Trust Updates Archive
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(October 15, 2007--Chicago, IL)--The U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration and the IRS have recently issued updates regarding pension plan filings and determining funding obligations. * DOL Field Assistance Bulletin 2007-03 --provides guidance to the agency's national and regional offices regarding when individual account plans need to furnish pension benefit statements. * DOL interactive web calculator for delinquent filers -- provides employers and plan administrators delinquent on their annual filings the ability to compute penalties owed under the Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program. Delinquent filers can avoid potentially higher civil penalty assessments by satisfying the program's requirements and voluntarily paying a reduced penalty amount. To access the calculator go to http://askebsa.dol.gov/dfvc. For further information on the Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program, contact the DOL at 202-693-8360 or go to http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/Newsroom/0302fact_sheet.html. * Advance copies of Form 5500 -- the DOL, the IRS, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation have released advance informational copies of the 2007 Form 5500 Annual Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan and related instructions. Informational copies of the forms, schedules, and instructions are available online at http://www.efast.dol.gov. * Calculating funding obligations -- The U.S. Treasury and the IRS have issued a guidance on the corporate bond yield curve and associated segment rates that will be used under the enhanced pension funding rules enacted by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA). Under PPA, Treasury was required to produce a yield curve and simplified segment rates for investment-quality corporate bonds that are in the top three quality levels for use by private pension plans in determining their funding obligations and the amounts of lump-sum payments to retirees. IRS Notice 2007-81 outlines the methodology used in producing the yield curve and provides the full yield curve and various segment rates for August 2007 together with the 23 months of historical segment rates extending back to September of 2005. The IRS will publish updates monthly along with the additional rates required under the provisions of PPA. The initial yield curve, as well as monthly updates, are available at http://www.irs.gov/retirement/article/0,,id=165131,00.html. For more on these topics, see the upcoming issue of Trust Regulatory News. No statement in this issue is offered as or should be construed as legal opinion or advice. ************ To unsubscribe to Trust Updates go to To subscribe to Trust Regulatory News send your request to "circulation@trustupdates.com" or call 800-404-2116. -- Copyright ©1992-2007 A.M. Publishing, Inc., Trust Regulatory News |