Description: The article analyzes Private Letter Ruling 202031008, which considers how Internal Revenue Code sections 72(q) and (u) apply to an annuity contract issued to a trust. In particular, the Ruling interprets the terms “taxpayer,” “holder” and “held by” in those Code sections in situations where a non-qualified deferred annuity contract is issued to a grantor trust or a non-grantor trust. The Ruling’s analysis and conclusions differ in some respects depending on which of these types of trusts is involved. In addition, although the Ruling does not address sections 72(s) or 72(e)(4)(C), the Ruling has potential implications under those provisions because they also use the term “holder” and “holds,” respectively.

Description: This article is about papers submitted in response to a Retirement 20/20 call for submission of papers about Tier II retirement systems, i.e. those that are employer-provided retirement benefits that fit between social insurance and private savings.

Description: This article discusses how the SOA exams have changed over the years and the reasons for the changes. The current system focuses on actuarial education, balances examination rigor with educational experience, and uses technology - where appropriate - to facilitate and enhance learning outcomes.

Description: The October/November 2013 edition of The Actuary magazine—the Society of Actuaries’ flagship publication.

Description: This article gives a listing of outside vendors and resources for supporting a small office. Resources include IT support, organizations, professional services, and internet resources.

Description: This article explains the importance of centralizing modeling departments. It goes further and explains the importance of making all aspects of modeling reusable. It explains the consequences of decentralization.

Description: Description of methods for extracting and reformatting the existing mortality tables using R. Methods and formats for storage are discussed in the second article. Intent is to generate discussion regarding the format of our stored mortality tables. Value is in the demonstration of task automation in R and in the reduction of duplicate work across companies related to reformatting tables.

Description: This article explores the evolving role of assumption management in the life insurance industry. The article highlights how behavioral, economic, and demographic assumptions are critical to pricing, forecasting, and explaining financial results, yet many insurers still struggle with fragmented practices and outdated processes. Drawing on survey insights from 15 U.S. insurers, the authors illustrate persistent challenges in governance, data integration, and automation. They argue for a more holistic, technology-enabled operating model centered on centralized assumption repositories. Such repositories provide a single source of truth, enable automated ingestion into models, support sensitivity testing, and enhance governance and transparency across actuarial, finance, and risk functions. The article offers guiding principles and design considerations for building scalable repositories that improve efficiency, consistency, and decision-making. Ultimately, it positions assumption management modernization not as a technical upgrade but as a strategic imperative to unlock clarity, agility, and competitive advantage in a complex market.

Description: The article is a chairperson’s update from Arthur da Silva on the Society of Actuaries (SOA) Emerging Topics Community, written to recap the past year’s accomplishments and outline potential priorities for the year ahead. Its intent is both informational while inviting community member participation and ideas for the year ahead. It also provides insight into the new AI subgroup and how it operates to help community members and other community leaders understand what it delivers and how to get involved.

Description: Article describing content and key takeaways from experience completing the SOA PA Certificate