Administration January 16, 2008

CT Close to Teachers' Pension Fund Bond Sale

January 16, 2008 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A $2 billion pension bond sale by the state of Connecticut, intended to help close the $6.9 billion funding shortfall in the state's teachers' pension program, is close to being a realty, Governor M. Jodi Rell announced.
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In  a Web announcement , Rell said final approval by the state Bond Commission is expected at the panel’s January 25 meeting. Rell contended that the teachers’ pension shortfall was largely caused by decisions under prior state chief executives to not fully fund the retirement program.

The fund currently contains $10.2 billion in assets, which represents 59.5% of its future obligations. According to Rell, the investment of $2 billion at the fund’s actuarial investment rate of 8.5% is expected to “significantly” reduce the funding shortfall.

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A new law authorized the bond sale to reduce the liability. The legislation also requires the state to fund the Teachers’ Retirement Fund at 100% of the actuarially recommended contribution each year over the life of the bonds.

“We demand much from teachers – and rightfully so, since they are the ones we trust to educate our most precious resource,” Rell said in the announcement. “Teachers, in turn, trust state government to make good on its commitments to them, now and in the future. We must keep our promises, not only to current teachers but to those we hope to encourage to enter the profession in the future.”

The budget signed in 2006 by Governor Rell authorized $245.6 million to fully finance the Teachers’ Retirement Fund for fiscal years 2006 and 2007. The new state budget also provides for full payments in fiscal years 2008 and 2009.

Products January 15, 2008

ExpertPlan Expands Payroll Alliances

January 15, 2008 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Private-label recordkeeper ExpertPlan linked up with five more payroll firms last month, providing each firm with its own fully branded 401(k) product.
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The payroll companies signing up are: Payroll Computing Services (Freeport, New York), Payroll Dynamics (Hauppauge, New York), Payroll Link (Rancho Cucamonga, California), Pinnacle Business Services (Monterey, California), and Southland Data Processing (Upland, California). Having the three California companies on board has resulted in ExpertPlan continuing its expansion of retirement plans on the West Coast, according to the firm.

According to a press release, the East Windsor, New Jersey based ExpertPlan now boasts seven new payroll partners since launching its private label 401(k) program within the payroll channel in late 2007. The company, which now has a dedicated sales and relationship management team devoted solely to supporting the needs of payroll partners, anticipates bringing in over a dozen more payroll companies in 2008.

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You can find out more about ExpertPlan at

Information about their new payroll partners is available at the links below:

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