Description: The purpose of this paper is to outline some of the points to be considered in arriving at a method of making cost estimates and funding calculations and their practical application.

Description: This is a discussion of the title paper by Raymond F. Houseman, which provides some practical aspects of various funding methods. The paper is critiqued, and some alternative methods are discussed.

Description: This paper demonstrates how, under the projected benefit cost methods whereby the gains are reflected in the normal cost rate, gains determined at a given valuation date are amortized over the future working lifetime of the active employees included in the valuation as of that date.

Description: These notes are a follow-up to the paper 'Introduction to the Dynamics of Pension Funding' by the same authors and published in Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1976, Vol. 28. The purpose of that paper was to provide an introduction to mathematical principles applicable to pension funding under dynamic conditions of population growth, inflation, and automatic adjustment of benefits. The first note discusses a general contribution formula and a number of special cases and modifications. The second note concerns aggregate cost funding when the actuary uses assumptions about cost factors which differ consistently from cost experience. The final note concerns the variation of the annuity unit under a variable annuity program patterned after the plan employed by the College Retirement Equities Fund [CREF]. From Actuarial Research Clearing House 1981, Vol. 1.

Description: In this paper, a general model for a pension plan involving growth with respect to the population, salaries, and retirement benefits is used to study contribution patterns that may arise under different actuarial cost methods. Detailed results are presented for the case where the growth of population and the growth of salaries are described by exponential functions. Economic implications are presented and discussed. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1979, Vol. 31.

Description: An extension of a paper published in the 1952 Transactions by the same author, describing and classifying various funding methods for defined benefit pension plans. Followed by discussion papers submitted by several authors.

Description: This section contains multiple book reviews and notices concerning the actuarial profession. Reviews: 'Medical Risks: Patterns of Mortality and Survival' by Singer and Levinson, 'The Theory and Practice of Pension Funding' by Trowbridge and Farr, 'Two Stochastic Processes' by Beekman, 'Disability Income Insurance - Cost Differentials between Men and Women' by New York Insurance Department, 'Social Security and Private Pension Plans: Competitive or Complementary' by McGill, 'A New Look at Accounting for Pension Costs' by Hall and Landsittel, '1977 Annual Reports of the Board of Trustees of the Federal OASDI Trust Funds...,' 'Investigation of Sickness Statistics - Individual Policies, 1971 and 1973' by the Institute of Actuaries and the Faculty of Actuaries, 'The Graduation of Pensioners and of Annuitants Mortality Experience 1967-70' by the Institute of Actuaries and the Faculty of Actuaries, 'Pensions and Survival - the Coming Crisis of Money and Retirement' by Calvert, 'Group Benefits in a Changing Society' by Spencer, 'Experience of Disabled Work Benefits under OASDI 1965-74' by Bayo and Wilkin. Digests also included.

Description: The purpose of this report is to describe our modified approach, provide our rationale, and identify as best we can the alternatives put forward by actuaries who do not share our views.

Description: This study examines reductions in retirement benefits from the decline in defined benefit plans and increases in defined contribution plans during the past 20 years and what effect this has on workforce management. In particular how this change is affecting older workers’ decisions to retire and what effect this could have on companies. An underlying assumption implicit in evaluating the benefit of retirement of older workers is that productivity declines in old age while pay does not, leading to a pay productivity gap that could have an adverse effect on the employer from delayed retirement. The validity of this assumption was also examined.

Description: Both company and employee objectives with regard to pension plan funding tend to enhance employee security in its broadest sense, and differences are primarily those of emphasis. Company stress is apt to be on flexible pension contributions within the framework of stable long-range costs, while employee stress- when not on increased benefits- is likely to be on the funding of accrued benefits. The purpose of this paper is to examine certain funding guidelines which reflect both viewpoints in a logical and consistent fashion. It is concerned with principles as well as with the broad impact of actuarial assumptions and cost methods but is not concerned with specific application of the latter. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1966, Vol. 18, Pt. 1, No. 51.