Pension Issues

• 2010
• 2009
• 2008
• 2007
• 2006
• 2005

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2010

The Pension Practice Council and Life Practice Council's response to a request for information from the departments of Labor and the Treasury regarding lifetime-income options for participants and beneficiaries in retirement plans. (May 2010)

Pension Committee comments to the Actuarial Standards Board regarding proposed revisions to ASOP 41 (March 2010)

Pension Committee comments to the Actuarial Standards Board regarding proposed revisions to ASOP 35 (March 2010)

Comments to the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service concerning final regulations on pension funding and benefit restrictions under Internal Revenue Code Sections 430 and 436 (March 2010)

Comments to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) on proposed regulations concerning reportable events under ERISA Section 4043 and the purchase of irrevocable commitments prior to initiating a standard plan termination under ERISA Section 4041 (January 2010)

2009

Comments to the Department of Labor regarding the electronic display of certain information contained in the annual Form 5500 filing for single-employer defined benefit plans (December 2009)

Comments on H.R. 3936, The Preserve Benefits and Jobs Act of 2009 (December 2009)

Practice note on Preparing a Certification of the Adjusted Funding Target Attainment Percentage (AFTAP) for a Pension Plan (December 2009)

Comments to the Joint Board in response to proposed regulations governing the performance of actuarial services under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (November 2009)

Comments on H.R. 2748, The Retirement Security Needs Lifetime Pay Act of 2009 (November 2009)

Practice note on selecting and documenting other pension assumptions (October 2009)

Practice note on selecting and documenting mortality assumptions (October 2009)

Updated issue brief on understanding assumptions used to evaluate Social Security's financial condition (September 2009)

Letter to Congressman Anthony Weiner concerning Social Security’s annual cost-of-living adjustments (September 2009)

Letter to the IRS regarding the use of Surplus Assets as Matching Contributions under 401(k) Replacement Plans (August 2009)

Response to the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB)’s invitation to comment on pension accounting and financial reporting (August 2009)

Comments on the IRS' guidance priority list and provides a list of key issues awaiting guidance (June 2009)

Slides and other information from an Academy Capitol Hill briefing on financial reform (June 2009)

An Actuarial Perspective on the 2009 Social Security Trustees’ Report (May 2009; annually updated issue brief)

Request for comments on FASAB Exposure Draft: Accounting for Social Insurance, Revised, dated November 17, 2008 (February 9, 2009)

2008

Report from the Public Interest Committee to the ASB to examining pension disclosures, which was partly developed from information obtained through a public forum held on Sept. 4 (September 2008)

Slides and other information from an Academy Capitol Hill briefing on social security (September 2008)

Comments to the Actuarial Standards Board regarding ASOP 27 revisions. (September 2008)

A letter to the IRS regarding the proposed regulations providing guidance on the application of the accrual rule for defined benefit plans under section 411(b)(1)(B). (September 2008)

A letter to the IASB responding to request for comments on its discussion paper on IAS19, accounting standard for employee benefits. (September 2008)

Letter to the editor of the New York Times, responding to "Actuaries Scrutinized on Pensions" article (May 2008)

Election 2008 section (launched March 2008)

Comments on proposed IRS regulations concerning PPA changes for some hybrid pension plans (March 2008)

Comments on proposed IRS regulations for measuring pension assets and liabilities (March 2008)

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2007

Letter to IRS commenting on proposed DB benefit restrictions under sections 430(f) and 436 of the Internal Revenue Code (November 2007)

Letter to House Ways and Means Committee requesting technical corrections to clarify the Pension Protection Act (November 2007)

Request for JBEA to provide summary of key mistakes or problems it has found in audits of enrolled actuaries' CE filings (September 2007)

Response to recent CASB survey on harmonizing two cost accounting standards with provisions of the Pension Protection Act (September 2007)

Request that the Treasury Department reconsider its method for applying an anti-backloading rule (the four-thirds rule) to cash balance plans (September 2007)

Letter to Texas officials from the Joint Committee on Retiree Health about misinterpretations of the committee’s 2006 comments on accounting standards for OPEBs (June 2007)

Comment letter to Department of Energy about its DB pension reimbursement policy for DOE contractors (May 2007)

Letter to the IRS outlining key issues awaiting guidance for 2007 (May 2007)

Comments to Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB) on Preliminary Views - Accounting for Social Insurance, Revised (April 2007)

Comments to the IRS regarding changes to the combined plan deduction limit under Notice 2007-28 (March 2007)

Letter to IPSASB regarding additional to time to review Exposure Draft (ED) 31 (March 2007)

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2006

A Pension Actuary's Guide to Financial Economics (by a joint Academy/SOA task force, 2006)

Comments to the IRS and Treasury Department on using substitute mortality tables (November 2006)

Draft practice note on valuing employee stock options (October 2006)

Comments on a proposed asset-question addition to Form 5500 (September 2006)

A revised request for technical guidance from the IRS on Circular 230 regulatory issues (August 2006)

The Value of Defined Benefit Plans (July 2006 issue brief, plus executive summary)

Letters to FASB expressing concern over proposed changes in financial accounting standards for pensions and OPEBs, accompanied by news release (May 31, 2006)

Follow-up letter to GAO about its cash balance report (May 2006)

“Keeping Employers Responsible for Their (and Only Their) Pension Promises” (May 2006 analysis)

Letter to Secretary of Energy about Department of Energy policy on reimbursing DOE contractors’ DB pension costs (May 2006)

Comments to the SEC on a proposed executive-compensation disclosure rule (April 2006)

Comments on a proposed GASB technical bulletin about the Medicare Part D retiree drug subsidy (April 2006)

Longevity and Retirement Policy: Modernizing America's Retirement Programs to Keep Pace with Longevity (April 2006 issue brief, accompanied by news release)

An updated analysis of pension funding reform bills (March 2006, updating a November 2005 report)

Comments on Moody’s proposed rating methodology for companies with multiemployer DB plans (March 2006)

Comments on a FASB project to reconsider accounting for pension benefits and other benefits (February 2006)

Original letter sent to the editor of the Economist and the published version (February 2006)

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2005

Comments on a GAO report about cash balance plans and the GAO's response. (November 2005, December 2005)

Letter to the editor of the Financial Times (December. 2, 2005)

An analysis of single-employer issues in pension funding legislation (November 2005; superseded by March 2006 update)

An analysis of multi-employer issues in pension funding legislation (November 2005)

Request for technical advice ruling on Circular 230 issues (October 2005)

Updated Pension Committee analysis of President Bush's retirement-savings proposals (August 2005 report, followed by news release)

A white paper on how cash balance plans can adapt features of traditional DB designs (August 2005)

Letter to FASB about concerns that should be addressed if it reconsiders FAS 87 (August 5, 2005)

Comments to House leaders urging that the proposed Pension Protection Act include a "look-back" option for determining quarterly pension contributions (July 27, 2005)

Presentation to ERISA advisory council meeting about DB and DC distribution options (July 2005)

Follow-up response to Sen. Ted Kennedy after Academy testimony on the PBGC and pension funding reform (May 31, 2005)

Fact sheet about United Airlines' recently terminated pension plans and the PBGC's deficit; related news release (May 12, 2005)

Letter to the IRS about communication under relative value regulations (May 10, 2005)

Letter to the IRS about applying Circular 230 to actuarial work (May 9, 2005)

Testimony for a Senate hearing on the PBGC and pension funding reform; related news release (April 26, 2005)

Backgrounder on credit balance options for DB pension funding reform (March 2005)

Comment letter on the IRS position on crediting contributions for multiemployer pension plans (March 22, 2005)

An analysis of the Bush administration's proposal for single-employer pension funding (March 8, 2005)
Note: In a slightly different format, this paper was presented as written testimony for a March 8, 2005 House Ways and Means subcommittee hearing.

Comments on proposed regulations for multiemployer plans' annual funding notices (March 8, 2005)

Suggested funding reform principles for single-employer pension plans (February 2005)

• paper
• news release

Comments on proposed IRS regulations for phased retirement (Feb. 8, 2005)

Principles of Pension Funding Reform for Multiemployer Plans (January 2005 issue brief)

Comments on a delay of amortization relief under IRC 412(e) (Jan. 28, 2005)