Defined Benefits

• Public pension employees skip Hawaii conference

  By Oskar Garcia  |  May 20, 2013

  Organizers of an annual conference for people who manage more than $3 trillion in public sector pension funds say administrators are skipping this year's meeting in Hawaii to avoid the perception they're wasting money by heading to the island paradise.

• Lump sum pension payouts gaining in popularity

  By Paula Aven Gladych  |  May 17, 2013

  The number of organizations taking advantage of new rules regarding lump sum pension payout offerings increased dramatically in 2012.

• Nebraska lawmakers override retirement bill veto

  By Grant Schulte  |  May 16, 2013

  Nebraska lawmakers on Tuesday overrode Gov. Dave Heineman's veto of a public-employee retirement bill, holding in place a deal that was struck to shore up the retirement plans of teachers, judges and state patrol troopers.

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  Income-based premiums triple Medicare costs under PPACA

  By Robert Bloink, William H. Byrnes  |  May 15, 2013

  New rules put into effect under PPACA can impact retirement income planning in ways your clients might not yet realize, by increasing their Medicare premiums proportionally as income increases.

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  Low interest rates wallop retirees

  By Melanie Waddell  |  May 14, 2013

  The low-interest-rate environment “has an extremely large impact on failure rates” when it comes to meeting retirement goals, says EBRI.

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  Neb. Gov. Heineman vetoes teacher retirement bill

  By Grant Schulte  |  May 14, 2013

  Heineman said the additional funding was unsustainable, but would sign a short-term fix if lawmakers passed it as a standalone measure.

• NY state’s pension fund hits record $160 billion

  By Michael Virtanen  |  May 13, 2013

  The New York pension fund for state and local government workers has topped $160 billion after reporting a 10.4 percent return on investment for its last fiscal year.

• PBGC to cover pension benefits of defunct N.J. hospital

  By Paula Aven Gladych  |  May 10, 2013

  In a reversal of a prior decision, the PBGC has agreed to pay pension benefits to 800 former hospital employees in New Jersey.

• OPM taking smaller steps in drive to modernize

  By Paula Aven Gladych  |  May 10, 2013

  Modernization efforts at the Office of Personnel Management have been scrapped in favor of smaller-scale improvements.

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  Illinois committee passes union-backed pension plan

  By Sara Burnett  |  May 10, 2013

  The state Senate committee says it offers the best chance at surviving an inevitable court challenge and getting out of its nearly $100 billion mess.