Break from the Grind October 14, 2016

SURVEY SAYS: Which Dwarf Are You?

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Last week, I asked NewsDash readers, “Which of the seven dwarfs from “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” personifies you most―Dopey, Sneezy, Sleepy, Bashful, Grumpy, Happy or Doc―and why?”

The good news is the largest percentage of responding readers (26.4%) chose Happy. This was followed by Sleepy, at 20.7%. Slightly more than 13% said none of the seven dwarfs personified them best.

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Dopey received 3.8% of reader votes, while Grumpy and Doc were each selected by 7.5% of readers. Sneezy received 9.4% of reader votes and Bashful received 11.3%.

When asked for reasons for their selections, many who chose to leave a reason noted that it was hard to pick just one because they have characteristics of several dwarfs or the dwarf that personifies them most could change depending on the day and circumstances. A few suggested other dwarf names. Editor’s Choice goes to the reader who said: “It’s best to stay Happy or you’ll turn Grumpy, get sick and need Doc which will give you something to make you Sleepy, Sneezy and Dopey.”

Thanks to everyone who participated in the survey!

Verbatim 

Best fit for my view on life

My charm and chubby good looks. And I chose because other names were not listed, such as sleezy, dorky, and spacy...

16.5 years later with two teenagers and work, the couch acts like a bed whenever I sit down for even just a few minutes.

I think I am a little bit of all of them at different times, depending on the circumstance, but I like to be the Happy dwarf most of all

I think Doc personifies me the most because I'm always trying to help and make things better for those around me - I'm a fixer.

Which am I? Well, it’s not Sneezy, even though I'm always battling allergies. Life is way too short to work like a Doc, Sleep all day, or be Bashful. I'd hate to be Dopey or Grumpy, so I'm declaring myself "Happy"! YES, I'm Happy, Happy, Happy! Saying it three times makes it true!

I can be shy with new people

While I have some traits from each of the dwarfs (yes, even Dopey!), I chose Doc because I think I am smart, and he was the smartest of the bunch.

I'd have to say Sleepy. Not so much sleepy though as I am tired. Tired of the same thing every day.

Bashful -- because I'm very shy and uncomfortable in large groups

While "Happy" would probably be my best overall choice, since I just spent several hours having a battery of allergy testing done, today I would most definitely say "Sneezy". 🙂

I have a drive for intellect and wisdom.

I am always trying to fix someone. Really on any given day I am probably one of them except Dopey I am never dopey!

I have been tired since the day my daughter was born.

I'm Happy but in a Dopey kind of way!

Sleepy - because it is early and I wish I were still in bed. I can also identify with Happy, Grumpy, Bashful, and Sneezy, depending on the day. Doc and Dopey, not so much. At least I hope not.

I try to see the bright side of things. I'm the perky morning person that people seem to hate!

Since there's no "all of the above" choice, I selected None. Which dwarf depends on the day, time of day and subject at hand.

I chose bashful as I am an introvert surrounded by extroverts.

My allergies are defining my life at the moment, at least in the mornings. The moment I wake up, my nose starts running and the sneezing kicks in!

I personify each one depending on the day of the week.

Because it is October 13th, and I work for a small plan TPA firm. It is the season of DB deadlines one after the other - 9/15 contributions, 9/30 AFTAPs and now 10/15 due date for 5500s. Next week I will be Sleepy.

Long days at work coupled with a long commute leaves little time for sleep.

Verbatim (cont.) 

I think at different times I may be all of them! But if you asked some of my colleagues, they might say I'm Sneezy - I seem to sneeze quite often at the office. Maybe I'm allergic to work!

I'm a split personality today in that I am both Sleepy and Grumpy. Mainly because it's just "one of those weeks."

As the song says, "Life's been good to me so far..." so I guess Happy is me.

It's best to stay Happy or you'll turn Grumpy, get sick and need Doc which will give you something to make you Sleepy, Sneezy and Dopey.

Can't pick only one since I'm Grumpy at work, Happy when I'm on vacation and Sleepy when I'm in bed.

I have this "allergy" that from time to time causes me to sneeze exactly 17 times. As did my father and as does my son. It is not a blessing.

Because I'm bashful...

Sleepy because sleeping is my hobby.

I am all of them...., today I am sneezy, Monday I was sleepy, yesterday I was happy, the story would not have been the same if they only had 1 dwarf that was all of these things and more.

I could be all of these at different times, but overall, there needs to be one called Workaholic! I REALLY need to break that habit!

I tend to have a smile on face and a happy attitude, until some twit butt comes along and wipes it off. 🙂

I'm Grumpy or Sleepy during the week, but I'm Happy on the weekend!

Bashful - it's just my nature to be quiet and a bit shy. It took all of my courage to force myself to be able to stand in the front of a large room and conduct employee benefits meetings when I first got into this field. It's gotten much easier over the years but I will never forget those first meetings - terrifying!

I'd be "Legalesey", as I've been knee-deep in documents for so long I'm told I sound like one.

I can sleep just about anywhere. I get to work an hour and a half early and take a 45 minute nap. I nap for 15 minutes during lunch. I actually once napped during my band's practice while other members were taking their time figuring out a difficult part of a song with my head next to a large speaker. They were amazed that I could sleep with the loud music. The sound of a fan or anything with a droning sound will put me to sleep. There's nothing like a quick nap to recharge and refresh!

Because I'm always sleepy and could fall asleep about anywhere/anytime. Plus, I love sleeping. I know you don't want to sleep your life away, but sleeping is great!

I'm lucky.

Being optimistic, choosing to look for positives and keeping good friends makes every day better in a virtuous cycle that makes it easier to be happy.

My husband calls me "Pollyanna." I just believe life is better when you look for the best in all things; in people and events. Because I am looking for the good, I find it. Once you realize there is good in world, there is no reason not to be happy!

When I sneeze, I occasionally get a "bless you" e-mail from down the hall or from another floor

I try to keep a positive outlook on life.

I had to Google Dopey's personality to be sure and found that yup, I'm silly, playful, simple, and not entirely dim-witted. I couldn't go with Happy because the older I get the more Grumpy I'm turning.

I actually wanted to select all, as at various times all of the names fit my mood/personality, but sadly.... due to lack of sleep, a stressful job and demanding family life - Grumpy seems to be the most dominant dwarf personality.

NOTE: Responses reflect the opinions of individual readers and not necessarily the stance of Asset International or its affiliates.
Compliance October 14, 2016

IRS Releases Information About Compliance Projects

In two completed projects, the IRS found some 403(b) plans are making W-2 reporting errors, and some retirement plans were not properly vesting participants during a partial termination. The IRS is focusing on SIMPLE IRA plan eligibility.
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The Internal Revenue Service has released results of two completed Employee Plans Compliance Unit (EPCU) projects and announced a new project.

The EPCU Ineligible Employer-403(b) Plans Project was designed to educate Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 501(c)(3) organizations whose tax-exempt status had been automatically revoked pursuant to IRC Section 6033(j) to ensure an employer eligibility failure had not occurred in the sponsoring of an IRC Section 403(b) plan.

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The Project goals were to:

  • Determine if the box 12 code on Forms W-2 was correctly reported;
  • Determine whether or not the organization sponsored an IRC Section 403(b) plan;
  • Verify the sponsor eligibility for an IRC Section 403(b) plan;
  • Advise the organization on corrective actions necessary with regards to their IRC Section 403(b) plan; and
  • Educate IRC Section 403(b) sponsors regarding a written plan document.

The EPCU sent contact letters to 67 entities from the Automatic Revocation of Exemption List that also filed a 2010 Form W-2 reporting employees with IRC Section 403(b) elective deferrals.

Responses showed that the majority of the plan sponsors were educational organizations still eligible to sponsor their IRC Section 403(b) plan. However, some employers incorrectly reported IRC Section 403(b) plan deferrals in box 12 showing that the accuracy of the box 12 codes, in addition to Form 990 filing, is still a concern.

More information is here. 

NEXT: Partial Termination/Partial Vesting Project

In its Partial Termination/Partial Vesting Project, the EPCU contacted Form 5500 return filers that reported a decrease in plan participants and had participants that were not 100% vested and were terminated from employment. The contact made was to determine if the plan experienced a partial termination. If a partial termination did occur, the goal of this project was to determine whether plan administrators were complying with the vesting requirements of IRC Section 411(d)(3).

Over a span of three years, nearly 2,000 letters were sent. Approximately half of the contacts were due to errors on the Form 5500 return. In many of these cases, the plan sponsors amended their returns and corrected the errors. Taxpayers made errors in participant counts.

Also, a significant number of plans had fully vested all their participants as a result of a partial termination but it was indicated on their Form 5500 that there were participants who were not fully vested.

The plan administrators misinterpreted the Form 5500. They counted eligible participants who chose not to participate in their 401(k) plan as not being fully vested. Some plans did not experience a partial termination because account balances were transferred to another plan but failed to indicate on Form 5500 Schedule H that the assets were in fact transferred to another plan.

Approximately 30% of the cases were closed as “no change” cases. In almost 10% of the cases, it was determined during the compliance check that a partial termination had occurred and affected participants had not been fully vested.

More information about the results of this project is here. 

NEXT: A new compliance project

The ECPU is undergoing a SIMPLE IRA Plans - Eligible Sponsors Project. The information it has indicates some entities sponsor a SIMPLE IRA plan, but appear to employ more than 100 employees who earn at least $5,000. The goal of the project is to ensure that employers sponsoring a SIMPLE IRA plan are eligible to sponsor those plans.

Code section 408 allows employees and employers to contribute to traditional IRAs set up for employees’ own retirement savings. Employees may choose to make salary reduction contributions and the employer is required to make either matching or non-elective contributions.

An “eligible employer” means an employer which had no more than 100 employees who received at least $5,000 of compensation from the employer for the preceding year. An eligible employer who establishes and maintains a plan under this subsection for one or more years and who fails to be an eligible employer for any subsequent year shall be treated as an eligible employer for the two years following the last year the employer was an eligible employer.

More information is here.

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