Fiduciaries of a 401(k) plan for a Huntsville, Alabama, company have agreed
to a settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor, after being accused in a
DOL lawsuit of failing to deposit employee contributions to the plan and not
holding plan assets in trust.
bill that would allow airlines with severely underfunded pension plans to
defer much of their cash contributions for two years cleared the U.S. House
of Representatives on Thursday.
A Senate panel has approved a measure meant to let businesses pay less into their workers' retirement plans. The bill, which would create a three-year interest rate adjustment, is Congress'
answer to companies complaining of skyrocketing pension costs.
The Internal Revenue Service has announced cost-of-living adjustments applicable
to dollar limitations for pension plans and other items for Tax Year 2004.
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., the federal entity that insures private pension plans, hit a record deficit of $8.8 billion as of Aug. 31. Low interest rates, the sluggish economy, stock market losses, and an increase in retirees all have hurt pension plans, and that in turn has increased the burden on the PBGC.
About 10,000 retirees and dependents would lose their pensions as well as their health and life insurance under a bankrupt West Virginia steelmaker's plan to return to financial solvency.
The Internal Revenue Service has released new materials, including a CD-ROM,
to help small businesses and plan administrators understand how to keep employee
retirement plans eligible for tax-favored status.
Underfunding in corporate pension plans is widespread but perhaps not as troublesome as recent reports suggest, according to an analysis by HR consultant Watson Wyatt Worldwide.
The Financial Accounting Standards Board, the body that sets accounting rules
in the U.S., will undertake a project aimed at defining cash-balance pension
plans and measuring obligations under such plans.
