403b Plans
The recent flurry of lawsuits against major universities on their (very large) 403(b) plans has raised significant concerns in the market related to what has been very common plan designs. In MarketBeat, Robert Toth discusses what the differences between 403(b) plans and 401(k) plans mean regarding...
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Ben Franklin once said, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” But what if there was a way to avoid paying taxes on amounts in a retirement plan? In MarketBeat, Lynn Knight writes that there is a way to receive a tax-free distribution of amounts from a retirement...
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Your client has a Roth IRA and a Roth 403(b) whose plan document accepts rollovers into the plan. He wishes to roll over his Roth IRA to the Roth 403(b) so as to increase the amount available for loans. In Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder tells us whether he can do that.
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Is it possible to increase financial literacy, employee participation in retirement plans and employer action to boost options available to employees all at once? A network in Arizona has found a way to do just that. The Arizona 403(b) Professionals, a group of which NTSA President-Elect Adam...
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Some argue that the DOL’s fiduciary regulations could be the death of variable annuities; others disagree. In MarketBeat, Ellie Lowder discusses the status and importance of variable annuities in light of the rule.
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Is the plan sponsor in a non-ERISA (public education) 403(b) plan responsible for oversight of individual annuity contracts and individual custodial accounts? In Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder tells us.
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The IRS recently issued its 2016-17 Priority Guidance Plan, and it contains an array of goals for projects relevant to retirement plans. The plan outlines objectives the IRS intends to pursue during the period July 1, 2016-June 30, 2017.The IRS’ plans include the following projects relevant to...
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The IRS in a recently released chief counsel memorandum (CCM) says that employees of a “disregarded entity” are eligible to participate in a 501(c)(3)’s 403(b) plan — and as such they also are subject to the universal availability rule.In CCM 201634021, which is dated July 11, 2016 (but was...
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An annual survey of 403(b) plans finds a growing, though still modest, focus on participant outcomes.While only 6 out of 10 (61.5%) employer respondents to the 2016 403(b) Plan Survey from the Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA) evaluate whether their retirement plan is meeting its goals, 37.5%...
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What do employers do when they are responsible as a fiduciary for the investment of a 403(b), but do not have control of the accounts because of the contractual arrangement? In Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder tells us.
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The law firm of Schlichter, Bogard & Denton has filed four more lawsuits against multibillion-dollar plans that have allegedly “allowed unreasonable expenses to be charged to participants for administration of the plans, and retained investments with excessive costs and poor performance...
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There’s good news in a recent report on retirement saving and consumer attitudes toward it. But at the same time, it also provides fresh proof of changes in the retirement sphere as well as challenges to be faced.Two reports by LIMRA, “For-Profit Sector Employees: 2016 Consumer Survey Update” and “...
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The devil is often in the details in litigation — but now the “devils” find themselves in the defendant’s chair.In this case we’re talking about the (Blue) Devils — specifically, Duke University, which has, in the most recent class action filing by the law firm of Schlichter, Bogard & Denton,...
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Earlier this year I wrote a post about ERISA litigation going “off the rails.” Alas, it feels like we've gone from bad to worse since then. In the past week, a whole new round of lawsuits involving academic institution 403(b) plans has hit the news. Despite the “newness” of the targets (large...
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You have a client who is retiring but has an agreement to return to work with the same employer to do a special project for them. In Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder tells us if he can make withdrawals after retiring and before the project begins without the 10% IRS premature distribution penalty tax being...
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The law firm of Schlichter, Bogard & Denton has now turned its attention to the education sector, filing separate class action lawsuits against three universities on behalf of over 60,000 employees in their defined contribution retirement plans, both 401(k) and 403(b).According to a press...
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Suppose several 403(b) participants have separated from service but want to continue contributing to their 403(b)s. What are the voluntary employee contributions, and how might they apply? Can a retired 403(b) participant who is eligible to make a maximum IRA contribution for 2016 make a $6,000...
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ERISA 403(b) plan sponsors must deal with the “policy loans” issued by insurance carriers under the 403(b) annuity contracts held under the plans. In MarketBeat, Robert Toth argues that there is no good way to report these loans on the Form 5500, and the newly proposed Form 5500 changes do not...
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Is the plan sponsor in a non-ERISA (public education) 403(b) plan responsible for oversight of individual annuity contracts and individual custodial accounts? In Tech Talk, Ellie Lowder tells us.
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When a participant in a non-ERISA 403(b) plan wishes to roll assets over from another non-ERISA 403(b) plan into this plan, what best practices can the receiving plan sponsor or vendor use to ensure compliance with IRS guidance and Treasury regulations? In MarketBeat, Sue Diehl and Ellie Lowder use...
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