet plan reporting and disclosure requirements for DB, DC and 403(b) 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. Source: Prudential Retirement
The 401k Audit: How To Stay Out of the DOL Spotlight Slides from presentation by Bill Sims CPA and Michael Lawrance CPA, Salmon Sims Thomas, on 401k audits: Why is the audit so important?, Auditor's Role, Scope of Testing, and Auditor Selection. Source: Salmon Sims Thomas
Retirement-Plan Options for Business Owners Many small-business owners believe that their businesses will furnish a comfortable retirement for them. As golden years approach, they anticipate selling their nest egg and living off the proceeds. This may account for the fact that retirement plans are severely underutilized by business owners. Source: Wall Street Journal.
2010 403(b) Plan Survey Highlights Findings of the just-released 2010 403(b) Plan Survey from the Profit Sharing/401k Council of America indicate that plan sponsors are adjusting well to the new regulations imposed by the IRS and that participation and retirement account balances remain high. This page contains highlights of the survey. Source: Profit Sharing/401k Council of America
Basic Requirements and Best Practices for Today's Plan Sponsors This paper provides guidance to help plan sponsors understand their role as a fiduciary, highlights strategies to minimize fiduciary and compliance risk, and discusses the resources and services that a service provider can offer to help them. Source: TIAA-CREF
The U.S. Retirement Market, 2009 This new 40 page report presents detailed information on total retirement assets and mutual fund holdings in retirement accounts. It is organized into two broad sections: (1) narrative and data that highlight recent developments in the U.S. retirement market and (2) an appendix with additional data. Source: Investment Company Institute
Voluntary Enrollment Spurs Target-Date Funds' Surging Popularity According to Target-date fund adoption in 2009, a new research note from the Vanguard Center for Retirement Research, target-date funds were offered by 75% of Vanguard-recordkept defined contribution plans in 2009. This is a remarkable increase from just five years earlier. In 2004, only 13% of our DC plans offered target-date funds. Source: Vanguard
Retirement Income Adequacy at Large Companies This report assesses projected retirement resources at retirement versus financial needs during retirement, using actual data of more than two million employees. Source: Hewitt Associates
GOP, Dems Clash Over Modifying 401k Plans The 401k plan has become a political football. Some Republicans have created a mashup of ideas leaving the impression the federal government wants to take over your 401k account. Democrats deny that notion. Source: San Francisco Chronicle.
Behind-the-Scenes Battle Raging In Congress Over Fiduciary Amendment As the Senate wades through scores of amendments to legislation on financial regulatory reform, lobbying for and against applying a fiduciary standard to broker-dealers has reached a fever pitch. Source: Investmentnews.com
Republicans Warn Against Change to 401k Policy Republican lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives warned the Obama administration not to adopt any policies that could modify tax breaks generally provided to 401k-type plans. Article and extensive comments. Source: Wall Street Journal.
IRS 401k Compliance Check Questionnaire Project This IRS project will contact a random sample of 1,200 401k plans that filed a Form 5500 for the 2007 plan year. Plan sponsors who receive a letter will complete a questionnaire by accessing an easy-to-use website. This is the paper copy of the online 401k Compliance Check Questionnaire. Source: IRS
A Comparison of Responses To the 2010 Invest. Advice Rule The deadline for submitting comments to the DOL on the 2010 Invest. Advice Rule was May 5th and sixty-eight comment letters were submitted by individuals or organizations. The expectation is that the comments will be analyzed in short order and the final rule published later this year. To get an idea of how the final rule might go, this article looks at two of the comment letters submitted. Source: Fi360.com
DOL Grants ASPPA Requested Relief on EFAST2 The relief provided will be extremely beneficial, particularly to small employers who are challenged by the new mandatory electronic filing system. The revised procedures will reduce the cost and burden to plan sponsors, while ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the annual report. Source: 401khelpcenter.com
Form 5500-EZ Available 2009 Form 5500-EZ is now available on the IRS website. Source: IRS
Labor Department Takes First Step in Regulation of Target-Date Funds Recently released federal guidance regarding target-date funds was just the first step in a process that eventually will include regulations for the investments, a Labor Department official said. Source: Workforce.com
DOL/SEC Issue Target-Date Fund Guidance The DOL and the SEC jointly issued an "Investor Bulletin" to investors and plan participants regarding target-date funds late last week. The purpose of the guidance is to assist investors and participants in understanding the operations and risks of investing in target-date investment funds and is the first of several target-date fund-related projects under development. The Bulletin is discussed here. Source: Groom Law Group
CFOs, Treasurers Should Prepare for Big Changes in Money Market Funds The SEC has instituted new rules about maturities of fund holdings, types of holdings, amount of liquidity, and the way in which funds report the value of their holdings to the public. Shadow NAV could fall below $1. Does this fit in your investment policy guidelines? Source: Association for Financial Professionals
Have You Calculated Your Retirement Savings Needs? Instead of doing a systematic retirement needs calculation, many workers simply guess at how much they will need to accumulate. Source: Employee Benefit Research Institute
Correction for the Exclusion of an Eligible Employee From a 401k The correction method under the IRS' Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System equal to the average of the actual deferral percentage for either the non-highly compensated employees or of the Highly Compensated Employees depending on which group the employee was a member of during the time the employee was incorrectly excluded from the plan. Source: McKay Hochman
Cracking Down on Plan Fees Fee structures are complex, but by pushing vendors to specify who gets what out of precious 401k plan assets, CFOs can gain valuable leverage. Source: CFO.com
Correcting Excess Deferrals An updated overview of how and when to distribute excess deferral and income from a plan. Source: McKay Hochman
Investor Bulletin: Target-Date Retirement Funds Because target-date funds are often available through 401k plans, the U.S. Department of Labor is providing this simplified discussion of target-date retirement funds for purposes of general information. Source: U.S. Department of Labor
New Rules, Guidance Coming on Target-Date Funds Many employers that sponsor retirement plans will be required to provide plan participants with more detailed information about target-date funds, the Department of Labor announced. Source: Thompson
Confidence Stabilizing, but Preparations Continue to Erode Worker confidence about paying for basic expenses in retirement has rebounded slightly, with 29 percent now saying they are very confident about having enough money to pay for basic expenses during retirement, but fewer workers report that they and/or their spouse have saved for retirement. Source: Employee Benefit Research Institute
Employers Miss Central Role in Helping Employees Achieve Retirement Security Wells Fargo Institutional Retirement and Trust released the results of a survey that shows the majority of U.S. companies have not adapted to their increasingly central role in helping Americans achieve a secure retirement through company-sponsored 401k plans. Source: 401khelpcenter.com.
ASPPA Urges House To Oppose Doggett Proposal Statement from Brian Graff, executive director/CEO of ASPPA, in response to a proposal by Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) of the U.S. House of Representatives calling for further regulations of retirement plans used by small business. Source: ASPPA
ASPPA's Response to the RFI on Lifetime Income Options for Participants These comments were prepared by the ASPPA Task Force on Lifetime Income Options for Participants and Beneficiaries, Chair Bruce Ashton, and provide comments and suggestions on those questions for which the expertise and experience of ASPPA members is relevant. Source: ASPPA
The SPARK Institute's Response to the RFI on Lifetime Income Options for Participants Significant barriers to lifetime income products exist. Plan sponsors are reluctant to offer these solutions, creating a lack of access for millions of plan participants, largely due to concerns about fiduciary standards. The DOL can help mitigate plan sponsor's fears by providing broad, permissive and clear guidance. Source: The SPARK Institute
PSCAs Response To the RFI on Lifetime Income Options for Participants The lack of participant interest, combined with the increased complexity and fiduciary responsibilities involved in offering an annuity, results in a low level of interest among PSCA members in either offering a traditional annuity product or seeking regulatory relief to facilitate offering this product. Source: Profit Sharing/401k Council of America
ASPPA's Response to the 2010 Invest. Advice Proposed Rule ASPPA responds to the U.S. Department of Labor's recent regulation on invest. advice and urges DOL that core fiduciary values should override a dictation of theories. Source: ASPPA |
