Employers and Employees Take Wait-and-See Approach to Retirement - Summary: Many employees are waiting for an economic recovery before moving forward with retirement, and employers are taking the same attitude with retirement program changes and risk issues, according to Aon Consulting. Source: 401khelpcenter.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Making Your Nest Egg Last a Lifetime - Summary: One straightforward solution to the drawdown challenge is an immediate annuity, which turns a lump sum of income into a lifelong payment stream. However, for various reasons, such annuities have not proven broadly popular. This paper examines several alternatives. Source: Center for Retirement Research at Boston College , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

NEW BOOK: Automatic: Changing the Way America Saves - Summary: The new Brookings Institution Press book "Automatic: Changing the Way America Saves" from the Retirement Security Project offers a radical new way to think about how Americans can save for retirement. Source: 401khelpcenter.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

DC Plans Increasingly Use Investment Consultants - Summary: Forty-one percent of defined contribution assets are controlled by consultants, with the majority of these assets in large plans with more than $500 million in assets, according to Cerulli Associates. Source: Planadviser.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

GAO Weighs How to Minimize 401k 'Leakage' - Summary: A new report from the Government Accountability Office examines how to minimize the loss in retirement savings that occurs when 401k participants tap into their accounts early. Source: webCPA.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Suspending 401k Matching Contributions - Summary: The decision to suspend contributions is a difficult one. The purpose of this article is to help with the analysis by demonstrating the long-term impact of a suspension of 401k matching contributions. Source: Reish & Reicher, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Auto-Enrollment Remains a Crowd Pleaser - Summary: Nearly half of U.S. companies are automatically enrolling workers into 401k plans, according to a new Watson Wyatt survey. The poll also uncovered that the number of employers that use target-date or lifecycle funds as their default option has increased dramatically in the last few years. Source: Employee Benefit News (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Workforce Reductions May Result in Partial Plan Termination - Summary: In challenging economic times, employers may be forced to reduce their workforces. In those instances, employers must be aware that a reduction in workforce could lead to a partial plan termination, requiring affected participants to become fully-vested in their retirement benefit. Source: Prudential , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Fall 2009 IRS Employee Plans News - Summary: In this issue: Dos and Don'ts of Hardship Distributions; IRS Retirement Plans Online; When Limits Collide, Which One Wins?; Tax Return Preparer Review Board; Critical Priorities...With Monika Templeman Today's Discussion: Loans and Hardships in 401k Plans; and more. Source: IRS , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Implementing a 401k Automatic Enrollment Arrangement - Summary: Recent changes in the law under the Pension Protection Act of 2006 and regulations issued thereunder have made "automatic enrollment arrangement" easier to implement and more palatable to both employers and employees. Source: Ivins, Phillips & Barker, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Impact of the Pension Protection Act on Financial Advice - Summary: A challenge that emerged in the wake of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 is how to deliver such advice without compromising plan sponsors' fiduciary responsibilities, and without relying on participants to indirectly fund the cost of advice programs through their purchase of ancillary financial products. Source: Pension Research Council (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

What's Next for 401k Plans? - Summary: Among employee benefit programs, it's probably fair to say that 401k plans stand in a class by themselves in terms of upheaval in the wake of the global economic crisis. Despite the stabilization of financial markets and, in some cases, welcome gains, employers and plan participants are asking all kinds of tough questions that essentially boil down to this: Where do we go from here? Source: Towers Perrin, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Towers Perrin Retirement Legislative Tracking Chart - Summary: This selection of bills represents Towers Perrin's best judgment on the likelihood of enactment and the relevance of the issue for employers. Source: Towers Perrin , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Private Pensions: Alternative Approaches Could Address Retirement Risks Faced by Workers but Pose Trade-offs - Summary: This GAO report was requested by Chairman George Miller of the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor and includes modeling the effects of a compulsory defined contribution system for employers (i.e., universal access), with variations based on whether enrollment by employees is voluntary, automatic with an opt-out, or mandatory. Source: GAO , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Investment Committee Decision-Maker Study - Summary: How do institutional investment committees make their decisions? How do they manage conflict and dissent? To learn more about the dynamics, Vanguard surveyed committee members and analyzed more than 100 responses. This paper summarizes the results. Source: Vanguard , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

GAO Suggests Change to 401k Hardship Withdrawal Rule - Summary: To enable employees to replenish their 401k plan account balances more quickly after they take hardship withdrawals, Congress should consider changing current law that bars plan participants from making new contributions until six months after a hardship withdrawal, the Government Accountability Office suggests in a report. Source: Businessinsurance.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Changes Needed in DC Retirement System - Summary: Employers have conflicting opinions on the continued viability of 401k plans as a vehicle for retirement savings, and even supporters agree that changes in the current system are needed. Source: Employee Benefit Adviser (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

11% of Employers Suspend 401k Plan Match - Summary: More than one in 10 employers have suspended their matching contributions to their 401k plans, and more are considering doing the same, according to a survey released Wednesday. Source: Businessinsurance.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

IRS Issues Guidance on 2009 Required Minimum Distribution Waiver - Summary: The Internal Revenue Service has provided guidance for retirement plan administrators, plan participants and retirees regarding recent legislation affecting required minimum distributions. The Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 waives required minimum distributions for 2009 from certain retirement plans. Source: IRS, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

IRS Illustrates Application of Escalator Provision in 401k Automatic Contribution Arrangements - Summary: The IRS has issued guidance in Rev. Rul. 2009-30 clarifying the use of escalator provisions in 401k plan automatic contribution arrangements that allow for an adjustment in the amount of an employee's default contributions based on increases in pay. Source: CCH, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Sample Plan Amendments for Adding 401k Automatic Contribution Features - Summary: The IRS has issued two sample plan amendments in IRS Notice 2009-65 that will enable employers to add automatic contribution features to their 401k plans. Sample Amendment One may be used to add an automatic contribution arrangement to a 401k plan. Sample Amendment Two may be used to add an eligible automatic contribution arrangement (authorizing withdrawals of elective deferrals) to a 401k plan. Source: CCH, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Recent Defined Contribution Plan Guidance - Summary: This article highlights recent guidance regarding (1) automatic enrollment features in 401k plans, (2) the contribution of unused paid time off to tax-qualified defined contribution plans as either employer contributions or employee salary deferral contributions, and (3) the permissibility of distributing a mutual fund's "Summary Prospectus" to participants to satisfy one of the requirements for limited fiduciary protection under section 404(c). Source: Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

AUDIO: Preaching a Winning 401k Formula at Verizon Wireless - Summary: In this podcast, Jonathan Hayes, associate director of retirement benefits at Verizon Wireless and EBN's 2009 Benny winner for Benefits Leadership in Retirement Planning, talks about his winning ways for securing workers' retirement readiness. Source: Employee Benefit News (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Plan Sponsors More Likely to Change Advisers Than Recordkeepers - Summary: Just because 401k plan sponsors aren't thinking about changing recordkeepers right now, doesn't mean they don't know the importance of a top-quality adviser. Source: Employee Benefit Adviser (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Nearly Half of Employers Now Auto-Enroll Employees in 401k Plans - Summary: In a trend that is likely to continue, nearly half of U.S. companies are automatically enrolling workers into 401k plans to encourage them to save for retirement, according to a survey by Watson Wyatt. Source: 401khelpcenter.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Where Investment Committees Spend Their Time - Summary: Investment committees often spend too much time on things they can't control and too little time on things they can. Use this tool to see if there are opportunities for your committee to use time more wisely. Source: Vanguard , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Reenrollment and Target-Date Funds: A Case Study in Portfolio Reconstruction - Summary: A new research paper from Vanguard Center for Retirement Research examines participant behavior and portfolios after a large defined contribution plan reenrolled participants into target-date funds. The study found that one year after the event, 87% of participants maintained a full or partial position in the target-date approach and that reenrollment had boosted plan diversification substantially. Source: Vanguard , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Risk Management: Listen to Your Employees - Summary: Most articles written by lawyers cover technical legal subjects. They educate the reader on the law, but typically give little in the way of guidance about what the client should do . . . or not do. This article goes beyond a discussion of the law and even beyond advice about how to comply with the law. Instead, it discusses practical techniques for avoiding problems. Source: Reish & Reicher , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

10 Steps to Ensure You'll Be in Fiduciary Hot Water - Summary: There are a few proven ways to make sure you'll end up in fiduciary hot water...follow these steps and you're sure to find an auditor at your door. Source: Benefit Plans Plus, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Financial Crisis Reveals U.S. Retirement-System's Holes With Painful Clarity - Summary: The destructive effects of the financial crisis may be waning, but your retirement account won't soon forget. Savers lost 40% or more in the downturn -- a collective $2.1 trillion disappeared from 401k and IRA assets in 2008 alone -- and while the recent stock-market recovery may feel good, it's done little to stem a mounting crisis in the retirement system in the United States. Source: Marketwatch.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Managing the Road to Retirement - Summary: This is a national survey of U.S. business employers and workers regarding their attitudes toward retirement. The overall goals for the study are to illuminate emerging trends, promote awareness, and help educate the public. Source: Transamerica , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

This Could Be the Biggest 401k Mistake You'll Ever Make - Summary: People may or may not learn from their own 401k mistakes, but apparently, the idea that people learn from other folks' mistakes is a myth. Source: MSN.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Congress Eyes Compromise in 401k Indie-Advice Rule - Summary: Now that the Department of Labor is scrapping a rule proposal that would have allowed brokers affiliated with financial-services firms to provide advice to 401k participants, Congress will move forward with legislation that would require that such advice be given by independent advisers, according to a key congressman. Source: Investmentnews.com (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

IRS Issues New Versions of Section 402(f) Tax Notices for Qualified Plan Distributions - Summary: The Internal Revenue Service has issued two new safe harbor tax notices for qualified plans to provide to participants, which explain their rollover options and tax treatment when receiving an eligible distribution of plan benefits. The new notices are updated to account for changes in the law under the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act, the Pension Protection Act and other recent legislation. Source: Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Experts Pin Hopes on DOL for Retirement Plan Fee Disclosure Regulations - Summary: Industry experts are hoping the Department of Labor pre-empts Congress in issuing new regulations mandating increased disclosures for retirement plan fees. Source: Workforce.com (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Early Returns in 401k Fee Cases Favor Defendants - Summary: A recent spate of so-called 401k fee cases has generated anxiety among employers and 401k service providers. While the majority of these cases remain undecided, the early returns are positive for employers and service providers. This article provides a brief overview of the most significant developments and expected future events in these cases. Source: O'Melveny & Myers LLP, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Impact of Individual Account Retirement Plan Ownership on Family Net Worth - Summary: How is family net worth affected by the ownership of any kind of individual account retirement plan? Quite a lot, according to a study published by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute. Source: Employee Benefit Research Institute , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Spark Institute Recommends Simple Universal 401k Plan for Small Employers - Summary: In testimony submitted today to the U.S. Department of Labor's ERISA Advisory Council, The SPARK Institute recommends the creation of a simplified standardized universal employer-sponsored 401k plan for small employers. Source: 401khelpcenter.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

401k Balances and Changes Due to Market Volatility - Summary: In this article, the EBRI analysis shows that how workers' 401k accounts have been affected by the current economic recession depends on several factors, chief among them being the worker's age, job tenure with his or her employer and size of the 401k account balances. Source: Employee Benefit Research Institute, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Current Pension Legislative and Regulatory Outlook - Summary: This article covers defined contribution plan issues – where initiatives on 401k fee disclosure and invest. advice remain a priority – and broader issues relevant to both DB and DC plans. Source: JPMorgan.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Labor Department Nixes Bush Rule to Let Brokers Advise 401k Plans - Summary: The Department of Labor is killing a regulation issued in the last days of the Bush administration that would have allowed advisers affiliated with mutual funds, brokerage firms and other companies that sell investments to provide invest. advice to 401k participants. Source: Investmentnews.com (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Survey Finds Very Few Workers Understand Their Retirement Plan - Summary: One-third of U.S. workers have little or no understanding of their employer-sponsored defined-contribution plan, according to a new survey. Source: Workforce.com (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Does Better Fiduciary Process Lead to Better Performance? - Summary: One of the mantra's of the Fixing the 401k Approach is that "better process leads to better decision-making which, over time, increases the probability of better outcomes." But does it? Source: Fixing the 401k Blog, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Pension Sponsorship and Participation: Summary of Recent Trends - Summary: According to the U.S. Census Bureau's Current Population Survey (CPS), the number of privatesector workers between the ages of 25 and 64 whose employer sponsored a retirement plan fell from 53.5 million in 2007 to 52.3 million in 2008. Source: Congressional Research Service , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Recent Study Challenges Traditional Thinking About DC Annuities - Summary: Two recently published studies demonstrate the sort of shift in the "conventional wisdom" related to annuities for DC plans that needs to occur for those products to be successful in the marketplace. Source: Business of Benefits Blog, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

An Interview with PSCA President David Wray - Summary: David L. Wray is the president of the Profit Sharing/401k Council of America (PSCA), a national, non-profit association of companies that sponsor profit sharing and 401k plans for over 6 million employees. He is a nationally recognized authority on 401k and other defined-contribution plan issues and he has testified before congressional committees and at Labor Department, Treasury Department, and Internal Revenue Service hearings. Source: Brightscope, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

New Retirement Rules: 6 Ways to Ease Plan Costs - Summary: This is the second article in a two-part series on small business retirement. Business owners and their employees can expect to pay higher fees. This articles discusses how to mitigate them. Source: Wall Street Journal Online, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

New Retirement Rules: What Small Businesses Need to Know - Summary: This is the first article in a two-part SmartMoney series on small business retirement. This article looks at the higher fees business owners and their employees can expect to pay. Source: Wall Street Journal Online, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Hecker vs. Deere Revisited - Summary: The Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit recently issued an order in the case of Hecker v. Deere that "clarifies" its earlier ruling in the case...though the "clarification" is more of a reversal of course. Source: Reish & Reicher , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Hard Times Lead to Hardship Withdrawals From 401k Plans - Summary: Tapping 401k retirement funds to meet expenses is a last resort for many investors, but the relentless economic downturn took its toll this year, as hardship withdrawals saw double-digit increases, according to record keepers. Source: Investmentnews.com (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

401k Fee Litigation September 2009 Update - Summary: Over the past several years, more than two dozen lawsuits have been filed relating to 401k plan fees and, more specifically, "revenue sharing" arrangements with plan service providers. Initially, the lawsuits were brought by plan participants against plan sponsors and alleged that, by allowing plan service providers to receive revenue sharing payments, the plan sponsors caused the participants to pay excessive fees, in breach of the sponsors' fiduciary duties to the participants. Source: Groom Law Group, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Obama Retirement Initiatives Draw Interest of Small Businesses, Benefits Providers - Summary: President Barack Obama has announced a number of new initiatives to promote retirement savings, a few of which have drawn the interest of employers and retirement plan providers. The most notable of these proposals would enable workers to convert unused vacation time or overtime into cash in their retirement accounts. Source: Workforce.com (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Automatic Contributions Mask Poor 401k Performance - Summary: One of the biggest mysteries to emerge from the recession is why investors have stuck with their 401k in the face of a 55% market decline between October 2007 and March 2009. The simple reason is the payroll deductions every two weeks continuously pump up participants' balances, and unwitting, disengaged investors see their balances holding steady. Source: Financial-planning.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

IRS Rev. Rul. 2009-31 on Annual Paid Time Off (Vacation) Contributions - Summary: This notice discusses requiring or permitting certain annual contributions of the dollar equivalent of unused vacation or paid time off. Source: Benefitslink.com , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

IRS Rev. Rul. 2009-32 on Paid Time Off Contributions at Termination of Employment - Summary: This notice discusses requiring or permitting certain contributions to the plan of the dollar equivalent of unused paid time off at a participant's termination of employment. Source: Benefitslink.com , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

IRS Notice 2009-68 on Safe Harbor Explanation of Eligible Rollover Distributions - Summary: This notice contains two safe harbor explanations that may be provided to recipients of eligible rollover distributions from an employer plan in order to satisfy § 402(f) of the Internal Revenue Code. Source: Benefitslink.com , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

403(b) Retirement Plan Mini-Course for Employers - Summary: A presentation for employers and sponsoring organizations operating 403(b) plans. Source: IRS, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

The IRS Retirement Plans Navigator - Summary: A Web guide to help small business owners choose a retirement plan that is right for their business. The guide also contains information and resources on maintaining plans and correcting plan errors. Source: IRS, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

The Right Way to Share Fees - Summary: As a plan grows, the cost of investing and administering the plan should not grow as quickly. As a result, the earnings­ of the recordkeeper (or, for that matter, the investment manager) may, in time, exceed a reasonable amount. At that point, fiduciaries have an obligation to reclaim that excess money for the benefit of the plan and its participants, but how do you know if costs are unreasonably high? Source: Reish & Reicher, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Retirement & Savings Initiatives - Summary: On 09/05/09, the Obama administration announced new Retirement & Savings Initiatives. The initiatives expand opportunities for automatic enrollment in plans, permit workers to save payments they would receive for unused vacation or other similar leave in their retirement plan, help employees and employers better understand their tax-favored savings options, and make it easier to save tax refunds. Source: IRS, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Fund Industry Fires Back in Supreme Court Fund Fee Case - Summary: ICI, Directors Forum and U.S. Chamber of Commerce argue that competitive pressures and director diligence keep fees down. Source: Financial-planning.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Lost in Translation - Summary: So, how's that 401k investment education working out? Not real well, if you consider recent survey data. Survey data show investment education not sinking in with employees. Source: Employee Benefit News (free registration may be required), September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

2009 Form 5500 Schedules A and C Will Create New Fiduciary Burdens For Plan Sponsors - Summary: Retirement plan vendors throughout the industry are engaging in efforts to prepare for the new disclosure requirements for the 2009 Form 5500 schedules, particularly the disclosures related to direct and indirect compensation under Schedule C and the substantial requirements for Schedule A. Source: Business of Benefits Blog, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

An Interview with Brooks Hamilton - Summary: Brooks Hamilton is an independent pension fiduciary and founder of Brooks Hamilton & Partners. Many credit Brooks with identifying and confronting what the media has labeled "yield disparity" - that is, the huge gap between the 401k investment performance of the few who do well versus the many who do poorly. Source: Brightscope.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Why Do Investors Sit Tight in 401ks? - Summary: These are the legions of 401k investors who don't merely buy and hold; they buy, hold and sit stock-still. Why? Source: Wall Street Journal, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Labor Day a Perfect Time to Review 401k Goals - Summary: The Labor Day holiday is the perfect opportunity to take stock of how you are progressing towards your retirement goals in order to make sure you reap the fruits of your labor. Source: Reuters, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

The Economic Crisis: What Can DC Plan Sponsors Do Now? - Summary: Plan participants have lost money, but account balances can be rebuilt and strategies can be adopted that may make future downturns less dramatic. Source: Milliman , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Establishing a Fiduciary Due Diligence Process at 403(b)s - Summary: In a recent Webinar for 403(b) plan sponsors sponsored by Cammack LaRhette Consulting, Mike Webb, vice president, Retirement Plan Services at Cammack LaRhette, discussed considerations for establishing a fiduciary due diligence process and the benefits of having one. Source: Planadviser.com, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

The New Reality of Pension Investment Strategies - Summary: To understand how U.S.-based companies are adjusting their pension investment strategies for a post-economic crisis environment, Watson Wyatt conducted a short survey of 85 senior-level financial executives. The analysis focuses on how investors are seeking to manage their risks, optimize returns and improve their governance strategies. Source: Watson Wyatt , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Employees Satisfied With Retirement Plans Despite Economy - Summary: Despite recent events in the economy, a majority of workers are satisfied with their current employer-sponsored retirement benefits. In particular, many place a high value on plans that offer security and flexibility, according to a survey by Watson Wyatt. Source: Watson Wyatt, September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

Improving the Effectiveness of Investment Committees - Summary: Recent market volatility and uncertainty have put a renewed focus on the role, governance, and fiduciary responsibilities of investment committees. This paper offers insights on how to bring clarity, self-awareness, discipline, and perspective to the investment committee process. Source: Vanguard , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

DOL Scrutinizes ERISA Plan Audits - Summary: The U.S. Department of Labor has increased its efforts to assess and improve the quality of employee benefit plan audits. Source: Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP , September 2009. Click on headline for full article.

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