U.S. Department of Labor sponsors free February 19 webcast on 2009 Form 5500 and electronic filing

Washington – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) will host its first of a series of free webcasts on February 19 from noon to 2 p.m. EST to help employers and service providers prepare for changes in the requirements of the 2009 Form 5500 reports and a preview of the new electronic filing Web site.

This webcast will cover the new simplified annual reporting form for small plans with easy to value investments; expanded reporting by large plans of compensation received by plan service providers; realignment of the reporting rules for Internal Revenue Code section 403(b) pension plans subject to Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to make them on par with 401(k) plans; and annual reporting changes required by the Pension Protection Act or defined benefit pension plans and multiemployer plans.

The modernized version of the ERISA Filing Acceptance System – known as EFAST2 – will receive only electronic filing submissions, provide quick responses in the event there are errors in a filing and publicly disclose filed Form 5500 reports through the EFAST Web site. The seminars are part of EBSA’s fiduciary education campaign to help workers and employers, especially small businesses, understand their rights and obligations under employee benefit laws.

Additional webcasts and educational material will be made available throughout the year.

News media are encouraged to cover this event.