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| Products, Deals and People | |
| ICMA-RC, provider of retirement plans for public-sector employees, recently launched its redesigned website. The enhancements include additional tools to help educate participants about saving for retirement.Read more > | |
| Market Mirror | |
Oil and gas stocks are leading a decline in major U.S. stock indices after energy prices dropped again, according to the Associated Press. The Dow lost 117.11 points (0.66%) to finish at 17,603.87, the NASDAQ decreased 42.09 points (0.82%) to 5,065.85, and the S&P 500 was down 15.11 points (0.73%) at 2,063.25. The Russell 2000 closed 10.88 points (0.94%) lower at 1,149.64, and the Wilshire 5000 fell 158.07 points (0.74%) to 21,175.07. On the NYSE, 3.1 billion shares changed hands, and on the NASDAQ, 2.7 billion shares traded, with declining issues outnumbering advancing issues more than 2 to 1 on both exchanges. The price of the 10-year Treasury note increased 4/32, bringing its yield down to 2.293%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond was up 2/32, decreasing its yield to 3.034%. | |
| Sponsored message from MetLife | |
| 2015 Stable Value Study The 2015 Stable Value Study is commissioned to gain insight into the market for this capital preservation option in DC plans.Read more > | |
| Compliance | |
| Catholic Health Initiatives Wins Church Plan Challenge | |
| U.S. District Judge Robert E. Blackburn with the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado has found that Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI) is a “church” for purposes of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s (ERISA’s) church-plan exemption. The plaintiff in the case Medina v. Catholic Health Initiatives argued that the court should use the plain meaning of “church” as simply “a house of worship.” But, Blackburn said reliance on a plain meaning interpretation ignores other plain meanings of the term “church,” which evince richer and more meaningful denotations and connotations of that term.Read more > | |
| Court Refuses to Apply New Test for Top Hat Plans | |
| A former employee of a Pennsylvania non-profit cannot rely on ERISA for benefit protections as the plan in which he participated is a “top hat” plan, a court found. The court rejected the argument that “bargaining power” of participants is a requirement for a plan to be considered a “top hat” plan.Read more > | |
| A court has approved a settlement agreement between Henkel Corp. and its nonqualified retirement plan participants concerning Henkel’s failure to withhold participants’ Federal Income Contributions Act (FICA) taxes at the time contributions were made, as required by the plan.Read more > | |
| Appellate Court Sets Precedent for Church Plan Cases | |
| The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has agreed with a district court ruling that because no church established St. Peter’s Healthcare System’s defined benefit retirement plan, it is ineligible for church plan exemption. In three of the six current cases, the courts have found that only churches can establish a church plan exempt from ERISA. The other three courts have found that plans established and maintained by church agencies can qualify for ERISA exemption. The 7th Circuit has heard oral arguments in Stapleton v. Advocate Health Care Network and Subsidiaries, in which a district court found only churches can establish church plans, but the 3rd Circuit is the first appellate court to issue an opinion, setting a precedent for the circuits.Read more > | |
| Small Talk | |
ON THIS DATE: In 1841, the State of Alabama enacted the first legislation regulating dental practice in the U.S. In 1857, Britain’s Queen Victoria decided to make Ottawa the capital of Canada. In 1862, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln signed an act admitting West Virginia to the Union. In 1879, Thomas Edison gave his first public demonstration of incandescent lighting to an audience in Menlo Park, New Jersey. In 1891, New York’s new Immigration Depot was opened at Ellis Island, to provide improved facilities for the massive numbers of arrivals. In 1897, Brooklyn, New York, spent its last day as a separate entity before becoming part of New York City. In 1929, Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians played “Auld Lang Syne” as a New Year’s Eve song for the first time. In 1946, U.S. President Truman officially proclaimed the end of hostilities in World War II. In 1955, General Motors became the first U.S. corporation to earn more than one billion dollars in a single year. In 1961, in the U.S., the Marshall Plan expired after distributing more than $12 billion in foreign aid. In 1974, private U.S. citizens were allowed to buy and own gold for the first time in more than 40 years. In 1999, Russian President Boris Yeltsin resigned. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin was designated acting president. In 1999, Sarah Knauss died at the age of 119 years. She was the world’s oldest person at the time. She was born September 24, 1880. No SURVEY SAYS again this week, folks. PLANSPONSOR wishes everyone a very happy new year, and NewsDash will be back in your inbox Monday. | |
| Share the good news with a friend! Pass the Dash along – and tell your friends/associates they can sign up for their own copy.Read more > |
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Editorial: Alison Cooke Mintzer alison.mintzer@strategic-i.com
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