FASB Indefinitely Defers Employee Benefit Plan Disclosure Requirement

Brian Garstecki, CPA

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) recently voted to indefinitely defer certain disclosures regarding investments held by a nonpublic employee benefit plan in its plan sponsor’s own nonpublic equity securities. Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2011-04, issued in May 2011, originally required that plans disclose the valuation processes used for fair value measurements of Level 3 investments held by the plan sponsor.

There was significant concern that disclosing this information would provide sensitive proprietary financial details about the plan […]

New Trustee’s Guide to Investments: Reading a Mutual Fund Prospectus

Larry Beebe, CPA

New trustees for multiemployer benefit plans can be overwhelmed by the investment knowledge that must be quickly acquired to function effectively in their new roles.  This series provides in-depth information about plan investments to assist new trustees in their fiduciary duty of managing plan assets.

Investing in a mutual fund without doing the proper due diligence is a lot like running onto the football field without knowing the play. You could end up with a successful guess, but […]

New Trustee’s Guide to Investments: Basis Points

Larry Beebe, CPA

New trustees can be overwhelmed by the investment knowledge that must be quickly acquired to function effectively in their new roles. This series will provide in-depth information about plan investments to assist new trustees in their fiduciary duty of managing plan assets.
When discussing your plan’s investments in trustee meetings, you may hear many unfamiliar financial terms.  Understanding commonly used terminology, such as basis points, Alpha, Beta, Yield Curve and other financial language will allow you to effectively […]

Choosing a Retirement Solution for Your Company: Profit Sharing vs 401(k)

Ashleigh Zeller, CPA

As your company grows, offering a retirement plan is an important benefit to help recruit and retain employees. There are a number of options available; in this post, we’re going to review two of the most common plan types – profit sharing plans and 401(k) plans.

These plans are alike in several ways. Both are qualified, tax-deferred retirement plans that allow participants to contribute pre-tax earnings; the principal and subsequent earnings are not taxed to the employee until […]

Little Reaction to 401k Fee Disclosures

Fabricia Edwards, CPA

The 408(b)(2) fee disclosure regulations took effect last summer, and the 401(k) industry braced itself for outcries from plan participants as they reviewed their plan fees for the first time.  Instead, these long-awaited statements seem to have flown under the radar with very little reaction from participants and only a slightly higher level of awareness regarding the existence of the fees.

It is unclear what is causing the non-reaction.  The participants may be confused by the new information […]

Solutions Not Bailouts: New Report Addresses Multiemployer Pension Plan Challenges

Jason Edwards, CPA

The pension plan industry is buzzing about the current challenges facing multiemployer pension plans.  Ensuring pension plan solvency and retirement security for plan participants is of the utmost importance and these topics continue to be the focus of much debate and discussion.

To address these issues, the National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans (NCCMP), a partnership of business and labor groups, has released recommendations for comprehensive pension reform.  “Solutions Not Bailouts: A Comprehensive Plan from Business and Labor […]

Retirement Nest Eggs: IRS Proposes Regulations to Help Manage Savings

Fabricia Edwards, CPA

During the past few years, the US government has issued incentives for Americans to save more for retirement, including opportunities for automatic enrollment in 401(k) and other retirement savings plans.  Unfortunately, many Americans are still not saving enough money for retirement.

As life expectancy increases and retirement periods lengthen, Americans are at risk of outliving their retirement assets.  This is known as longevity risk.  Research has shown women are especially susceptible to longevity risk because their life expectancy […]