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Ed Burrows Award Committee: 2015 Call for Papers

In honor of Ed Burrows’ contribution to the advancement of the general understanding of pension knowledge, an annual honorary payment of $2,000 is awarded for the best paper submitted on a topic selected by the Ed Burrows Award Committee. The winning submission will be the paper that in the committee’s judgment both adheres to that year’s topic and best advances the understanding of the national retirement system. Any person (or group of people) who submits an article is eligible for consideration (other than individuals on the committee, on the leadership councils of ACOPA or ASPPA, or on the Board of Directors of the American Retirement Association). All ASPPA members are encouraged to participate in submitting articles, but participation is not limited to ASPPA members.

TOPIC: A Vision for Retirement Security

Throughout his career, Ed Burrows championed causes to preserve and enhance the private pension system in America. This Burrows call for papers honors Ed’s dedication and vision by challenging us to envision how we might improve on it.

For many years, the “three-legged stool” concept was used to explain how an individual would fund their retirement. The three legs of the stool represented Social Security, personal savings and employer-provided retirement plans. With the advent of 401(k) plans, most American workers' personal savings leg has moved to the 401(k) plan as deferrals and the employer provided leg is now typically provided as a match, with some employers also providing non-elective contributions. The three legged stool has lost a leg and we all know a two legged stool cannot stand. Is it time to re-evaluate the three legged stool approach and update the model of how individuals prepare for their retirement? Are there changes that could be made to strengthen the employer provided portion of the stool?

A recent multi-employer proposal would create risk-sharing defined benefit plans, possibly like recent designs in countries such as the Netherlands. Lifetime income products are available for defined contribution plans. What combination of these changes, along with other designs, will strengthen future retirement security?

This is your chance to wave your magic wand and create the perfect employer-provided system to complement the other legs of the stool. However, to use your wand, you have to explain what existing road blocks must be eliminated for your design to work.

Deadline for submission: Monday, Sept. 14, 2015

Suggested Length: 1,800-2,500 words

Submission Instructions: Submit your papers to ACOPA; be sure to include “Burrows Paper” in the subject line. Please contact Judy Miller if you have any questions or concerns.

The winner will receive a $2,000 honorary payment and will have an opportunity for publishing and conference presentation.