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: The title for this session is a little ambiguous. The panelists do not say much about the ins and outs of how to tax retirement income plans. Rather, they talk about why tax policy works as it does and how it relates to pension policy. It becomes evident from the discussion that pension policy and tax policy are hard to separate. From the Record of the Society of Actuaries Vol. 17, No. 3B.

Description: This open forum is from the 1991 Meeting of the Society of Actuaries, held June 3-5 in Colorado Springs. The panelists discuss actual experiences related to consulting on plan design issues, including the effect of regulatory restriction on plan design, such as the nondiscrimination rules, further application of cash balance plans, and other recent developments that affect plan design. Discussion from participants is included. From the Record of Society of Actuaries Vol. 17, No. 3B.

Description: The 2020 ERISA Advisory Council of the Department of Labor had a project on Considerations for Recognizing and Addressing Participants with Diminished Capacity. I delivered testimony to the ERSIA Advisory Council on this topic in September 2020. This article summarizes some key points from the testimony and also offers ideas for how employers can help employees and retirees deal with these issues. There are two different audiences that employers deal with as a result of diminished capacity – the individuals whose capacity is diminished, and those who help them.

Description: Retirement isn't a solo endeavor and the prospect of retirement looks starkly different depending on your family, your generation, your income and a host of other socioeconomic factors. The presenters will review the study, 'Financial Perspectives on Aging and Retirement Across the Generations' with an eye towards how these findings impact public policy, plan design for employers and financial planning for individuals and families.

Description: This article describes Singapore's Central Provident Fund and how it involves government, employers and employees in a cooperative partnership for mandatory savings and investment to assist with the primary lifetime goals of home ownership, medical care and retirement provision.

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 essay explores the role that the emerging defined contribution retirement system may be playing in the growth of wealth inequality in the United States. The current system leaves many Americans with little or no retirement savings. Those with higher accumulation levels appear to invest proportionally more in equities, which may have an exponential effect of balances over long time periods. The author hypothesizes that willingness to take investment risk involves the relationship between the amount an investor has accumulated and what she/he needs in order to cover basic costs of living. This is one reason that investors with greater accumulation levels may be able to earn higher rates of return. The essay concludes by suggesting that the U.S. defined contribution system should include all workers and provide additional fiduciary guidance. Examples reforms, both in the U.S. and other countries, are provided.

Description: Chapter 8 describes the behavior of the AFOREs, how the funds could have performed minus the restrictions, and private company performance. From Retrospective and Perspective Analysis of the Privatized Mandatory Pension System in Mexico, M-RS02-1.

Description: Chapter 2 examines the long history of social security in Mexico, noting that for most of its history, Mexican social security was highly selective and never universal. From Retrospective and Perspective Analysis of the Privatized Mandatory Pension System in Mexico, M-RS02-1.