Public Plan Trustees Institute – Level I

Course Agenda

Learning Objectives

Fiduciary Responsibility and Plan Governance

• Fiduciary responsibility
  • Identify key fiduciary responsibilities and their implications for governance
• Plan governance structure and governing documents
  • Describe the essential components of a governance structure and the role of governing documents
• Role of unions and collective bargaining agreements
  • Evaluate the impact of unions and collective bargaining on organizational policies and worker relations.
• Role of policy makers and elected officials
  • Analyze the influence of policymakers and elected officials on governance and decision-making processes.

Retirement Plans

• Fiduciary duties in a retirement plan
  • Understand the fiduciary duties in a retirement plan.
• Plan types
  • Identify and differentiate between various retirement plan types, including defined benefit, defined contribution and hybrid plans, and explain their implications
• ERISA and its role in public retirement plans
  • Understand the role of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) in public retirement plans and its impact on compliance and governance
• Plan Administration
  • Describe key aspects of plan administration.

Health Plans

• Fiduciary duties in a health plan
  • Understand the fiduciary duties in a health plan.
• Plan considerations
  • Analyze plan considerations, including plan design and funding, and assess their impact on overall health outcomes and financial sustainability
•  ERISA and its role in public health plans
  • Explain the role of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) in public health plans and its implications for compliance and governance.
• Plan administration, data collection and analysis
  • Outline effective plan administration practices, including data collection and analysis, to enhance decision making and support strategic initiatives
• Cost-control initiatives
  • Evaluate cost-control initiatives that can improve outcomes and reduce expenses.

Legal Environment

• Laws and regulations governing sector plans
  • Describe the key laws and regulations governing public sector plans.
• IRS and federal regulations
  • Identify and summarize the roles of the IRS and federal regulations affecting public sector retirement and health plans
• State and local considerations
  • Analyze considerations that influence public sector plan governance and compliance.
• Legislative and regulatory outlook
  • Assess the current legislative and regulatory outlook and its impact on plans.
• Fiduciary roles and duty in the legal environment
  • Articulate the roles and duties of fiduciaries within the legal framework, ensuring they understand their fiduciary responsibilities and the importance of compliance.