Employee Benefits Assurance and Consulting

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, "One of the most important duties of the plan administrator is to hire an independent qualified public accountant…A quality audit will help protect the assets and the financial integrity of your employee benefit plan and ensure that the necessary funds will be available to pay retirement, health, and other promised benefits to your employees."

Understanding employee benefit plans requires an in-depth knowledge of the procedures, practices and regulations regarding such plans, along with the wide-ranging know-how that decades of experience brings. Since its inception, S&B has dedicated a significant portion of its practice to providing audit, accounting, tax, and consulting services to employee benefits plans, including health and welfare plans, defined benefit pension plans, defined contribution plans, 401(k) plans, annuity funds, legal assistance funds, training funds, scholarship funds, and education funds.

We have always been committed to ensuring that our professionals receive extensive continuing education to maintain and upgrade our proficiency in this area. Our professionals participate in detailed educational programs at industry conferences, serving as instructors, taking part in expert roundtable discussions, and acting as group facilitators. We have also participated in specialized educational conferences sponsored by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans. S&B is an active member of the IFEBP and our partners frequently speak at its conferences.

In 2008, Salibello & Broder established the Employee Benefits Exchange because we believe that there needs to be an informal platform where timely information can be shared and discussed among those in management and the professionals servicing employee benefit plans.

Recognized leader in Employee Benefit Plans

S&B Partners and managers are actively involved in various Employee Benefit Organizations and events, writing articles for the IFEBP Benefits Digest and speaking at the annual IFEBP Benefits Conference and the EB Forum & Expo. The employee benefits group also hosts a number of employee benefit and roundtable seminars in their New York offices.

Employee Benefit Plan Clientele

S&B provides audit, accounting, tax and business consulting services to various types of employee benefit plans with assets ranging from $1 million to more than $1.5 billion. Among the types of plans we service are:

• Health and welfare plans, VEBAs
• Defined benefit pension plans
• Defined contribution plans
• 401(k) plans
• 403(b) plans
• Annuity funds
• Legal assistance funds
• Training funds
• Scholarship funds
• Education funds

Multi- and Single-Employer Benefit Plans

Our engagement teams combine outstanding assurance, accounting, tax and management advisory skills with substantial experience working on jointly or singly administered plans. We work closely with management on financial and operational issues, as well as with attorneys, actuaries and fund management to coordinate the complex financial, Internal Revenue Service and Department of Labor reporting requirements. Our services include:

• Audits, reviews, and compilations
• Preparation and review of regulatory compliance forms, including:
  • Form 5500
  • Form 990
  • PBGC Form 1
• Preparation of summary annual reports
• Review and assessment of internal controls
• Development and implementation of internal accounting, budgeting, and financial reporting systems
• Assessments of operational and accounting systems
• Assistance with government examinations
• Merger due diligence
• Internal audit program evaluation
• Review of expense reimbursement policies
• Claims audits
• Compliance audits of employer contributions
• Allocation studies
• Management Information Systems consulting
• Bookkeeping services
• Review adequacy of fidelity bonding
• Forensic investigations

401(k), Profit Sharing and Other Employee Benefit Plans

S&B is committed to providing the highest quality professional services to these types of plans. We have the qualifications and experience to fully understand the professional service requirements of all types of employee benefit plans. Our qualifications and experience includes:

• We perform financial audits and prepare regulatory filings for numerous employee benefit plans.
• Our experience affords us a detailed understanding of the compliance requirements set forth in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Internal Revenue Code, and the regulations of the Department of Labor (DOL), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and other government agencies.
• We staff each engagement with senior employee benefit plan specialists, ensuring that the audit receives the attention it deserves and that it is performed in an efficient, cost-effective manner.
• Our professional staff receives a minimum of 40 hours of continuing education each year, a significant portion of which is dedicated to the subject of employee benefit plans.
• Our management and staff are members of and active participants in the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP), the Association of Benefit Administrators (ABA) and the employee benefit conferences of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).
• We work closely with attorneys, actuaries and plan management to coordinate the ever-changing and complex financial, IRS and DOL reporting requirements.

Diagnostic Review Procedures

The U.S. Department of Labor is increasing its scrutiny of 401(k) plans to assure the compliance of regulators and plan sponsors. To protect its employee retirement plans, businesses should not rely solely on third party administrators and/or internal accounting staff for proper administration. S&B can perform assurance services or an Agreed-Upon Procedures review that will assist in evaluating current processes for administering retirement plans to determine whether they are operating in accordance with plan documents and in compliance with regulatory requirements. Our services include:

• Read plan documents to determine if the plan is being operated in accordance with the provisions of the plan
• Review prior regulatory filings and audited financial statements
• Review the IRS determination letter
• Review any plan amendments since the date of the IRS determination letter
• Review documentation supporting the continuing education of participants in the plan's investment options
• Review participant record keeping to determine if it complies with regulatory requirements
• Review and analyze investment options to ensure diversification
• Review timeliness of employer remittances to the plan
• Review timeliness of the allocation of forfeitures
• After initial review of the plan's operations, identify and/or modify procedures for each individual review

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Reproduced with permission from Benefits & Compensation Digest Volume 43 Number 8, August 2006, pages 24-29 published by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (www.ifebp.org), Brookfield, WI. Statements or opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views or positions of the International Foundation, its officers, directors, or staff. No further transmission or electronic distribution of this material is permitted.

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