Fundamentals of Private Pensions

by McGill, Dan M.; Brown, Kyle N.; Haley, John J.; Schieber, Sylvester J.

• ISBN13: 9780199269501
• ISBN10: 0199269505
• Edition: 8th
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-02-17
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

For almost five decades, Fundamentals of Private Pensions has been the most authoritative text and reference book on private pensions in the world. The revised and updated Eighth Edition adds to past knowledge while providing exciting new perspectives on the provision of retirement income. This new edition is organized into six main sections dealing with a variety of separable pension issues. Section I provides an introductory discussion on the historical evolution of the pension movement and how pensions fit into the patchwork of the whole retirement income security system in the United States. It includes a discussion about the economics of the tax incentives that have played a role in stimulating pension offerings and in the structure of the benefits provided. Section 2 lays out the regulatory environment in which private pension plans operate. Section 3 investigates the various forms of retirement plans that are available to workers to determine how they are structured in practical terms. Section 4 focuses on the economics of pensions. Several of the chapters in this section update and refine material from the prior. New chapters in this volume describe the conversion of some traditional pensions to new hybrid forms, including cash balance and pension equity plans, and the growing phenomenon of phased retirement and the issues raised for employer-sponsored pensions. Section 5 explores the funding and accounting environments in which private employer-sponsored retirement plans operate. The concluding section investigates the handling of assets in employer-sponsored plans and their valuation as well as the insurance provision behind the benefit promises implied by the plans. This latest edition of Fundamentals of Private Pensions will prove invaluable reading for both academics and professionals working in the area of pensions and pension management.

Table of Contents

List of Figures	ix
List of Tables	xiii
Preface	xxi
Section I. Introduction
Underlying Forces	3	(36)
Public Pension Programs	39	(15)
Economics of Tax Preferences for U.S. Retirement Plans	54	(25)
Section II. The Regulatory Environment
Historical Review of Pension Regulation	79	(19)
Basic Regulatory Environment and Plan Qualification Requirements	98	(29)
Coverage, Nondiscrimination, and Integration with Social Security	127	(32)
Tax Consequences--Distributions and Contributions	159	(24)
Form of Doing Business and Transactional Considerations	183	(25)
Fiduciary Responsibility and Participant Rights	208	(27)
Section III. The Structure of Private Retirement Plans
Defined Benefit Design: Retirement and Ancillary Benefits	235	(38)
Defined Contribution Plan Design Features	273	(36)
Hybrid Defined Benefit Plan Designs	309	(18)
Individual Tax-Favored Savings Plans	327	(26)
Section IV. Design and Delivery of Retirement Benefit Programs
Overall Objectives in Designing a Retirement Program	353	(21)
Financing of Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans	374	(27)
Total Retirement Income: Setting Goals and Meeting Them	401	(43)
Dealing with Risks of Outliving Retirement Resources	444	(35)
Human Resource Incentives in Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans	479	(40)
Motivations and Ramifications for the Shift to Hybrid Pensions	519	(33)
Changing the End of Work--Phased Retirement	552	(43)
Section V. Pension Funding and Accounting
Actuarial Cost Factors	595	(22)
Benefit Allocation Actuarial Cost Methods	617	(28)
Cost Allocation Actuarial Cost Methods	645	(21)
Pension Cost Illustrations and Forecasts	666	(13)
Approaches to Meeting the Financial Obligations of a Defined Benefit Plan	679	(33)
Pension Accounting	712	(25)
Section VI. Assets and Insurance
Management of Pension Plan Assets: Policy	737	(26)
Management of Pension Plan Assets: Operations	763	(35)
Plan Termination and Plan Benefits Insurance	798	(37)
Index	835