| Benefits & Administration | DC Health Plan Adoption Set to Grow | A new study shows an increased interest by
employers in defined contribution (DC) health plans. The Healthcare Trends
Institute polled more than 250 human resource executives, benefits managers and
benefits decision makers from companies of various sizes and industries in
September through November 2014 and found 77.5% have some familiarity with DC
health plans, compared to 59.4% last year. More than 61% of employers indicated
they are looking into offering a DC health plan for 2016.Read more > | Corporate pension plans, public pension plans,
foundations and endowments all missed their return targets for January 2015,
according to the BNY Mellon Investment Strategy and Solutions Group (ISSG). The
funded status of the typical U.S. corporate pension plan declined 4.9% to reach
82.4% by the end of January, propelled downward as the interest rate that
determines future liabilities fell to an all-time low, BNY Mellon ISSG says.Read more > | The aggregate funded ratio for U.S. corporate
pension plans declined to 74.3% for the month of January, according to Wilshire
Consulting. The decrease in funding was the result of a greater increase in
liability value versus a smaller increase in asset value.Read more > | | Products, Deals & People | ERISApedia Provides ERISA Answers | With a platform that combines search tools and a
user-friendly interface, the website ERISApedia.com provides answers to common
questions asked by retirement plan sponsors and service providers. Included on
the website is “The Qualified Plan eSource,” a discourse designed for Employee
Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) professionals working with defined
contribution plans. Written by industry expert Timothy McCutcheon, the document
contributes answers in an easy-access format with direct links to government
source materials.Read more > |
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| Market Mirror | Oil prices
plunged on Wednesday, after the U.S. government reported that crude inventories
surged last week, which renewed investors’ worries that supplies of oil are
still outstripping demand, according to the Associated Press. The Dow ticked up
6.62 points (0.04%) to 17,673.02, while the NASDAQ was down 11.03 points
(0.23%) at 4,716.70, and the S&P 500 closed 8.59 points (0.42%) lower at
2,041.44. The Russell 2000 increased by 0.27 (0.02%) to 1,197.26, and the Wilshire
5000 shed 88.34 points (0.41%) to finish at 21,536.44.
On the NYSE,
3.2 billion shares traded, with a near 2 to 1 lead for decliners. On the
NASDAQ, 2.8 billion shares changed hands, with 1.5 declining issues for every
advancing issue.
The price of the U.S. Treasury note was up 11/32,
bringing its yield down to 1.757%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond
increased 23/32, decreasing its yield to 2.353%.
| | Compliance | IRS Shares Tips for Avoiding Form 5500 Scrutiny | The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) says in many
of its Employee Plans Compliance Unit (EPCU) projects, it finds plan sponsors
enter incorrect information on their Form 5500 series returns or information
reports. The agency says it uses information on Form 5500 returns and reports
to select cases for compliance checks, and entering incorrect information on
the return or report, or leaving a field blank field when there should be an
entry, increases the likelihood that a plan will be selected for an EPCU
compliance check.Read more > | Nonqualified Plan Sponsor Loses FICA Taxes Lawsuit | A federal appellate court found that, rather
than properly withholding nonqualified retirement plan participants’ Federal
Income Contributions Act (FICA) taxes as required by the plan, Henkel Corp.
caused participants to pay these taxes at the time of each benefit payment,
effectively reducing their anticipated retirement benefits. The U.S. District
Court for the Eastern District of Michigan noted that Henkel admitted in a
letter to participants that it had not properly withheld taxes. This resulted
in the participants owing more in FICA taxes than they would have owed had
Henkel properly and timely paid taxes when they were due. The court granted
summary judgment to the participants because Henkel failed to adhere to the
purpose and terms of the plan, resulting in a reduced benefit to the
participants.Read more > | | From the Magazine | Just out of Reish: Expense Recapture | There are two types of expense recapture
accounts: one where the “recaptured” money is put in the plan and another where
it is held by the provider. The Department of Labor (DOL) approves of the
latter, while the former is well-accepted.Read more > | | Small Talk | ON THIS DATE: In
1883, the Southern Pacific Railroad
completed its transcontinental “Sunset Route” from New Orleans to
California, In 1919, Charlie
Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks and D.W. Griffith joined forces to
create their own film studio, which they called the United Artists Corporation.
In 1972, Bob Douglas became the
first black man elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts.
In 1988, two federal grand juries in
Florida announced indictments of Panama military strongman General Manuel
Antonio Noriega and 16 associates on drug smuggling and money laundering
charges. In 1994, white supremacist
Byron De La Beckwith was convicted in the murder of African-American civil
rights leader Medgar Evers, more than 30 years after the crime occurred. Evers
was gunned down in the driveway of his Jackson, Mississippi, home on June 12,
1963. | SURVEY SAYS: “This
week I’d like to know, “If you could have one super power, what would you
choose?” You may respond to this week’s survey by 6 p.m. Pacific time today.Read more > | 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 > | News from PLANSPONSOR.com
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