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On Feb. 23, 2016, the American Retirement Association (ARA) filed a comment letter with the IRS suggesting enhancements that can be made to the IRS pre-approved plan program for plans subject to Internal Revenue Code Sections 401(a) or 403(b). The letter also requests a meeting to discuss the ARA...
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The U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 29 allowed cuts to remain in place that the administration of Gov. Chris Christie (R) made to the state’s public employee pension system.According to the Associated Press, the High Court rejected an appeal by public employee unions in the Garden State of a June 9,...
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Many employees of a school district client elected to make a Roth 403(b) salary deferral, but they were all set up as regular pre-tax deferrals and no one caught this for six months. In MarketBeat, Susan Diehl tells us if the employees can change their election to pre-tax as a way to correct the...
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You have a client who dies, and leaves two sons, ages 18 and 21, as the beneficiaries of her 401(k), pension and IRA. The plan does not offer life expectancy payouts to the sons, but they have the right to roll over the pension funds into the IRA. In Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder tells us what their...
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If you thought things were going to be quiet between now and the anticipated publication of the Department of Labor’s (DOL) fiduciary rule next month — well, you’d be wrong.Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) has now weighed in on the issue, claiming that “the bureaucrats bullied it through.”...
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Eight months without a budget has rendered Keystone State politics tenser than ever. Gov. Tom Wolf (D) is now being sued by two Republican legislators for exceeding his authority and potentially delaying pension reform legislation that could also preserve local 403(b) choice.After Wolf vetoed a...
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The IRS recently released Notice 2016-16, which addresses what can and cannot be amended in a safe harbor 401(k) or 403(b) mid-year. In MarketBeat, Susan Diehl provides an overview of this notice, which includes guidance for traditional safe harbor plans and QACAs and eliminates much of the...
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Can a client with an IRA convert the funds to a life only annuity payout after age 70½ and avoid the required minimum distribution (RMD) penalties? In Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder tells us.
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PlanMember Financial Corporation (PFC) on Feb. 18 announced that it has become the new broker/dealer and registered investment advisor for Williams & Company. With the agreement, PFC now serves 32 financial centers.According to a PFC press release, the agreement means that PFC will be providing...
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The importance of IRAs in helping U.S. households save for retirement is growing in a variety of ways. And they complement employer-provided retirement plans and savings, says a recent study by the Investment Company Institute (ICI) on the role IRAs played in 2015. “The Role of IRAs...
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Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) on Feb. 16 signed a reform of the Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System (PSPRS) — the state pension system that serves state police and firefighters. The reform is contained in SB 1428 and 1429, which Sen. Debbie Lesko (R-Peoria) introduced. In a press...
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Clients come first. And that means meeting their needs, which can entail scheduling meetings at their convenience. But is that really the best approach? Michael Kitces in “How a More Regular Client Meeting Schedule Enhances Advisor Productivity and Business Growth” posits that it may not be — and...
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Iowa State Treasurer Mike Fitzgerald and state Sen. Janet Petersen have rolled out a state-run retirement plan proposal.The pair, both Democrats, say that the proposed “Retirement Savings Iowa” would be run similar to College Savings Iowa, which offers 529 college savings plans. As with several...
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Your client failed to take a required minimum distribution; this is a costly error, and your client is in a state of panic. In MarketBeat, Ellie Lowder tells us what the client should do.
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A company allows employees to repay the defaulted loans and then allows them to take out a second loan which is repaid via checking/savings account deductions. In Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder tells us if this permitted.
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New Jersey’s public employee pension system has long been embroiled in financial difficulties. Challenges to steps the administration of Gov. Chris Christie (R) has taken to address them found their way into the dockets, and now are being bumped upstairs to the state — and federal — Supreme Courts...
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Increased longevity is good news! But for pension plans it’s another story. For them, it creates more stress — it spells greater drain and heightens the likelihood that plans will pay benefits for a longer period. The Social Security Administration’s (SSA) Office of the Chief Actuary late in 2015...
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The Obama administration’s final budget wasn’t a complete retread of its prior retirement plan proposals, but there wasn’t much good news for employer-sponsored retirement plans.Small business owners and small business retirement plans were once again targeted by a proposal that would limit the...
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Wrapping up a first week of February with action on legislation designed to block, slow or thwart the Department of Labor’s (DOL) fiduciary rule, the U.S. Senate finally got into the act with two pieces of legislation. Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga), chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and...
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The NTSA Communication Committee believes that understanding reporting requirements under the Affordable Care Act will be helpful in understanding other reporting obligations. In MarketBeat, Kimberly Flett provides the first discussion of reporting under the ACA.
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Recent Comments
Does the roth requirement for catch-up contributions for people who earned $145,000 apply to 457...
Hi Ed,
I really liked this article and I think you make a lot of sense. And I had no...
I believe there's a misstatement in that last quote - it should refer to governmental and...
Working with several medical providers as clients, I note that the high-end earners tend to push...
Congratulations to NTSAA for landing a good one. Nathan's breadth of experience and...