Leadership Insider, Feb. 2008: Additional Resources

Links to any documents identified by the contributors to the February 2008 issue of Leadership Insider and related resources are provided under each author’s name and contact information. Links to additional information on these and other retirement issues in public schools also are collected below. NSBA Legal Intern Bri Forbes helped compile these resources.

Introduction
National School Boards Association
thutton@nsba.org

U.S. Government Accountability Office, State and Local Government Retiree Benefits: Current Status of Benefit Structures, Protections, and Fiscal Outlook for Funding Future Costs
The September 2007 report finding that state and local governments generally have done a good job of planning for retirement liabilities.

California School Boards Association, GASB 45 Solutions
Resources and services related to the fiscal implications of the GASB 45 accounting standards for public schools.

NSBA on Kentucky Retirement System v. EEOC
The Sixth Circuit decision that on January 9, 2007, was argued before the U.S. Supreme Court, along with NSBA’s brief to the Court.

NSBA on 403(b) regulations
The regulations issued by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service in the summer of 2007 (the hard copy of Leadership Insider incorrectly indicated 2006).

NSBA on 403(b) model written plan
December 2007 model written plan issued by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

Maththew Borghese, All Headline News, "‘Teachers Deserve Better’ As Lawsuit Charges NEA For Overcharging"
Article about the lawsuit filed in July 2007 against the National Education Association over its endorsement of annuities the plaintiffs claim were not in the best interest of its members.

Forrest Jack Lance, Fred Reisch, and Bruce Ashton on retirement plans
Rockdale County (Ga.) Public Schools
Reish, Luftman, Reicher & Cohen, P.C.
jlance@rockdale.k12.ga.us
fredreish@reish.com
bruceashton@reish.com>

Original April 2007 article, NSBA Council of School Attorneys, Inquiry & Analysis

Internal Revenue Service, 403(b) Annuities: What Educational Employers Need to Know to Do Their Jobs
IRS tax law specialists Robert J. Architect and Benise Ungar discuss what school districts need to know and do to achieve compliance with the final 403(b) regulations in a 60-minute step-by-step DVD, video- streamed here on the website of the Association of School Business Officials International. Topics discussed include how to: create a written plan; determine participant eligibility; handle transfers and exchanges; and keep informed of new school district responsibilities.

About.com, Investing for Beginners
A good online source of general information on 403(b) plans.

About.com, Retirement Planning
A good online source of general information on 457 plans.

403bwise.com, 403(b) Must Reads
Provides articles regarding teachers not being able to maximize their retirement savings.

U.S. Department of Labor, Preamble to 401(k) Plan Fee Disclosure Form
This model disclosure form provides useful information on the kinds of administrative fees that can be at issue in retirement plans. While this addresses 401(k) plans, the issues with other plans are similar.

Maththew Borghese, All Headline News, "‘Teachers Deserve Better’ As Lawsuit Charges NEA For Overcharging"
Article about the lawsuit filed in July 2007 against the National Education Association over its endorsement of annuities the plaintiffs claim were not in the best interest of its members.

Angela Stallbaumer on retire-rehire programs
Kansas Association of School Boards

AARP, "Tackling the Teacher Shortage"
Information on impending teacher shortages and retire-rehire programs.

Richard Ingersoll, American Educational Research Journal, "Teacher Turnover and Teacher Shortages: An Organizational Analysis"
Fall 2001 article arguing that teacher shortages are a function primarily of teacher turnover.

Richard J. Murnane and Jennifer L. Steele, The Future of Children, "What Is the Problem? The Challenge of Providing Effective Teachers for All Children"
Spring 2007 article examining teacher labor markets and arguing that a key cause of teacher shortages is the wide employment opportunities now available to women and minorities.

Robert Costrell and Michael Podgursky, Education Next, "Peaks, Cliffs, and Valleys: The Peculiar Incentives of Teacher Pensions"
Article analyzing and criticizing teacher retirement incentives and calling for pension plans to be more uniform, transparent, and portable.

Stephen L. Avard and Kenneth M. Washer, Journal of Financial Planning, "Retire/Rehire: Does It Benefit the Teacher?"
Analysis concluding that if a teacher can participate in a retire/rehire program long enough to become eligible for Social Security benefits, it is beneficial to participate but if the teacher has only five or fewer years until actual retirement, the benefits are modest and only occur if the teacher receives close to 100% of current pay.

Resources on additional retirement issues relating to public schools

Glenn Cook, American School Board Journal, "Gathering Storm: Soaring costs for health care and pension benefits threaten your district's bottom line"
2006 overview of looming fiscal issues posed by school district health care and retirement liability.

Augenblick, Palaich and Associates, "Analysis of Teacher Retirement Issues"
Feb. 2007 report on the state of teacher retirement plans and prospects commissioned by the National Center for Education and the Economy for the New Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce

Sandra S. Ruppert, "Improving Pension Portability for K-12 Teachers"
Feb. 2001 report for the State Higher Education Executive Officers discussing the importance of career mobility to recruitment and retention of teachers and making recommendations to states for modernizing pension systems to allow for greater portability.

Greenberg Traurig LLP, "Removing Pension Barriers to Teacher Mobility in the Mid-Atlantic Region"
Jan. 2001 report evaluating how lack of pension portability contributes to teacher shortages and recommending option to solve plan design barriers to portability.

Oregon School Boards Association, "Consider Replacing Early Retirement Incentives With TSAs"
Noting that a teacher early retirement incentive program "may not be the best cost-saving strategy in today’s climate of rising health care costs and recommending that districts conduct a cost-benefit analysis of such programs.