Establishing a Disaster Recovery Plan for an Employee Benefit Plan

David Dorsey, CPA

Employee benefit plans are designed to try to juggle the pressures of day-to-day benefit processing, adjusting for constant changes from federal and state regulators and ensuring that the Plan is fiscally fit.  It is therefore easy to understand why so many Plans overlook some of the most obvious risk exposures that could cause a catastrophic problem for the Plan participants and the fiduciaries charged with the responsibility of running the Plan.  Disasters come in many different forms […]

September 16, 2011 Accounting, Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

DOL Reporting Update: Form 8955-SSA

David Miller

Form 8955-SSA, which replaces the old Schedule SSA for the Form 5500, has finally been released.

On June 18, 2011, the IRS released the final 2009 version of the Form 8955-SSA.  It will be used for retirement plans to report deferred vested participants for plan years starting during 2009.  The 2009 Form can also be used to report the same information for 2010 plan years.  The information that plans will be reporting is in a very similar format to […]

September 16, 2011 Accounting, Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

Should a Payroll Audit Program Be Rigid or Flexible?

Posting by Larry Beebe, CPA

Payroll auditors continue to debate whether payroll audit programs should be rigid or flexible.  Here is what our book, Payroll Auditing: A Guide for Multi-Employer Plans, says on the subject:

There are two types of audit programs.  One is very rigid.  The auditor must perform every step in the audit program and should not deviate from the steps shown.  The other audit program allows flexibility and audit judgment on the part of the auditor.  Certain steps […]

March 29, 2011 Benefit Plan Accounting, Payroll Audit Read more...

Market Recovery Programs

Posting by Ron Chandler

Since the work slow down over the last few years in the construction industry,  the building trades crafts have tried various programs to keep their workers busy and maintain or improve market share.  One program, of which there are many different variations on a theme, is the “Market Recovery Program,” for which there are special agreements.

Recently we have found several of these Market Recovery Agreements.  These agreements usually have reduced contribution rates for different types of […]

February 14, 2011 Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

Where Is The Overtime?

Posting by Mary Stigge, CPA

I performed a payroll audit on a plumbing contractor and my review of three years of records showed no overtime hours being reported. However, the contractor advertised “24/7” service and a review of invoices to customers revealed emergency calls on holidays, nights and weekends. We found that overtime was being paid in cash and/or was being paid by an alter ego company who was not making benefit contributions.

October 18, 2010 Benefit Plan Accounting, Payroll Audit Read more...

PRECISE RECORD KEEPING REQUIRED ON ALL CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTIONS

Glenn Bailey, CPA

There have recently been a series of cases decided by the Tax Courts disallowing charitable contributions due to a lack of proper documentation about them. The rules here (under Code Section 170(f)(8)) are precise and strict:

Contributions of $250 or more must be supported by a written acknowledgement from the recipient organization dated prior to your return filing that states the amount of cash contributed and/or a description of any property other than cash,
A statement […]

April 24, 2010 Accounting, Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

PENSION CONTRIBUTIONS FOR THOSE OVER 70 AND A HALF YEARS OLD

Glenn Bailey, CPA

A client asked me the other day if she should contribute to her Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) plan since she was almost 70 and a half and would just have to take required minimum distributions (RMD) soon.  “Why bother when I just have to take it back out?” she asked, “unless there is an exception because I am still earning at quite a hefty level – for a girl anyway.”
Explaining the Pension Options
So I explained the options […]

April 8, 2010 Accounting, Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

Lack of Cooperation by the Employer – Reason 2

Posting by Larry Beebe, CPA

Refused to Allow the Audit in the Time Period Selected by the Auditor

It is reasonable to ask the employer why the audit cannot be scheduled when it is convenient for the auditor.  If the reason does not appear to have substance, then the plan’s collection attorney can be asked to intervene to gain acceptance of the date planned by the auditor.

If the reason given by the employer appears valid, then ask the employer for alternative […]

February 12, 2010 Benefit Plan Accounting, Payroll Audit Read more...

IFEBP Annual Conference and Collection Procedures Institute

Posting by Larry Beebe, CPA

The International Foundation’s 55th Annual Benefits Conference in Orlando, Florida on November 8-11, 2009 is rapidly approaching.  The annual conference covers a wide breadth of topics including fiduciary responsibility, pension, health & welfare, investments, general topics and specific topics for accountants, attorneys and others.  Specific sessions dealing with collection employer contributions include:
Session 108 – Fiduciary Responsibility in Collections
Session 408 – What’s New in Collections

I will be there as an instructor and also as an attendee.  […]

October 13, 2009 Benefit Plan Accounting, Firm News & Events Read more...