| | Service Members Prefer Traditional Pension | | The latest results of the First Command
Financial Behaviors Index reveal that 70% of middle-class military families
(commissioned officers and senior NCOs in pay grades E-6 and above with
household incomes of at least $50,000) who say they are likely to serve to full
retirement want to be grandfathered into the current retirement system. Earlier
this year, the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission
announced its proposal to restructure the traditional 20-year retirement system
as a blended program that includes a reduced pension in exchange for a lump sum
bonus and a new 401(k)-type plan.Read more > | | | Products, Deals and People | | Workforce communications provider GuideSpark
launched its Financial Wellness Product. The solution enables companies to
provide tailored financial wellness education to their employees through a
comprehensive financial assessment, personalized action plans, engaging
informational videos, and direct integration to actionable, employer-provided
programs and tools.Read more > | | | Market Mirror | A late
afternoon rally yesterday left the stock market solidly higher after the
Federal Reserve released a policy statement saying it would consider raising
rates at its December meeting, the Associated Press reported. The Dow was up
198.09 points (1.13%) at 17,779.52, the NASDAQ closed 65.55 points (1.30%)
higher at 5,095.69, and the S&P 500 increased 24.46 points (1.18%) to
2,090.35. The Russell 2000 climbed 33.42 points (2.92%) to 1,178.71, and the
Wilshire 5000 gained 296.58 points (1.38%) to finish at 21,771.95.
On the NYSE,
3.2 billion shares changed hands, and on the NASDAQ, more than 2.7 billion
shares traded, with advancing issues outnumbering declining issues nearly 4 to
1 on both exchanges.
The price of the 10-year Treasury note fell 16/32,
increasing its yield to 2.097%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond decreased
10/32, bringing its yield up to 2.877%.
| | | Compliance | | Maximum Benefits/Contributions Limits Table | | PLANSPONSOR has updated its
benefits/contributions limits table for 2016 amounts recently announced by the
Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The table may be downloaded as a PDF and
printed.Read more > | | House Passes Bill to Delay Fiduciary Rule | | H.R. 1090, a bill sponsored by Rep. Ann Wagner
(R-Missouri) that would yank the reins on the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s)
fiduciary rule, passed the House Tuesday afternoon after extended commentary
from a long list of representatives. The legislation would prohibit the DOL from issuing a
new conflict of interest rule applying under the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act (ERISA) until the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) moves
forward on its own rulemaking that would apply more generally to brokers and
advisers.Read more > | | | From the Magazine | | Engaging Participants in the Age of Automation | | Automatic enrollment has gotten many employees into
401(k) plans and defaulted into diversified investments. Now what? “There’s a
lot of work to be done after automatic enrollment,” says adviser James
McQuillan, president and founder of RJF Financial Services in Minneapolis.
Automatic enrollment has accomplished much, he says, but “it’s still leaving
many, many employees short of the funds they’ll need at retirement. The job’s
not done. We’re just starting.”Read more > | | | Small Talk | | ON THIS DATE: In
1652, the Massachusetts Bay Colony
proclaimed itself to be an independent commonwealth. In 1682, William Penn landed at what is now Chester, Pennsylvania. He
was the founder of Pennsylvania. In 1863,
the International Committee of the Red Cross was founded. In 1945, the first ballpoint pens to be
made commercially went on sale at Gimbels Department Store in New York at the
price of $12.50 each. In 1960,
Muhammad Ali (Cassius Clay) won his first professional fight. In 1966, the National Organization for
Women was founded. In 1969, the U.S.
Supreme Court ordered an immediate end to all school segregation. In 1995, Jerry Rice of the San Francisco
49ers became the NFL’s career leader in receiving yards with 14,040 yards. | | SURVEY SAYS:
What some call “socially responsible investing” has been slow to make its way
into retirement plans. Last week, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a piece
of guidance Labor Secretary Thomas Perez says will significantly expand the use
of environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing principles—what the
Department prefers to call economically targeted investments (ETIs)—under the
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). A regular PLANSPONSOR
contributor, Michael Barry, immediately offered his views about what may be a
problem with the DOL’s stamp of approval on this type of investing for
retirement plans. This week, I’d like to know, do you think the DOL’s guidance
is a positive or negative for retirement plan sponsors and participants, and
what is your reaction to Michael Barry’s thoughts about it? Of course, your
responses are always anonymous. 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 > |
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