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5500 Preparer's Manual for 2012 Plan Years
The premier resource in the field of Form 5500 preparation, 5500 Preparer's Manual will help you handle the required annual Form 5500 filings for both pension benefits and welfare benefit plans.
A new study by the Society of Actuaries makes suggestions to improve pension funding that are "consistent with" the Administration's proposal to allow the PBGC to set risk-adjusted premiums, according to PBGC Director Josh Gotbaum.
The Society of Actuaries study, "The Rising Tide of Pension Contributions Post-2008: How much and when?", suggests that funding and other regulatory requirements might be eased for companies that pose less risk to the pension system, and makes other suggestions both for companies and regulators. The report includes ideas on reducing pension costs and volatility, on possible regulatory changes to strengthen pension plans, and on new approaches to manage the wide array of pension risks.
"This report recognizes that pension sponsors face real challenges," said Gotbaum, "but it also suggests ways to help companies meet them - ways that are consistent with the Administration's efforts to preserve plans."
"Sound companies should face less restrictive rules"
In its fiscal year 2012 budget, the Administration proposed giving the PBGC Board the authority to adjust premiums and directed the PBGC to take into account the risks that different sponsors pose to their retirees and to the PBGC.
"The actuaries suggest pension funding and regulatory requirements should be flexible, that sound companies with well-funded pension plans should face less restrictive rules than companies that have more risk of failure," Gotbaum said. "That's consistent with the Administration's premium proposal. The actuaries are suggesting that we consider it for funding and in other areas as well."
The actuaries' report also suggests that funding requirements might be redesigned to be countercyclical, to avoid hitting companies hardest when they can least afford to pay. Gotbaum noted that the Administration's premium proposal was designed the same way, to avoid PBGC premiums spiking when they are least affordable.
Source: PBGC News Release No. 12-01, October 11, 2011. The Society of Actuaries study is at www.soa.org.
For more information, visit http://www.wolterskluwerlb.com/rbcs.
For more information on this and related topics, consult the CCH Pension Plan Guide, CCH Employee Benefits Management, and Spencer's Benefits Reports.
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