Description: A pension plan uses Actuarial Equivalence to determine a 'fair' adjustment to pension benefits for form and timing of payment. The definition of Actuarial Equivalence is set in the Plan Document which may not have been reviewed for decades. With a wave of recent pension litigation in the U.S., plan sponsors, attorneys and actuaries now pay more attention to how pension plans define Actuarial Equivalence. How does a change in mortality table or interest rate affect the ultimate benefit? What are the requirements under ERISA and pertinent regulations? Are there court cases that have examined this question before? What are the issues behind the recent lawsuits and what can a plan sponsor do now to reduce their legal exposure? What alternative strategies are available for changing or not changing the definition in the plan document?

Description: This session from the 1995 SOA Boston Meeting focuses on recent legislative and regulatory developments in the U.S. including new IRS regulations, the Department of Labor, the SEC, the new CPI table and court decisions. From the Record of the Society of Actuaries, Vol. 21, No. 4b.

Description: This 1981 discussion session covers Government and Pension Reports, in particular, reports from the U.S. President's Commission on Pension Policy, the National Commission on Social Security, the Canadian Lazar Report, and the Report of the Ontario Royal Commission on Pensions. This discussion also covers the implications of these reports for the pension business in the United States and Canada.

Description: This presentation was made at the 1975 Spring Cincinnati Joint Meeting of the Conference of Actuaries in Public Practice and Society of Actuaries and it highlights the following issues: What are the retirement needs of a population?, what are suitable methods of providing social insurance, private pensions,and savings?, what are the political, economic, and sociological implications of various solutions?, and what perspective on this problem does Canadian experience provide.

Description: Policymakers often turn to elaborate computer models to assess the effect of proposed changes in Social Security or pension laws and regulations. At this session, descriptions of these models and their methods are presented, including a review of the models' capabilities and limitations. The potential for use by actuaries in connection with these models is also discussed. From Record of Society of Actuaries, Volume 26, No. 1.

Description: This session discussion is about the effect of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 and proposed regulations on Section 401L. From Record of the Society of Actuaries Vol. 15, No. 3A.

Description: This sessions from the 1995 SOA Vancouver Meeting covers the pension actuary's role in the 'top fifty' process, the PBGC's annual list of those companies with the largest underfunding for guaranteed benefits. It also covers FAS87 and the 10k filing. From the Record of the Society of Actuaries, Vol. 21, No, 3a.

Description: This discussion on retirement plans for the self-employed reviews encouragement given to plans through tax relief resulting in their more widespread use in Canada and Great Britain as well as the outlook for similar legislation in the United States. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1957, Vol. 9, No. 25.

Description: This panel discussion is from the 1991 Meeting of the Society of Actuaries, held June 3-5 in Colorado Springs. The panelists discuss the future, if any, of defined-benefit pension plans, and whether they have been “legislated” out of existence, in particular the role of the Internal Revenue Service as the primary regulator of pension plans. From the Record of Society of Actuaries Vol. 17, No. 3B.

Description: This session discussion is a review proposals to modify the plan termination provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. Current projections of the corporate funding problems and the alternatives under consideration will be included. From Record of the Society of Actuaries Vol. 14, No. 1.