Memo to Saint Peter’s University Hospital retirement plan participants re: IRS church plan ruling (September 19, 2013)
The Pension Rights Center sent a memo to workers and retirees at Saint Peter’s University Hospital, who are concerned by the IRS’ ruling that their pension plan is a “church plan.” The memo details why the Center believes that the ruling was wrong. Related: PRC statement on the Saint Peter’s University Hospital church plan ruling […]
Norman Stein calls for an end to conflicts of interest in investment advice (September 13, 2013)
At a briefing for Senate staff on the importance of unconflicted investment advice, PRC Senior Policy Advisor Norman Stein discussed the history of fiduciary regulations and why they need to apply to 401(k)s and other retirement savings plans. I’m speaking today both as an academic—I teach law at Drexel University—and as a policy advisor to […]
Retiree Janice Winston speaks out in support of strong fiduciary regulations (September 13, 2013)
At a briefing for Senate staff on the importance of unconflicted investment advice, retiree Janice Winston told a personal story that illustrates the need for a strong fiduciary standard. Hello, my name is Janice Winston. I am here as a retiree to talk about the challenges facing real people. Let me briefly tell you my […]
Target date funds drive up 401(k) fees
Final language being hammered out on new fee disclosure rules for 401(k) funds will hopefully put pressure on plan sponsors to take a hard look at the double-layering of fees by target date mutual funds.
Gotbaum Tells Council Lump-Sum Cash-Outs Are Like Cigarettes: Legal but Bad for You
Joshua Gotbaum, director of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, told the ERISA Advisory Council Aug. 29 that pension plan lump-sum cashouts to retirees are like cigarettes: They are legal, many people like them and they are bad for you.
A Pension Strategy That Could Backfire
Taking a life-only pension payout and buying life insurance to protect a spouse comes with risks.
PRC testimony to the ERISA Advisory Council on private-sector pension “de-risking” and participant protections (August 29, 2013)
PRC Executive Vice President and Policy Director Karen Friedman testified before the ERISA Advisory Council on the increased use “de-risking” strategies in private pension plans and the increased risk that such strategies pose for workers and retirees. Related: “De-Risking” Pensions Could be Risky to Pensioners (press release, October 18, 2012)
Saint Peter’s retirees concerned with IRS ruling on pensions
Saint Peter’s University Hospital employees and retirees recently were notified that the Internal Revenue Service had issued a private letter ruling saying that their pension plan is a “church plan.”
IRS says St. Peter’s Heathcare System is a ‘church plan’
Employees and retirees of New Jersey’s St. Peter’s Healthcare System have received notice from the IRS informing them their pension plan was now considered a “church plan.”
Pension Rights Center Statement on Saint Peter’s Healthcare System “Church Plan” Ruling from the IRS
WASHINGTON – Last week, Saint Peter’s University Hospital employees and retirees were notified that the Internal Revenue Service had issued a Private Letter Ruling saying that their pension plan is a “church plan.” If allowed to stand, the ruling will mean that the pension plan will no longer be protected by ERISA (the Employee Retirement […]
IRS grants church-plan status to St. Peter’s Healthcare System
The IRS has granted church-plan status to the defined benefit pension plan of Saint Peter’s Healthcare System, New Brunswick, N.J., exempting it from Employee Retirement Income Security Act rules on reporting, minimum contributions and paying premiums to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.
Courts, Rather Than IRS, May Be Arbiter Of Church Plan Exemption, Practitioners Say
Recent Internal Revenue Service rulings on the “church plan” status of retirement plans sponsored by large hospital systems, including a ruling apparently received by the Saint Peter’s Healthcare System Retirement Plan, indicate that the IRS is disinclined to modify its long-standing interpretation of church plan exemption under federal pension law, practitioners told BNA Aug. 23.
