Products September 5, 2018

ICI Launches FactsOnRetirement.org

The site takes on myths about the U.S. retirement system and offers tips on saving.

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The Investment Company Institute (ICI) has launched a new website, FactsOnRetirement.org, which highlights its research and suggests that America’s retirement system is strong.

The site takes on myths about the system and offers tips for those who want to learn more about saving for retirement.

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“ICI has a team of experts dedicated to studying the U.S. retirement system, and FactsOnRetirement will help make their work more readily available and easily accessible to the growing body of academics, policymakers and the public who are engaged on this important issue,” says ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens. “Whether you’re new to this issue or a seasoned expert, we believe this site will be a valuable resource that shows how we can build on the strengths of the current system to enhance retirement savings and security in the United States.”

The site has four sections. The “Retirement by the Numbers” section highlights ICI research. The section notes that total retirement assets have increased from $469 billion in 1975 to $28 trillion today, seven times as much, per household, after inflation.

The “Myth vs. Fact” section dispels some misleading claims about the retirement system. For instance, while it is often said that most workers are not covered by a workplace retirement plan, nearly three-quarters of individual tax filers with incomes of $20,000 or more and joint filers with incomes of $40,000 or more participate in retirement plans either directly or through a spouse.

The “Tips for Savers” offers a step-by-step explanation of how workers can take better advantage of workplace retirement plans, and the “Additional Resources” directs viewers to more extensive research and source materials that can be found at ICI.org.

Compliance September 4, 2018

Court Order to Pay Pensions Leads Archdiocese of San Juan to File Bankruptcy

The U.S. Supreme Court denied the archdiocese’s application for a temporary reprieve from a court order to pay $4.7 million to both retired and active teachers; however, filing for bankruptcy temporarily freezes all litigation.

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The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Juan, Puerto Rico, filed for bankruptcy amid a legal battle over the payment of teacher pensions.

 

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According to news reports, enrollment in Catholic schools has declined as residents have left the territory due to a 12-year recession, and the devastation caused by Hurricane Maria last year has exacerbated the problem.

 

In 2016, the archdiocese notified several hundred teachers that their pension payments were being stopped because payouts exceeded contributions. The teachers filed a lawsuit, and earlier this year, a judge ordered the archdiocese to pay $4.7 million to both retired and active teachers. Among other things, the teachers’ alleged in their original complaint that the multiemployer plan set up by the church for Catholic School employees was set up as an Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) plan, but plan fiduciaries, including service providers, failed to comply with ERISA.

 

The U.S. Supreme Court denied the archdiocese’s application for a temporary reprieve from the pension judgment; however, filing for bankruptcy temporarily freezes all litigation, giving the archdiocese time to negotiate a plan to pay creditors.

 

“The archdiocese no longer has money to operate,” Carmen Conde, an attorney for the archdiocese, told The Associated Press. “The embargo caused an economic and administrative crisis.”

 

As a result of the embargo, according to Conde, about 75 employees of the archdiocese have been laid off, dozens of parishes have been negatively affected, all charity work has stopped, the archdiocese cannot pay its utility bills and it is relying on volunteers to keep functioning.

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