News Archive

There are critical deadlines 403(b) plans must meet in order to stay in compliance with the federal Internal Revenue Code. Adding to the complexity of this function, some deadlines only apply to particular plan types (such as ERISA plans). In this week’s MarketBeat, Mike Webb provides a 403(b) Plan... READ MORE

Two of the states beset by the most intractable state pension problems have hit roadblocks in their efforts to address those issues. A circuit court judge has declared the law enacted in Illinois to reform its underwater pension system unconstitutional, and new reports and accounting procedures... READ MORE

In a year of positive — but modest — change, a new survey suggests that public pension funds are feeling better about their ability to deal with trends and issues, at least in the near term. According to the 2014 National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems (NCPERS) Public Retirement... READ MORE

When President Obama named Loretta Lynch as his nominee to replace U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, speculation about Secretary of Labor Tom Perez being tapped for the role was put to rest, while speculation about the impact on the DOL’s agenda was reinvigorated. Since early October, Perez had... READ MORE

A client wants to protect her 403(b) from being counted as an asset for purposes of Medicaid and used to cover her husband’s nursing home costs. In this week’s Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder tells us whether there is any way to protect her 403(b). READ MORE

The University of California (UC) Board of Regents on Nov. 19 debated whether it will raise tuition by up to 5% in each of the next five years. One of the reasons, reports the Sacramento Bee, is to address $7.2 billion in unfunded university pension plan liabilities. The pension fund already is a... READ MORE

Atlanta, Ga. and Jacksonville, Fla. are both in the southeast, both face fiscal pressures over their public pension systems like many other cities, and both have been taken to court over their attempts to ameliorate that stress. But the similarities end there — the courts took different tacks in... READ MORE

An employer wants to establish a top hat plan for its directors. How does it do that? In this week’s Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder identifies three steps. READ MORE

Two new efforts have been launched to increase the availability to retirement planning services to public-sector and non-profit employees. ABMM Financial, an investment firm based in Iselin, N.J., has been launched, and the Legend Group has announced a partnership with the Association of Christian... READ MORE