Description: The Actuary Vol. 22, No. 1. This article discusses the impact of a change in procedure in the financing of the US Military Retirement System. The change requires amortizing the past service liability. The impact will depend upon whether the amortization is achieved by increasing current taxes and decreasing the current deficit, or by merely increasing the national debt and leaving the current deficit unchanged. The author asserts that the new financing method will not weaken the financial condition of the military retirement system, and that it has the potential to strengthen its financial condition if the funding of the past service liability is handled appropriately.

Description: There is no silver bullet to improving retirement income outcomes for retirees. However, a combination of changes can be of significant value in addressing this overlooked issue. Although QLACs on the surface have potential value, they are not nearly as efficient as they could be. So far, employer plans have provided limited options for retirement income solutions. IRAs may not cost effectively serve the best interest of retirees. Employer plans should be encouraged to become retirement income providers and alternative approaches should be considered. The current prohibition on allowing plans to modify benefit payouts based on mortality experience should be reconsidered to allow for innovative plan income designs. Improvements to the deaccumulation stage of the retiree nest egg are challenging yet necessary.

Description: This article is the presentation given by David Blitzstein at the Future of Pensions track at the 2005 CCA/SOA Employee Benefits Spring Meeting. It discusses the unraveling of the defined benefit pension system and what must be done to save it. From Pension Section News, September 2006, No. 62.

Description: This session discussion is about review of recent and pending legislation affecting pensions in Canada and the United States, restructuring of Canadian and U.S. pension plans as a consequence of tax reform and other pension legislation. From Record of the Society of Actuaries Vol. 13, No. 4A.

Description: In this 1981 discussion session, the panelists express their views on the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act of 1980.

Description: This paper first discusses the history of the legislation of the joint and survivor benefits for the uniformed service personnel. It then goes on to address the specific actuarial assumptions made and the formulas developed for applying these assumptions for adaptability to the UNIVAC. This paper closes with specific programming procedures involved in using the UNIVAC.

Description: This brief article notes that in a recent decision the U.S. Supreme Court touched on a fundamental issue of employee benefits philosophy, in holding that defined benefit pension plans must grant benefit accrual credit for periods of military service. The author argues that this seems contrary to current attitudes.

Description: This is an Excel spreadsheet, provided by the Society of Actuaries Pension Section, containing the interest rates and Consumer Price Index figures needed for calculating Canadian pension plan Transfer Values.

Description: Historical case study for a country Germany pursuing pension reform to address demographic problems with a desire to encourage private retirement savings.

Description: Presented at Living to 100 symposium, January 2011. This paper adapts New Zealand Maori and non-Maori population mortality data to reflect differences in socio-economic status. This adapted data is used as a basis to explore the implications of differential mortality in assessing the equity of increase in the pension age of eligibility.