| | Benefits & Administration | | Sponsors and Providers Use Too Much DC Plan Jargon | | Invesco has published a new white paper on the subject of jargon and participant communication challenges in the retirement plan industry. The paper, “ReDefined Contribution Plans: the defined contribution language study,” was put together with Maslansky + Partners. It presents the findings of a national survey of more than 800 large-plan participants across genders, income levels and generations. The results, previewed for PLANSPONSOR, show plan participants tend to highly value their employer-sponsored retirement benefits—but at the same time there are common points of confusion and sub-optimal behavior patterns that stem from the serious amount of jargon that pervades the defined contribution (DC) plan domain. “We believe a disconnect remains between what plan sponsors say and what participants hear,” John Galateria, head of North America institutional for Invesco, said.Read more > | | | Products, Deals and People | | ERISApedia Adds Answers to Practical Questions to Qualified Plan eSource | | S. Derrin Watson, a pension attorney and educator, has been answering questions from ERISApedia clients for the last year and has edited and selected over 400 ASK responses to subscribers to add to the eSource.Read more > |
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| | Sponsored message from Voya Financial | | Three Key Insights Plan Sponsors and Advisers Should Know About Special Needs PlanningRead more > | | | Market Mirror | Yesterday, the Dow closed 86.11 points (0.36%) lower at 23,909.84, the NASDAQ decreased 65.56 points (0.94%) to 6,905.92, and the S&P 500 was down 13.65 points (0.53%) at 2,582.61. The Russell 2000 lost 14.57 points (1.01%) to finish at 1,432.81, and the Wilshire 5000 fell 157.49 points (0.59%) to 26,697.74. The price of the 10-year Treasury note was down 1/32, increasing its yield to 2.707%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond decreased 11/32, bringing its yield up to 3.052%. | | | From the Magazine | | Operational Loan Failures | | Offering defined contribution (DC) plan participants the ability to take loans from their account increases administrative responsibilities. Under the Internal Revenue Code (IRC), a participant loan must satisfy certain rules to avoid being treated as a taxable distribution to the participant and a plan qualification issue. Plus, the loan must meet statutory requirements so it does not become a prohibited transaction. It is not unusual for plan sponsors to discover that certain rules have been broken in some way, causing operational failures. How can they be fixed?Read more > | | | Investing | | Conrad Siegel Offers Tips for Retirement Plan Investment Lineups | | Retirement plan consulting firm Conrad Siegel has an Insights article titled, “The Do’s and Don’ts of your 401(k) fund lineup.” Although the article is directed at 401(k) plans, it offers insights for 403(b) plan sponsors as well. Among other things, the consulting firm says investment committees should have stated goals, and retirement plan investment lineups should meet the needs of different types of investors.Read more > | | | Small Talk | | ON THIS DATE: In 1844, the University of Notre Dame received its charter from the state of Indiana. In 1870, a cartoon by Thomas Nast in “Harper’s Weekly” used a donkey to symbolize the Democratic Party for the first time. In 1892, “Triangle” magazine in Springfield, Massachusetts, published the rules for a brand new game. The original rules involved attaching a peach baskets to a suspended board. It is now known as basketball. In 1908, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority became America’s first Greek-letter organization established by African-American college women. In 1943, the Pentagon was dedicated as the world’s largest office building just outside Washington, D.C., in Arlington, Virginia. The structure covers 34 acres of land and has 17 miles of corridors. In 1953, Harry S Truman became the first U.S. President to use radio and television to give his farewell as he left office. In 1967, the first National Football League Super Bowl was played. The Green Bay Packers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs. The final score was 35-10. In 1973, President Richard Nixon announced the suspension of all U.S. offensive action in North Vietnam. He cited progress in peace negotiations as the reason. In 1974, “Happy Days” premiered on ABC-TV. In 1986, President Ronald Reagan signed legislation making Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday a national holiday to be celebrated on the third Monday of January. In 2001, Wikipedia was launched. | | TRIVIAL PURSUITS: The pompom on your winter hat may be just for decoration, but in the past there were more practical reasons for the embellishment.Read more > | | Share the news with a friend! Pass the NewsDash along and tell your friends/associates they can sign up for their own copy.Read more > |
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