WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a $10 million settlement agreement with People Care Holdings Inc. and former owners Bruce Jacobson and Jerry Lewkowitz, who sold the company to their employees through creation of an employee stock ownership plan. The department contended that they violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act by permitting the ESOP to purchase People Care stock from them for more than its fair market value.

Date of Action: Jan. 2, 2014

Type of Action: Default Judgment and Order

Names of Defendants: Zohouri Group LLC and Farbod S. Zohouri

Date of Action: Jan. 14, 2014

Type of Action: Complaint

Names of Defendants: Stephanie J. Jochims and Robert C. Jochims

Allegations: The U.S. Department of Labor has filed suit against Stephanie J. Jochims, the former owner of Western Steel Erection, Inc., and her husband Robert C. Jochims, in an effort to recover $5,167 in employee retirement contributions and loan repayments intended for the Western Steel Erection 401(k) Plan. The company was located in Long Lake, Minn.

Date of Action: Jan. 8, 2014

Type of Action: Consent Order and Judgment

Name of Defendant: Hico Flex Brass Co., Inc., Mark Isaacs, and Neil Isaacs

Date of Action: Dec. 12, 2013

Type of Action: Consent Judgment and Order

Name(s) of Defendant: Counseling and Educational Consultants, doing business as Rumford Day Nursery, Inc., and Deborah Very-King

Date of Action: Dec. 5, 2013

Type of Action: Complaint

Name(s) of Defendant: F.V. Zanetti Inc. and Robert Zanetti

Date of Action: Dec. 19, 2013

Name(s) of Defendant(s): David Kephart, Timothy Kephart, Kephart Trucking Co., and the Kephart Trucking Co. 401(k) plan

Allegations: In 1988, trucking company Kephart Trucking Co. in Bigler, Pa., established the Kephart Trucking Co. 401(k) plan for its employees. David Kephart, Timothy Kephart, and the company were plan fiduciaries, responsible for making decisions concerning the remittance of elective contributions to the plan.

Date of Action: Dec. 30, 2013

Type of Action: Complaint

Name of Defendant: David E. Doll

WARSAW, Ind — The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court to recover losses to the Miller's Health Systems, Inc., Employee Stock Ownership Plan. The suit alleges that PBI Bank, Inc., the trustee of the plan, authorized the purchase of company stock for $40 million, an amount far in excess of the fair market value of the stock. The suit also alleges that PBI Bank approved financing for the transaction at an excessive interest rate. Miller's Health is a Warsaw-based company that manages long-term care and assisted-living facilities.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury today proposed rules that would adjust regulations under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 regarding excepted benefits to include employee assistance programs (EAPs). The proposed rules would also provide added options for employees and employers in connection with the Affordable Care Act.

Date of Action: Dec. 16, 2013

Type of Action: Complaint

Names of Defendant: Eugene Aguirre and the Sunstrand Electric Company Inc. Employees 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan and Trust

Date of Action: Dec. 18, 2013

Type of Action: Complaint

Names of Defendants: Gerald Boschwitz, and Thomas Boschwitz, individually and as fiduciaries of the Home Valu Interiors Employee Benefit Plan (Health Plan), Home Valu Interiors Self-Insured Voluntary Dental Plan (Dental Plan), Home Valu, Inc. Group Insurance Plan (Life Insurance Plan), and Home Valu Flexible Reimbursement Plan (Flex Plan)

HONOLULU - The U.S. Department of Labor has secured a consent judgment with Aiea-based cement construction and contracting company Reef Development of Hawaii Inc. and its president, Samuel Sanchez Aguirre. An investigation by the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration established that Aguirre, acting as trustee to the profit-sharing plan, violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act by mismanaging plan assets, resulting in more than $700,000 in lost principal, plus approximately $303,000 in lost interest.

Date of Action: December 9, 2013

Type of Action: Complaint

Name(s) of Defendant(s): Timothy A. Clark, Central Pennsylvania Pulmonary Associates LLC and Central Pennsylvania Pulmonary Associates LLC 401(k) Plan

Date of Action: Dec. 10, 2013

Type of Action: Consent Judgment and Order

Name(s) of Defendant(s): LifeCare of Alabama Inc. and Susan Clingman-Banks

Specialty Staff Inc. 401(k) Plan in Carmel, Ind.

Date of Action: Dec. 5, 2013

Type of Action: Judgment

Names of Defendants: Theresa A. Hellman and Robin M. Polin, individually and as fiduciaries of the Specialty Staff, Inc. 401(k) Plan; Specialty Staff, Inc.; and the Specialty Staff, Inc. 401(k) Plan located in Carmel, Ind.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation today released advance informational copies of the 2013 Form 5500 annual return/report and related instructions.  Modifications to the Form 5500 and Form 5500-SF and their schedules and instructions for plan year 2013 are described under "Changes to Note" in the 2013 instructions, including:

Date of Action: Nov. 21, 2013

Type of Action: Default Judgment and Order

Name(s) of Defendant: Samoa Aviation Inc., Samoa Aviation Inc. 401 (k) Profit Sharing Plan

Allegations: As a fiduciary of the plan, defendant Samoa Aviation Inc. failed to administer the plan, resulting in participants not being able to obtain distributions of their individual plan accounts. The plan had 53 participants and assets totaling $235,693 as of June 30.

NEW YORK – Following legal action by the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York has appointed M. Larry Lefoldt as independent fiduciary to manage the 401(k) plan of the defunct Windswept Environmental Group Inc. of Holtsville. The department filed suit in December 2012, asking the court to appoint an independent fiduciary to administer the plan and distribute its assets to the plan’s participants and beneficiaries.

Date of Action: Nov. 21, 2013

Type of Action: Consent Judgment and Order

Name(s) of Defendant(s): Covenant Equipment Corp., doing business as Wholesale Fork Lifts Inc., and Mark Sowka