A Disney Moment—Without Goofy Talking Retirement Plans at the 2009 ASPPA Annual Conference

--By Pat Byrnes

It’s about a Disney “Moment”. You know what I mean. The deer fall in love, the sun breaks through, the birds tweet and the forest creatures gather in awe. It is hard to believe that this could be happening in late 2009 with a challenged private pension system.

Time and Place
On November 2, 2009 one such moment appeared at the ASPPA Annual Conference in National Harbor, Maryland with 1,500 in attendance.

Characters
On the panel together were

• Phyllis Borzi, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employee Benefit Security Administration (EBSA) and
  
• Mark Iwry, Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Treasury & Deputy Assistant Secretary (Tax Policy) at the U.S. of Treasury Department.

They were both formerly in government posts, left for private practice and then came back to government in their respective & powerful new positions--and they are on the same page in their collaboration!

Morsels

• Both acknowledge that the employer based retirement system is under stress.
  
• Both are working together to help create new incentives that encourage business owners to establish and enhance retirement plans that will be part of a system that will ultimately allow people to actually retire.
  
• Both believe strongly in plan sponsor education and enforcement.
  
• Both believe in a system that puts personal responsibility on each citizen for their own retirement and on their advisors.
  
• Both are in a position to make a difference—and together—well that’s the “Disney Moment”
  

Take-Aways for Plan Sponsors & their Advisors

• Be part of a mindset that helps promote employer sponsored retirement plans that work
  
• Use that mindset to implement appropriate plan designs
  
• Run to, not from, compliance and enforcement—It is necessary for the system to survive

Please respond to this post to keep Disney alive.☺