Calendar of Events

Northwest Arkansas Human Resources Association and Tulsa Employee Benefits Group have partnered with HoganTaylor and assembled a nationally acclaimed team of ERISA experts to help you unlock the current challenges and complexities of today’s benefit plan environment. This seminar provides practical, in-depth knowledge so you can understand the recent hot topics impacting benefit plans and avoid regulatory noncompliance.

To Register--http://info.hogantaylor.com/acton/form/4337/0020:d-0001/0/index.htm

As a result of today’s session participants should learn and be able to:

That’s A Wrap – Common Management Letter Comments (Natasha)

• Review of common management and business mistakes others have made
• Learn best practice models and techniques that will keep your business in compliance with regulations
• Understand common errors found in retirement plans
• Understand how to increase the company’s bottom line by avoiding costly mistakes
• Address key practices to be in compliance and how to make necessary corrections

Investment Types (Jill)

• Understand the various types of investments and how they affect your benefit plan's investment model
• Comprehend valuation methodology and know what I am responsible for doing
• Gain a comprehension of the investment level hierarchy
• Obtain an overview of required disclosures and reporting requirements

Form 5500 and Other Reporting Requirements

• Comprehend the filing requirements and differences based on plan type
• Know the rules for counting participants and recognize all things are not counted equally
• Differentiate the various due dates and when an audit report must accompanying Form 5500s
• Consider options related to 5500 compliance issues

Definition of Compensation

• Understand the various roles compensation plays in qualified retirement plans and the impact it has on the business
• Learn the three definitions commonly used as basis for plan compensation
• Review common compensation errors and best practices in correcting the errors
• Discuss the impact these errors have on plan financial statements, cost to the plan sponsor, and ultimately to the business

Operational Testing and Controlled Group Issues (Debbie) 

• To gain an understanding of the concept of nondiscrimination as required under the Internal Revenue Code and applied to qualified retirement plans.
• To be able to answer the following key questions with regard to operational nondiscrimination testing:
  • Who is the Employer?
  • What is the Plan?
  • Who is an Employee?
  • When is an Employee a Highly Compensated or Key Employee?
  • What is Compensation?
• To gain an understanding of the application of the controlled group rules under IRC §414 to qualified retirement plans.
• To identify the various plan qualification rules, testing requirements and contribution limits that are affected by the existence of a controlled group.

Current Legal Issues (Bill or Brandon)

• Discuss recent trends and Department of Labor responses to breaches of ERISA fiduciary duty and litigation outcomes
• Recount recent trends in employer stock litigation
• Discuss recent trends in litigation relating to employee benefit plans and what it means to your organization and how your plan is administered
• Contemplate plan document compliance and evaluate restatements, amendments and determination/opinion letter updates

Handouts with reference material will be available electronically prior to the seminar. 

SPEAKERS--

Gwen Bryant—ERISA Assurance Partner, HoganTaylor LLP

Gwen Bryant serves as the leader of HoganTaylor’s Employee Benefit Plan practice, one of the largest in the Oklahoma/Northwest Arkansas region. The practice provides audit services to more than 100 defined benefit and contribution plans, including 401(k), 11K, 403(b), ESOP, and health and welfare plans, and also prepares approximately 250 Form 5500s annually.

Gwen has 17 years of experience in public accounting, specializing in audits of employee benefit plans. She is experienced in working with various retirement plans of all sizes, from start-up plans to those with more than $500 million in assets. She also has served privately held companies in many industries, including not-for-profit, architectural/engineering, manufacturing, distribution, transportation and retail.

Jill Pierce—ERISA Assurance Manager, HoganTaylor LLP

Jill Pierce is an assurance manager who devotes her professional efforts to serving HoganTaylor’s Employee Benefit Plan practice group’s clients with consulting, auditing, Form 5500 preparation and assistance with late filings through the DOL Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program (DFVCP). She also assisted in the development of the firm’s employee benefit plan methodology. Jill monitors industry developments and maintains relationships with regulatory personnel and industry leaders on a year-round basis. Jill has over nine years of experience serving employee benefit plan clients. Jill has spoken on employee benefit related issues for numerous organizations. She graduated from the University of Arkansas Jill Pierce, CPA with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in Accounting and Finance.

Natasha Morrison—ERISA Assurance Manager, HoganTaylor LLP

Natasha Morrison has more than eight years of experience in public accounting. As a member of HoganTaylor’s EBP management team, Natasha conducts extensive in-house training programs specific to accounting and auditing procedures for EBPs. Natasha graduated from Northeastern State University with a Bachelor of Business Administration with an emphasis in Accounting. Natasha is involved in various community organizations and currently serves as the Treasurer of the Tulsa Employee Benefits Group Steering Committee. She is a member of the AICPA, the Oklahoma Society of Certified Public Accountants, and attends the annual AICPA EBP National Conference.

Martha Sadler—Executive Vice President, Verisight

Martha is an Executive Vice President with Verisight, leading the Compensation and Retirement Consulting practice.  Martha has over 20 years of experience in advising retirement plan sponsors on fiduciary matters.  She is a Certified Pension Consultant, an Enrolled Retirement Plan Agent, and a member of the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries. 

Deborah Crump—Senior Vice President; Manager Plan Compliance, Bank of Oklahoma

Areas of Responsibility:  Deborah is  primarily responsible for assisting plans in maintaining compliance with regulatory requirements, including plan design consulting, drafting plan documents, performing plan testing, preparing Forms 5500, and providing ERISA and Internal Revenue Code technical support.

Brandon Long—Shareholder, Practice Group Leader, McAfee & Taft

Brandon Long is an experienced, AV Preeminent-rated employee benefits attorney who concentrates his practice on qualified retirement plans, health and welfare plans, and executive compensation. He has represented a broad range of clients, including Fortune 500 corporations, publicly traded and closely held businesses, energy companies, transportation companies, manufacturers, farmers, banks, cities, colleges, universities, Indian tribal governments, hospitals, and healthcare providers.

He currently serves as leader of the firm’s Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation Group, overseeing one of the Southwest’s largest and most experienced teams of employee benefits lawyers. He also currently serves as an elected member of the board of directors of the SouthWest Benefits Association, the region’s premier organization for benefits professionals.

Brandon’s practice is focused on matters involving 401(k) plans, defined benefit plans and employee stock ownership plans; audits and investigations by the IRS and the U.S. Department of Labor; mergers and acquisitions involving ERISA plans; retirement plans for tax-exempt and governmental entities, including Indian tribes; health and welfare issues, including health care reform; and executive compensation issues arising under Code Section 409A. He has particular experience fixing broken retirement plans and has filed and successfully resolved numerous voluntary correction applications with the IRS.

Bill Freudenrich—Shareholder, McAfee & Taft

Bill Freudenrich is an employee benefits attorney with specific expertise in retirement plan design, deferred compensation, mergers and acquisitions, plan terminations, leased employees, self-insured medical plan design, wellness programs, COBRA and HIPAA compliance.

Bill represents both multi-employer plans and participating employers on funding issues concerning withdrawal liability, reorganization issues and collection of delinquent contributions. He has advised lending institutions of the risk associated with loans to employers that participate in multi-employer plans. Bill also provides ongoing counseling to multiple tax-exempt and governmental healthcare institutions in the areas of open meeting requirements, executive compensation, Section 403(b), Section 457(f), Section 457(b) and Section 401(a).

To Register--http://info.hogantaylor.com/acton/form/4337/0020:d-0001/0/index.htm

Please refer any questions to Stacy Mendenhall
eat0@eau0eav0eaw0 or 918-388-2621

This program is designed to meet the CE requirements of the ASPPA CE Program.

This program has been approved for 3.5 General credits toward PHR, SPHR, GPHR Recertification from the HR Certification Institute. 

This program qualifies for 4 CPE credit hours in Specialized Knowledge and Applications.

This programhas been submitted for CLE and is awaiting accreditation.