Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Washington - The three working groups of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans will convene by teleconference October 19-20 to discuss reports and recommendations to be submitted to the Secretary of Labor. The teleconference will be conducted from the U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C., Room N3437A, for those who wish to attend.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

San Francisco, California - The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) will hold a workshop October 20 at the New Otani Hotel & Garden, 120 S. Los Angeles Street, to help accountants and their small business clients understand retirement savings options and how to start and operate a retirement plan.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Salem, Oregon - A health law compliance assistance seminar, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) and the Oregon Insurance Division, will take place October 18-19 in Salem at the Salem Conference Center.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Buffalo, New York - The U.S. Department of Labor filed suit asking the federal district court in Buffalo to appoint an independent trustee for the Geneva B. Scruggs Community Health Care Center of Buffalo’s abandoned retirement plan.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Warwick, Rhode Island - A health law compliance assistance seminar, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) and the Rhode Island Insurance Division, will take place November 8-9 in Warwick at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

New York - The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a federal court order appointing an independent fiduciary to manage the abandoned retirement plan of Lofek Construction Corporation, Newburgh, New York.

The company’s retirement plan, formally known as the National Benefit Retirement Plan and Trust, was abandoned when the company ceased operations in 1993 and the plan’s trustee died without naming a replacement to manage the plan.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Miami, Florida - A federal district court in Florida has ordered a Bay Harbor Islands dentist and the Morton Rosenbluth D.D.S. Professional Association to comply with a July 2004 judgment requiring them to make restitution to the retirement plans of the dental practice.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

New York, New York - Project Solutions of Rochester Inc. and the owner of the defunct company, Earl Shepherd, agreed to repay $37,932.14 to the company’s 401(k) SIMPLE plan as restitution for employee contributions that were deducted from employees’ paychecks but never forwarded to the plan.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) today announced an extension of the deadline for filing Form 5500 and Form 5500-EZ annual report/returns for employee benefits plans due to property damage and destruction from Hurricane Rita in Louisiana and Texas.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Boston, Massachusetts - R&B Foods Inc., Haverhill, Massachusetts, and its owner agreed to repay $31,527.38 to the company’s 401(k) plan for distribution to 12 plan participants to settle a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Labor. The suit alleged misuse of plan assets under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Detroit, Michigan - The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a settlement restoring $17,657 in principal and interest to the 401(k) plan of Great Lakes Trucking Co. Inc., Perry, Michigan. The agreement also permanently bars the owner of the company from serving as a fiduciary or service provider to any employee benefit plan governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Minneapolis, Minnesota - The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent judgment requiring the trustee of the 401(k) plans of Minneapolis, Minnesota-based The Pelican Group Inc. to restore over $11,000 to the company’s savings and retirement plan. The suit seeks to recover any missing assets, appoint an independent fiduciary to oversee termination of the plan and distribute plan assets to eligible participants.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) today announced additional time has been granted to January 3, 2006, for filing deadline of Form 5500 and Form 5500 EZ annual report/returns for employee benefit plans affected by Hurricane Katrina.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) today announced an extension of the deadline for filing Form 5500 and Form 5500 EZ annual report/returns due to property damage and destruction from Hurricane Katrina in Florida.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), in conjunction with the Internal Revenue Service, announced an extension of a number of deadlines related to health plan coverage, giving workers and employers affected by Hurricane Katrina additional time to make critical decisions regarding health coverage. 

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Washington, DC - Today the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), along with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), announced guidance for employers and plan officials to help victims of Hurricane Katrina obtain distributions and loans through 401(k) and similar employer-sponsored plans.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Piscataway, New Jersey - Jacqueline M. Carmichael has been appointed independent fiduciary of the NP LLC 401(k) plan to distribute benefits to plan participants, according to a court order obtained by the U.S. Department of Labor.

The action comes as a result of a suit filed by the U.S. Department of Labor alleging that plan trustees John Brewer and Dr. B. Gopinath abandoned the plan after Network Programs LLC declared bankruptcy in 1999.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

San Francisco, California - The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Reno, Nevada has ruled that the owner of bankrupt Lodging & Gaming Systems, Inc. (LGS) cannot discharge his debt of $167,530, plus lost opportunity costs, owed to the company’s 401(k) plan for unpaid contributions and loan repayments. Steven H. Urie owns the software development company.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

New York, New York - The U.S. Department of Labor has sued under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to obtain court appointment of an independent fiduciary to manage the abandoned 401(k) plan of YOUpowered, Inc., a now defunct company formerly located at 90 William Street, Suite 105, New York, New York.

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Washington, DC - The Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans and its working groups will meet September 21-23, 2005, at the U.S. Department of Labor in Washington, DC.