text:
- Lindsay Newland Bowker
- Stonington, ME
- United States
This conversation is closed.
Do You Feel Any Relief, Joy, Satisfaction or Greater Safety at the News of Bin Ladens Death? Does it Bring Any Closure On 9/11 for you ?
Strangely my reactioin to this mornings news that Osma Bin Laden has been killed by US agents was..so what? This is a headline? Do we really care any more about Bin Laden? This does nothing to alter in the ground of my being the overwhelming tragedy of that day and the days that followed and all that was revealed about lapses in US security. Aren't we so past our pre-occupation with Bin Laden? Does his death end the threat of terrorism? Are we still living with the same level of guardedness about terrorism as we were 10 years ago or have other things moved to the fore of what is terrifying and urgent?
What was you reaction? Is this great joyous news to celebrate or just a foot note to an unfortgettably tragic time in our modern lives? Is this freally headline news? The most important thing that happened on our globe today?
There is an excellent arrtcle in the paper today about the complexities and many undercurrent Bin Ladens Death has brought to the surfacehttp://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42870277/ns/world_news-the_new_york_times/
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May 2 2011: I share your views Lindsay, all we did is kill the "CEO" of the company.... so what?? Most operation are sleeping cell independant one from the other. Saying is the "master mind" I doubt that very much. The extremist have very capable people ( money and education) on their payroll. The issue is the ideology they spread, that's what should be the number one enemy. I was reading an article in magazine saying there was a program in London where converted extremist would help other possible extremist to go back in the right Islam way. Well the funding was difficult because some people had trouble ethically with the concept. That is just sad cause the only way the " war on terror" will win is a fight on ideology.
May 2 2011: Thank you Daniel.. So if I hear you correctly you are saying this is all political theatrer ochestrated to make us feel we are on top of terrorism that we have nothing left to fear? How do you feel about that..do you feel manipulated, let down, angry? And do I also hear you saying you don't believe we are anything close to being on top of terrorism?I hadn;t heard of the counter Jihad movement in London or elsewhere. Here on my island, in an efoirt to see the Koran in its own light, to see if there was support there for Jihad, we spent a winter a few years ago actually reading the Koran. It was very enlightening and I felt a great resonance with the Koran as I am sure anyone else would. So perhaps that is what the movement you are referring to was all about..taking people back directly to what the Koran actiually says and is. Anyone looking there would see..it is all the same path..all the same teaching..we all share those values..no more violence there than in the old testament which is also confusing some times. Anyone takingthe time to study the Koran would see that Muslims are not our enemy but our brothers in faith and spirit and purpose. The enemy is the manipultaion of faith that has incited Jihad. Do you agree or am I way off here?
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Go from breathtaking nature to quaint Americana charm in Gallup, NM a small town situated along historic Route 66. The Hampton Inn & Suites Gallup, NM hotel is located in the shopping district near the downtown area, with easy access to I-40 and Highway 491.
Ideal for access to Navajo Nation Museum, Gallup Cultural Center, Fox Run Golf Course, the Ice Caves & Bandera Volcano and the Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary, as well as many businesses in the area, this comfortable hotel in Gallup, New Mexico, offers all the comforts of home plus much more. Friendly service, clean rooms, comfortable surroundings, every time. If you're not satisfied, we don't expect you to pay. That's our commitment and your guarantee. That's 100% Hampton®.

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text:
Te riri pakeha
The topic
Te riri pakeha
is discussed in the following articles:
history of Maori people
Maori (people)
Maori versus pakeha
The last of the wars—known to the Europeans as "the fire in the fern" and to the Maori as
te riri pakeha
, "the white man's anger,"—was fought from 1864 to 1872. Hostilities spread to virtually the whole of North Island. The main Maori combatants in the mid-60s were the fanatic Hauhau warriors. The British government...
"Te riri pakeha".
Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 17 Sep. 2014


text:
The Baptist School - School Profile (Private School)
Helpful Resources
Corrections to the school database are encouraged! School Edit Form.
The Baptist School - School Boundaries Map (School Attendance Zone)
Nearby Public Schools (within a 15-mile radius)
Grant School, NY
(0.4 miles N)
Spruce School, NY (1 miles ENE)
Highland Elementary School, NY (1 miles SSW)
Mullen Elementary School, NY (1.2 miles S)
Fletcher Elementary School, NY (1.4 miles SW)
Tonawanda Middle School, NY
(1.4 miles SW)
Gilmore School, NY (1.6 miles N)
Tonawanda Senior High School, NY (1.6 miles WSW)
Riverview Elementary School, NY (1.9 miles SW)
Meadow School, NY (2 miles N)
Nearby Private Schools (within a 15-mile radius)
The Baptist School, NY
(< 0.1 mile)
St. Francis of Assisi School, NY (0.4 miles WSW)
North Tonawanda Catholic School, NY (0.9 miles N)
New Life Christian School, NY (1.1 miles SE)
Cardinal O Hara High School, NY (1.6 miles SSE)
St. Matthew Lutheran School, NY
(1.8 miles N)
St. Amelia School, NY (2.3 miles SE)
Mount St. Mary Academy, NY (2.3 miles S)
St. Christopher Elementary School, NY (2.5 miles E)
St. Andrew's Country Day School, NY (2.8 miles S)


text:
Crater Lake, Oregon: 08.2013
Fish carcass: Tulum, MX
Fuji Instax Wide film.
Sea cliffs in San Diego: 2011.
Murmuration, Astonishing Encounter With a Massive Flock of Starlings
This is why I like the internet. Because I'm stuck in an office, in a city, driven by a desire to probably go to some bar tonight and have some drink with some people and talk about city things.
But for a moment, I can live vicariously through this video and pretend I'm not going to run into a flock of buses, cars and trolleys on the way home.


text:
Awesome Alpharetta
Alpharetta Hotels
Alpharetta Restaurants
Things to Do in Alpharetta
About the ACVB
Press Room
About Alpharetta
Welcome Center
Plan Your Event
Calendar of Events
Soothe Your Soul
The Coffee Pot
on Main Street is your first stop where a warm, freshly baked muffin and a cup of house blend organic coffee or a chai tea latte will get you in the right frame of mind. Then head north to Church Street to begin your art gallery tour.
Take Art to Heart
Start with a visit to
Monfort's Fine Art
, offering traditional and contemporary artwork from national and international artists in a smartly remodeled downtown cottage. Next, head south to the
Roswell Art District
and visit the whimsical world of
Matilda's Art Gallery
where you'll be enchanted by brightly painted pottery, furniture, fabrics and artwork created by local craftspeople and regional up-and-comers. At
Ann Jackson Gallery
, fine oil paintings, acrylics, and sculpture by local, national and international artists are on display. And stop by to see the extraordinary contemporary abstract landscapes at
Ford Smith Fine Art
Return to Nature
After a full morning of artistic adventure, have your zen moment at
Xian China Bistro
where the Spicy Orange Peel Crispy Lamb is a perennial favorite. Then set out to explore the
Alpharetta Arboretums
at Cogburn Road Park, Webb Bridge Park and Wills Park. Take time to walk the winding trails at your own pace, enjoying the beauty and 56 stunning examples of tree species native to the Southeastern United States.
Stage Some Drama
Depending on the season and individual performance schedules, you can enjoy great community theater performances by the
Georgia Ensemble Theater
Act 1
. Also on stage are dance performances by future stars at our local dance theaters:
Metropolitan Ballet Theatre
offers both a fall performance and The Nutcracker annually; and
Susan Chambers School of Theatre Dance
performs at an annual concert.
Be Entertained
The Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre at Encore Park
is the entertainment destination for music lovers across the region. Catch performances by the Grammy-winning Atlanta Symphony Orchestra or see some of the world's biggest stars, like the Eagles, Kenny Chesney and Sugarland, performing live at this 12,000-seat outdoor venue.
Lighten up!
If you've been taking life too seriously lately, attend a performance at the
Bonkerz Comedy Club
and laugh until your sides ache. Located inside Andretti Karting and Games - offering super karts, a rock wall, ropes course, billiards, bowling and basketball - there's plenty for kids to do while parents watch the show.
Get Brain Food to Go
But if all you want to do at the end of an active day is curl up with a good book, the topics and authors you crave await you at
Barnes and Noble
Books for Less
. But before returning to your Alpharetta hotel, indulge in comfort food at its finest at
The Diner at North Point
, where the menu is the size of a book! Enjoy selections like old fashioned pot roast accompanied by carrots, creamy Yukon Gold mashed potatoes and pot roast gravy. Yum!
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text:
Pete and John Gulyas. One man sleeps while the other man drives…
2 Litters a year with a survival rate of 2.8 kittens per litter.
These 2 cats left uncontrolled with continued breeding can produce:
1 Year: 12 Cats
2 Years: 66 Cats
3 Years: 1,201 Cats
4 Years: 3,822 Cats
5 Years: 12,680 Cats
Mail your donation to:
Waterloo Alley Cat Project
c/o Northeast Shores Development Corp.
PO Box 19246
Cleveland, OH 44119
DONATE to our Alley Cat Cottage Project Now!
About Us
A nonprofit grassroots volunteer project protecting the stray cats in theWaterloo Road Business District by practicing the humane method of Trap-Neuter-Return Read More
© 2014 Waterloo Alley Cat Project


text:
Chicago Police are warning Northwest Side residents of an ongoing scam in which seniors are targeted for money by telling them relatives are in jail.
Over the past few months, several residents have been victimized by con men who trick seniors into thinking that a family member has been arrested and they need to send money to bail them out, according to the alert.
The alert advises residents that Chicago Police do not call people or show up at homes asking for bail money. A person out can only be bailed out at the police station where they are in custody, and it cannot be done over the phone.
Victims of the scam should report it to 911 or the community policing office at (312) 742-4521.
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text:
- 188.8.131.52 Overview
- 22.214.171.124 Identifying Prohibited Transactions
- 18.104.22.168 Prohibited Transactions
The information contained in this IRM is designed to provide EP examiners guidance pertaining to prohibited transactions, including the:
Applicable excise taxes.
Exclusive benefit requirements under IRC 401(a).
Assignment and alienation provisions under IRC 401(a)(13).
IRC 4975 imposes a nondeductible excise tax, see IRC 275(a)(6) on the amount involved with respect to each prohibited transaction that occurs in a year or part thereof. The excise tax is paid by the disqualified person who participated in the prohibited transaction. See IRC 4975(a)(1).
The term "prohibited transaction," is described in IRC 4975(c)(1). However, temporary Reg. 53.4975-13 (temporary Pension Excise Tax Regulations) refers to Reg. 53.4941(e)-1 Private Foundation Excise Tax Regulations with respect to certain terms that appear in both section 4941(e) and section 4975(f) of the Code, e.g., amount involved and correction.
The legislative history to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) indicates that Congress felt the sanction of an excise tax was desirable in many instances in lieu of disqualification under the prohibited transaction rules of IRC 503.
IRC 503(b) governs whether a transaction that was entered into prior to January 1, 1975 constitutes a prohibited transaction.
IRC 503(b) continues to apply to governmental plans within the meaning of IRC 414(d) and to those church plans that do not make an election under IRC 410(d) to be covered by ERISA.
IRC 401(a)(2) provides that in order for a plan to be qualified (and the related trust tax-exempt) at any time prior to the satisfaction of all liabilities with respect to its employees and their beneficiaries, it must be impossible to divert the trust's corpus or income other than for the exclusive benefit of the employees and their beneficiaries.
A proposed disqualification of a plan involving fiduciary action within the meaning of Part 4 of Subtitle B of Title I of ERISA is subject to mandatory technical advice as a result of section 103 of Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1978, 1979- C.B. 480, review by the Department of Labor (DOL).
There are special rules with respect to multiemployer plans. See IRM 188.8.131.52,Employee Plans Guidance for Examining Multiemployee Plans.
IRC 401(a)(13) provides that a trust will not constitute a qualified trust under IRC 401 unless the plan of which the trust is a part provides that benefits under the plan may not be assigned or alienated.
The exclusive benefit rule of IRC 401(a) does not conflict with the prohibited transaction provisions of IRC 4975. A disqualified person may engage in a prohibited transaction and at the same time cause a violation of the exclusive benefit rule. Thus, a trust officer, etc., cannot take the position that the imposition of an IRC 4975 excise tax precludes the application of the exclusive benefit rule.
If a transaction violates the exclusive benefit rule, revocation of the qualified status of the trust must be considered.
If revocation is invoked, the prohibitions and sanctions of IRC 4975 continue to apply to the disqualified plan. See IRC 4975(e)(1)(G) and IRM 4.72.12,Revocation of IRC 401(a) Plans and/or Trusts.
Generally any transaction described in IRC 4975(c) between the plan and the employer or other persons related to the plan or the employer, i.e., a disqualified person, will constitute a prohibited transaction under IRC 4975. In some cases such transactions may be exempt from the sanctions imposed by IRC 4975 as a result of a statutory or an administrative exemption. However, even though a transaction may be exempt from the sanctions imposed by IRC 4975 that transaction must still meet the exclusive benefit and the assignment or alienation requirements.
The fact that a trust's investment policies must be for the exclusive benefit of the employer's employees or their beneficiaries is a criterion for qualification under IRC 401(a). Four criteria are set forth in Rev. Rul. 69-494, 1969-2 C.B. 88 and were incorporated into ERISA 404 and its legislative history.
The factors to consider are:
The cost of an investment must not exceed its fair market value (FMV) at the time of its purchase.
A fair return commensurate with the prevailing rate must be provided.
Sufficient liquidity must be maintained to permit distributions in accordance with the terms of the plan.
The safeguards and diversity that a prudent investor would adhere to must be present.
Other investment considerations include the use or diversion of the trust's corpus or income and whether there is a reversion of the trust's corpus or income to the employer. For purposes of IRC 401(a), a custodial account within the meaning of IRC 401(f) is treated as if it were a trust and a custodian is treated as a trustee. See Winger's Department Store v. Commissioner, 82 T.C. 869 (1984), for a discussion of the Service's post-ERISA enforcement authority.
The assignment or alienation rule of IRC 401(a)(13) does not conflict with the prohibited transaction provisions of IRC 4975. As a result it can not be argued that the imposition of the IRC 4975 excise tax precludes the application of the assignment or alienation provisions of IRC 401(a)(13) .
There are several exceptions to the general rule. For example, IRC 401(a)(13) may not be violated if:
Not more than 10 percent of any benefit payment made to any participant who is receiving benefits under the plan is made for the purpose of defraying plan administration costs.
There is a qualified domestic relations order as described in IRC 414(p).
A loan meets the requirements of IRC 4975(d)(1).
There is a federal tax levy or a federal tax lien.
See Treas. Reg. 1.401(a)–13(b)(2
Inspect the Form 5500 series return to determine the nature of investments. Also inspect the actual balance sheet and statement of receipts and disbursements of the trust to ascertain that the amounts reflected in such statements agree with the amounts shown on the Form 5500 series return.
If the employer establishes in the trust instrument the powers and duties the trustees may exercise with respect to the investments, determine whether the trustees are following the trust instrument.
If the trust instrument is silent as to investment powers or in situations that go beyond the instrument, determine whether the investments meet the law governing investments by employee trusts.
For all plans covered by Title I of ERISA as described in DOL Reg. 2510.3–3, State law does not apply after January 1, 1975. Plans not covered by Title I, such as, Keogh plans covering only (i) sole proprietors and their spouses, or (ii) partners and their spouses as well as corporate plans where the corporation is wholly owned by an individual or his or her spouse and the plan covers only the owner and the owner's spouse, continue to be subject to state trust investment law.
Inspect the receipts and disbursements records of the trust to detect disbursements of funds that are contrary to IRC 401(a)(2).
During an examination of a Form 5500 series return, be alert to the diversion of corpus or income of the trust for purposes other than for the exclusive benefit of the employees for whom the funds were originally allocated.
Inspect the disbursements records of the trust to detect payments made to the employer/sponsor. Review the plan and/or trust provisions approved by the Service and be alert for payments made to the employer/sponsor that violate the plan and/or trust provisions.
If determined that a prohibited transaction has occurred and a Form 5330, Return of Excise Taxes Related to Employee Benefit Plans, has not been filed, immediate action must be taken. The procedures pertaining to the filing of the excise tax return are found in IRM 4.71.5, Employee Plans Examination of Returns - Form 5330 Examinations.
A prohibited transaction means any direct or indirect transaction described in IRC 4975(c)(1) between the plan and a disqualified person.
If a prohibited transaction falls within one of the statutory exemptions under IRC 4975(d), the excise tax may not apply. In addition, there are two types of administrative exemptions that may be granted under IRC 4975(c)(2):
Individual exemptions
Class exemptions
The statutory exemptions under IRC 4975(d) (other than IRC 4975(d)(9) and (12)) do not apply to certain types of transactions involving owner-employees (as defined in IRC 401(c)(3)) and persons or entities deemed to be owner-employees. This provision, not applying certain statutory exemptions, can now be found in IRC 4975(f)(6). However, section 616 of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA) added a limited exception pertaining to loans, thereby making the statutory exemption under IRC 4975(d)(1) available to the extent described in IRC 4975(f)(6)(B)(iii). Generally, a prohibited transaction includes any direct or indirect acquisition of property for the plan or sale of plan property to a(n):
Participant or beneficiary of an individual retirement account or annuity.
Shareholder-employee (as defined in IRC 4975(f)(6)(C)).
Member of the family (as defined in IRC 267(c)(4)) of the owner-employee, etc.
Corporation at least 50 percent of which is directly or indirectly controlled by a person mentioned in a., b. or c.
Disqualified persons are those who, by virtue of their relationship to the plan, may be in a position to self-deal.
The term "disqualified person" as defined in IRC 4975(e)(2 ) covers a range of people including employers, unions and their officials, fiduciaries, and persons providing services to a plan such as lawyers and accountants. Also included are persons whose relationship to the plan may not be immediately apparent and who will require more diligent investigation to detect. This includes:
A service provider.
The employer or employee organization involved.
Persons who have a fifty percent or more interest. See IRC 4975(e)(2)(E) and (G).
A member of the family as defined in IRC 4975(e)(6) of any individual described in IRC 4975(e)(2) (A) (B) (C) or (E).
Individuals with a 10 percent or more interest. See IRC 4975(e)(2)(H) and (I).
For example, the sale, exchange or leasing of property, directly or indirectly, between a disqualified person and the plan constitutes a prohibited transaction whether the transaction was made from the disqualified person to the plan or from the plan to the disqualified person. If a disqualified person transfers real or personal property to a plan, that transfer constitutes a sale or exchange such as to make the transfer a prohibited transaction if:
The real or personal property transferred by a disqualified person to a plan is subject to a mortgage or lien which the plan assumes.
The plan takes the property subject to a mortgage or similar lien which was placed on the property by a disqualified person within 10 years prior to the transfer. Such a transfer of real or personal property will most often arise in the context of a contribution of property other than cash by the employer. See IRC 4975(f)(3).
If a transaction described in IRC 4975(c)(1) has occurred, ascertain whether such transaction took place directly or indirectly between the plan and a person (entity) described in IRC 4975(e)(2). See IRM Exhibit 4.72.11-2, Relationship Between Employer and Disqualified Person and IRM Exhibit 4.72.11-3, Relationship Between Non-corporate Employer and Disqualified Person .
The term "fiduciary" is specifically defined in IRC 4975(e)(3) and includes persons not previously covered under traditional trust law.
Ascertain whether a transaction described in IRC 4975(c)(1) has occurred between the plan and any person who:
Exercises any discretionary authority or control in managing the plan.
Exercises any authority or control over the trust's assets.
Renders investment advise concerning plan assets for which he/she receives direct or indirect compensation. Section 611 of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA'06) alters this provision for defined contribution plans with respect to certain investment advice after December 31, 2006.
Has any discretionary authority or responsibility for plan administration.
Inspect the plan records to ascertain if any of the transactions described in (2) have taken place directly or indirectly between the plan and a disqualified person.
IRC 4975 excise tax provisions apply to the following plan types:
A tax-exempt trust under IRC 401(a) (which is part of a plan).
A tax-exempt plan under IRC 403(a) .
An IRC 408(a), Individual Retirement Account, or an IRC 408(b), Individual Retirement Annuity (including Roth IRAs). These are collectively referred to as IRAs. However, if the individual for whom the IRA was established or the IRA's beneficiary engages in a prohibited transaction with respect to the IRA, the sanction is the loss of the tax-exempt status of the IRA as of the first day of the taxable year in which the prohibited transaction occurs. See IRC 408(e)(2)(A) and IRC 408(e)(4).
Any of the above, even after they cease to be qualified. See IRC 4975(e)(1)(G).
Archer medical savings accounts described in IRC 220(d) , Coverdell education savings accounts described in IRC 530 and Health Savings Accounts described in IRC 223 have been added to the plans described in IRC 4975(e)(1).IRC 220(e)(2),IRC 530(e) and IRC 223(e)(2) state that rules similar to those under IRC 408(e) will be applied in the instance of these plans.
The excise tax provisions of IRC 4975 do not apply to:
A governmental plan within the meaning of IRC 414(d).
Those church plans that do not make an election under IRM 410(d) to be covered by ERISA. See IRM 126.96.36.199.1, Technical Overview.
Due to the complexity of this area, use an analytical approach to ascertain whether a prohibited transaction has occurred for which the excise tax applies. A suggested approach to developing such an issue is as follows:
Determine whether there has been a prohibited transaction as described in IRC 4975(c)(1) .
If a prohibited transaction has occurred, ascertain whether the trust or a disqualified person has received an administrative exemption as set forth in IRC 4975(c)(2).
If a prohibited transaction has occurred and the exemption under b. has not been granted, ascertain whether the prohibited transaction falls within the purview of statutory exemptions set forth in IRC 4975(d) or IRC 4975(f)(6)(B)(ii).
If a prohibited transaction has occurred and one of the exemption areas outlined in b. or c. is applicable, do not pursue the prohibited transaction issue. (However, ascertain whether the transaction complies with the exclusive benefit requirements; the assignment and alienation requirements and/or the IRC 72(p) loan provisions).
If a prohibited transaction has occurred and none of the exemption areas outlined in b. or c. is applicable, pursue the issue to its conclusion.
This is only a suggested approach to developing an issue concerning prohibited transactions. See IRM 220.127.116.11,Prohibited Transactions for guidance on issues commonly encountered during an examination.
The following transactions (whether direct or indirect) between a plan and a disqualified person result in a prohibited transaction subject to the sanctions of IRC 4975 unless there is an applicable statutory or administrative exemption:
Sale, exchange or lease of any property.
Loans or extensions of credit.
Furnishing of goods, services or facilities.
Transfer to, or use by or for the benefit of, a disqualified person of any income or assets of a plan.
Dealings by a fiduciary with the income or assets of the plan for his/her own interest or account.
Receipt by a fiduciary of any consideration, from a party dealing with the plan in connection with a transaction involving income or assets of the plan.
See IRC 4975(f)(6) for certain instances where a statutory exemption in IRC 4975(d) is inapplicable.
The sale, exchange or leasing of property, directly or indirectly, between a disqualified person and the plan constitutes a prohibited transaction whether the transaction was made from the disqualified person to the plan or from the plan to the disqualified person.
An administrative exemption may be granted by DOL for a sale, exchange or lease of property which falls within the purview of IRC 4975(c)(1)(A).
If a disqualified person transfers real or personal property to a plan, that transfer constitutes a sale or exchange such as to make the transfer a prohibited transaction if:
The property is subject to a mortgage or lien which the plan assumes.
The plan takes the property subject to a mortgage or similar lien which was placed on the property by a disqualified person within 10 years prior to the transfer. See IRC 4975(f)(3)
Such a transfer of real or personal property will most often arise in the context of a contribution of property other than cash by the employer.
With respect to a contribution of unencumbered property, in Commissioner v. Keystone Consolidated Industries, Inc. , 508 U.S. 152 (1993), the U.S. Supreme Court held that an employer's contribution of unencumbered property to a defined benefit plan to satisfy the employer's funding obligation to that plan is a sale or exchange within the meaning of IRC 4975(c)(1)(A) and, therefore, a prohibited transaction.
An ordinary blind purchase or sale of securities does not constitute a prohibited transaction where neither the buyer nor the seller nor the agent of either knows the identity of the other parties.
If a prohibited transaction falls within one of the following, the excise tax may not be applicable:
If securities held by the plan are subject to a privilege to convert those securities to other securities (e.g., from bonds to stock), the plan may exercise that privilege (to the extent provided in Treasury and Labor Regulations) so long as the plan receives adequate consideration under the conversion. See IRC 4975(d)(7).
Pooled Investments. A plan may purchase or sell an interest in a common or collective trust fund or a pooled investment fund maintained by a disqualified person which is a bank or trust company supervised by a State or federal agency or between a plan and a pooled investment fund of an insurance company qualified to do business in a State so long as the bank, etc., receives no more than reasonable compensation for the purchase or sale or for the investment management of the pooled fund. Further, the transaction must be expressly permitted by the plan instrument or by a plan fiduciary, independent of the bank, trust company, or insurance company, that has authority to manage and control the plan assets. See IRC 4975(d)(8).
A plan may acquire, sell or lease qualifying employer securities or qualifying employer real property, under certain conditions. See IRC 4975(d)(13).
The direct leasing of any property other than qualifying employer real property between a plan and a disqualified person is prohibited.
Generally, IRC 4975(d)(2) provides, in part, that any contract, or reasonable arrangement, made with a disqualified person for office space which is deemed necessary for establishing or operating a plan may be statutorily exempt from the prohibited transaction excise taxes if no more than reasonable compensation is paid for such lease.
Inspect the plan records to ascertain whether there have been any sales, exchanges or leases of property. If such a transaction has occurred, request back-up documents to determine if the transaction is prohibited. Documents which might be examined to ascertain whether a prohibited transaction has occurred include, but are not limited to:
Purchase-sales agreements
Land contracts
Lease and rental agreements
Brokerage statements
If expensive equipment is used in the employer's business, check to see whether the plan owns the equipment and leases it to the employer.
A common transaction is a sale-leaseback. In that situation there is a sale of property by a disqualified person to the plan followed by a lease of the property by the plan to the disqualified person. If an equipment lease to the employer is discovered, determine how the plan acquired the equipment. Generally, a sale (including a sale-leaseback) between the plan and a disqualified person, in the absence of an administrative exemption, constitutes one or more prohibited transactions.
If the plan leases office space from a disqualified person, the arrangement must meet the conditions of IRC 4975(d)(2) for there to be a statutory exemption.
The terms of the lease must be as favorable to the plan as the plan might have obtained in an arms length transaction with an unrelated third person. Compare the leased space with any commercially leased space in the same building or obtain comparability data on similar office space from the local board of realtors.
The length of the lease must be reasonable (especially in relationship to leases on similar property).
The lease must be necessary for the establishment or operation of the plan.
Check for the existence of an administrative exemption if a prohibited lease is discovered.
There are two class exemptions pertaining to leases. However, they deal with multiple employer and multi-employer plans only. See IRM 4.72.14, Multiemployer Plan Examination Guidelines for an in-depth discussion of multiemployer plans.
A loan to a disqualified person is a prohibited transaction unless it is a loan to a participant or beneficiary that meets the conditions of the statutory exemption for such loans or is a loan for which the DOL has granted an administrative exemption.
A plan loan to a participant or beneficiary who is a disqualified person is permissible as long as the loan:
Is adequately secured.
Is available on a reasonably equivalent basis to all participants or beneficiaries in the plan.
Bears a reasonable rate of interest.
Is not made available to highly compensated employees (within the meaning of IRC 414(q)) in greater amounts than other employees.
Is made in accordance with specific plan provisions governing such transactions.
See IRC 4975(f)(6)(B)(iii) for statutory exemptions.
The rules under IRC 72(p) and IRC 72(t) may also apply. For example:
Plans which take the participant's account balance as security for a loan to the participant may simply offset that amount where the participant defaults on his obligation to repay the loan. Such an offset could result in a distribution not permitted in a pension plan.
Where the account balance is less than the loan, it might not represent adequate security.
Offsets in a profit-sharing plan or a stock bonus plan may be permissible if the plan permits early distribution. However, evaluate all distributions for proper reporting of Forms 1099–R as to the total amount of the distribution and the taxable amount.
See Treas. Reg. 1.72(p)-1, Q & A – 11, Notice 82–22, 1982–2, C.B. 751, and Notice 87–13, 1987–1 C.B. 432, 441.
Examination guidelines that cover ESOP Loans. See IRM 4.72.4,Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs).
If an individual causes the section 401(k) plan of his/her wholly-owned company, which is the sole trustee and administrator of that section 401(k) plan, to loan money to entities in which that individual owns minority interests, the loans may be prohibited transactions. See Joseph R. Rollins v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo 2004-260.
Determine whether loans are made in accordance with specific provisions governing such transactions.
Ascertain whether loans to participants are adequately secured. Usually the participant's vested accrued benefit is used for the collateral.
Verify that the interest rate is reasonable by:
Determining whether the rate of interest and other conditions of the plan's loans to participants are comparable to the terms of similar commercial loans in the relevant community.
Check the overall rate of return on the plan's investments. When a large percentage of the plan's assets are invested in participant loans, the overall rate of return may be unreasonable.
Example 1: F Company's defined contribution plan lists participant loans amounting to 90 percent of the plan's assets. The remaining assets are invested in U.S. Government securities. The earnings from all of the plan's investments are less than 2 percent. Thus, it would appear that the plan is not charging a reasonable rate of interest on participant loans.
To ascertain whether loans are available on a reasonably equivalent basis to all participants in the plan, determine whether the loan amount to one person is a substantial portion of plan assets. If so, there is a potential that loans have not been made available on a reasonably equivalent basis to other employees. See Esfandiar Kadivar v. Commissioner , T.C. Memo. 1989–404.
Make certain that loans to highly compensated employees do not exceed any specific plan limits on participant loans.
Determine whether loans were made available to highly compensated employees more frequently than to nonhighly compensated employees.
Check whether loans to highly compensated employees are made from plan assets in amounts greater than the amounts made available to other employees. See Kadivar.
Inquire about administrative practices regarding the loan program, including how participants are informed about the program and the history of loan applications and their disposition.
Example 2: E Company's defined contribution plan authorizes participant loans and the use of an employee's vested accrued account balance as collateral. The plan's most recent Form 5500 reports loans totalling $125,000 to the five most highly compensated employees of the employer in the prohibited transactions section of the Form 5500. Because the only loans reported on the Form 5500's statement of assets are participant loans totalling $125,000, it would appear that loans may be made available to highly compensated employees more frequently than to nonhighly compensated employees.
Ascertain whether an extension of the term of a loan to a disqualified person was granted. An extension on a loan is a separate transaction that must, in itself, meet the criteria for an exemption. An extension on a loan which is not exempt is a second prohibited transaction occurring at the time the loan was due and the extension granted.
IRC 4975(c)(1)(B) prohibits direct or indirect loans or other extensions of credit between the plan and a disqualified person.
IRC 4975(d)(13) provides an exemption for transactions which are exempt from ERISA 406 by reason of ERISA 408(e). ERISA 406 is the Title I equivalent of IRC 4975(c)(1). If the conditions set forth in the exemption are met, ERISA 408(e) exempts the acquisition by a plan of qualifying employer securities.
ERISA 407(d)(5) defines qualifying employer securities as stock or marketable obligations as defined in ERISA 407(e). DOL Reg. 2550.407d–5 provides further guidance with respect to the definition of qualifying employer security and marketable obligation. If the employer security is not stock it must be a marketable obligation.
A marketable obligation is a bond, debenture, note, or certificate, or other evidence of indebtedness that meets certain requirements that insure that:
The obligation is acquired at a price that is not unfavorable to the plan.
Immediately following the acquisition not more than 25 percent of the issue is held by the plan and at least 50 percent is held by persons independent of the issuer.
Immediately following the acquisition not more than 25 percent of the plan's assets are invested in obligations of the employer or an affiliate.
If the employer is experiencing financial difficulties or if the employer's business is in a recessionary industry or region, consider the potential for nonexempt prohibited loans. The Form 5500 series identifies party-in-interest investments in corporate debt instruments, mortgages, and other loans.
A plan's purchase of a disqualified person's debt securities (i) that does not meet the definitions of a marketable obligation or a qualifying employer security or (ii) which causes the plan to exceed any applicable limits on holding qualifying employer securities under ERISA 407(a) is a prohibited transaction that is not exempt under IRC 4975(d)(13).
The DOL grants numerous individual administrative exemptions each year, and many of them are for loan transactions. Therefore, if a prohibited loan is discovered, check for the existence of an exemption. If there is an exemption, make sure it covers the transaction and that all of the conditions of the exemption are met.
Inspect the plan's records to ascertain whether loans between disqualified persons and the plan have occurred. If yes, (either directly or indirectly), scrutinize a copy of the loan agreement to identify the parties to the loan.
IRC 4975(c)(1)(C) prohibits the direct or indirect furnishing of goods, services, or facilities between a plan and a disqualified person.
An administrative exemption may be granted by DOL under IRC 4975(c)(1)(C).
If the plan enters into a contract or reasonable arrangement with a disqualified person for office space or services necessary to establish or operate the plans, such as legal or accounting, and no more than reasonable compensation is involved for such office space or service, the excise tax may not be applicable. See IRC 4975(d)(2) and Reg. 54.4975–6) for further guidance on issues relating to multiple services.
A bank or other financial institution which is acting as a plan fiduciary may provide additional banking services to the plan if it charges no more than reasonable compensation for the additional services, and it has adopted adequate internal safeguards to insure the services are provided in accordance with sound banking practice. See IRC 4975(d)(6).
A disqualified person may serve as a fiduciary to the plan in addition to serving as an officer, employee, agent or other representative of a disqualified person (e.g., the employer which sponsors the plan), without being liable for the excise tax. See IRC 4975(d)(11).
The excise tax is not applicable when a fiduciary receives reasonable compensation for services rendered to the plan if the services are necessary to establish and/or operate the plan. See IRC 4975(d)(10).
The fiduciary cannot receive double compensation, i.e., a fiduciary cannot receive full-time pay from the employer or union sponsoring the plan and also receive additional compensation from the plan for providing such fiduciary services to the plan. A fiduciary may receive reasonable reimbursement for expenses actually incurred while providing services to the plan.
Exceptions to the statutory exemption are found in IRC 4975(f).
Inspect plan records to ascertain whether there has been any furnishing of goods or services or the use of facilities (directly or indirectly) between a disqualified person and the plan. Inspect both receipts and disbursements because it does not matter in which direction the goods, services or facility usage takes place.
Inspect the balance sheet to see if the plan owns any property which might be involved in this type of prohibited transaction. If it is discovered the plan owns real or personal property, verify this property is not being occupied or used by a disqualified person.
IRC 4975(c)(1)(D ) prohibits the direct or indirect transfer to, or use by or for the benefit of, a disqualified person, of the income or assets of a plan.
An example of an indirect benefit which would constitute a prohibited transaction is the purchase or sale of securities by a plan to manipulate the price of the security in a manner advantageous to a disqualified person.
However, IRC 4975(d) grants certain statutory exemptions for the transfer to, or use by or for a disqualified person of income or assets of a plan. The excise tax is not applicable, if a prohibited transaction falls within one of the following:
If a disqualified person is a participant in the plan, he/she may receive plan benefits as long as the benefits are computed and paid in a manner consistent with the provisions of the plan as applied to all other participants and beneficiaries. See IRC 4975(d)(9) .
If a plan terminates, distributions may be made to all plan participants (some of whom may be disqualified persons) without there being a prohibited transaction if distributions are made in accordance with plan provisions and the asset allocation rules in ERISA 4044 are not violated. Also, excess assets caused by actuarial surplus may revert to the employer if the conditions set forth in ERISA 4044(b) are not violated. See IRC 4975(d)(12) .
If the employer/sponsor of a 401(k) plan fails to timely pay elective deferrals to a qualified plan a prohibited transaction has taken place and the employer is subject to excise taxes under IRC 4975. See Rev. Rul. 2006-38 for a detailed explanation.
The Department of Labor has advised the Service that the failure to remit employee contributions to an employee benefit plan may constitute a crime under 18 U.S.C. 664 which provides, in relevant part, that anyone who unlawfully and willfully converts to his or her own use or to the use of another, any of the moneys or funds, or other assets of any employee benefit plan shall be subject to the fines and/or imprisonment as provided for under the provisions of title 18.
Rev. Rul 2006-38 does not express any opinion concerning the application of title 18 to the facts set forth in it.
Inspect the plan receipts and disbursements journal to ascertain whether any income or assets of the plan have been transferred to, or used by or for the benefit of, a disqualified person.
If the result is yes, examine source documents (checks, loan agreements, security buy-sell statements, stock quotations, etc.) to verify the nature, circumstances and ultimate effect of the transaction.
IRC 4975(c)(1)(E ) prohibits an act by a fiduciary whereby he/she deals with the income or assets of the plan in his/her own interest or for his/her own account.
IRC 4975(d)(2) provides a statutory exemption for any contract, or reasonable arrangement, made with a disqualified person for office space, or legal, accounting, or other services necessary for the establishment or operation of the plan, if no more than reasonable compensation is paid.
The regulations interpreting this exemption at Reg. 54.4975–6 explain that fiduciaries and other disqualified persons may provide services to the plan if the arrangement meets the requirements of the exemption.
The exemption, however, does not apply to exempt a fiduciary's exercise of authority, control or responsibility to cause the plan to pay the fiduciary additional fees for services. See IRM 188.8.131.52.5.3, Examination Steps.
The statutory exemption is limited by IRC 4975(f)(6).
Under ERISA the definition of fiduciary goes beyond those persons traditionally recognized as plan fiduciaries, such as the trustees of the plan.
The term "fiduciary" includes any person who exercises any authority or control regarding management or disposition of plan assets, or has or exercises discretionary authority, control or responsibility for plan administration, or renders investment advice to the plan for a fee, (but see section 611 of PPA'06) or any other direct or indirect compensation.
For example, persons who give advisory or consulting services to the plan, such as insurance agents or stockbrokers, may be fiduciaries to the plan although not formally named as such.
Included within the concept of indirect benefit to a fiduciary is a benefit to someone in whom that fiduciary has an interest that would affect his/her fiduciary judgement.
An example would be the retention by a fiduciary of his/her son to provide administrative services to the plan for a fee. Although the son's providing of services to the plan would be a prohibited transaction in and of itself, it may be exempt from excise tax if it meets the conditions of IRC 4975(d)(2). However, the fiduciary's action in causing the plan to pay a fee to his/her son is a separate prohibited transaction under IRC 4975(c)(1)(E) which would not be exempt under IRC 4975(d)(2).
Both this prohibited transaction and the one discussed in IRM 220.127.116.11.6, Third Party Dealing by Fiduciary apply only to fiduciaries. The parallel provisions of ERISA to IRC 4975(c)(1)(E) and (F) are section 406(b)(1) and (3) of Title I of ERISA respectively. (The Code does not have any provision that is parallel to ERISA 406(b)(2)).
A bank or similar financial institution that is supervised by the United States or a State may as the plan fiduciary invest plan assets in its own depository accounts which bear a reasonable rate of interest if the—
Plan covers only employees of the financial institution, its affiliates or both, or
Investments are expressly allowed by plan provisions or by a fiduciary (other than the financial institution) expressly empowered by the plan to instruct the trustee to make such investments. See IRC 4975(d)(4) .
A plan may purchase life or health insurance or annuities from an insurance company, or companies, if each company is the employer maintaining the plan, or wholly owned by the employer or by another disqualified person, but only if:
The total consideration received by such wholly-owned insurer from all plans with respect to which it is a disqualified person does not exceed 5 percent of the total premiums and annuity considerations not including premiums of annuity considerations written by the employer maintaining the plan written by such insurers that year.
Each insurer is qualified to do business in the state, and
The plan pays no more than adequate consideration for the insurance or annuities. See IRC 4975(d)(5) .
Examine the receipts and disbursements journal and related source documents for any transaction involving income or assets which might directly or indirectly benefit a fiduciary who used any of his/her fiduciary authority, control or responsibility to cause the plan to enter into the transaction.
Look for a prohibited transaction whenever an investment manager can generate additional fees on his/her own authority. If an investment management fee structure is based on the management of a certain portion of the plan's assets, and the investment manager can charge additional fees with respect to those same assets for additional services, there may be a prohibited transaction.
"Sweep fees" are an example of this. An investment manager's fee may be a certain percentage of the value of assets managed. If the investment manager provides a service whereby all uninvested assets as of the close of business are "swept" into an overnight money fund, there may be a prohibited transaction if any additional fee for this service is based on the value of the funds swept into the overnight fund. Such an arrangement, of course, provides an incentive to the investment manager to maximize the funds available for the sweep fee rather than make longer term investments.
Another type of fiduciary self-dealing occurs when the employer has an arrangement with a plan service provider whereby the employer receives certain benefits from the service provider as a result of the business generated by the plan services.
For example, if the employer, for its business use, receives computer equipment from a financial institution as a result of maintaining a minimum balance of plan assets in the institution's money market account, the employer has engaged in a prohibited use of plan assets for its own account.
The Form 5500 asks for information about the plan's payments to service providers, plan administrative expenses, and terminated service providers. If administrative expenses seem unusually high in relation to plan assets, or if it appears that the plan administrator has been dissatisfied with the service provider, further investigation may reveal the problems described above.
Fiduciary self-dealing transactions will not necessarily involve the employer or plan administrator in a prohibited transaction.
If, for example, an examination of a plan's investment management contract reveals that the investment manager is charging multiple fees, the investment manager may have engaged in a prohibited transaction. Scrutinize the investment manager's charges to determine if the multiple fees are reasonable. If they are unreasonable, examine contracts with other plans in an attempt to discover other prohibited transactions engaged in by the investment manager. To accomplish this, request the service provider's client list. If necessary, issue a subpoena to obtain that list.
If a fiduciary who is a disqualified person receives any consideration for his own personal account from any party dealing with the plan in connection with a transaction involving the income or assets of the plan, it is a prohibited transaction. IRC 4975(c)(1)(F).
The general area addressed by this prohibited transaction is "kickbacks" .
For example, a fiduciary retaining a person to provide services to a plan or investing plan assets in a specified investment media in return for a sum of money or other consideration paid to the fiduciary.
There are no statutory exemptions for "kickbacks" . Very common payments not normally considered a "kickback" , such as commissions on the purchase or sale of insurance or securities are also considered prohibited transactions.
The Service and DOL have issued administrative class exemptions to cover many common business practices which would otherwise be prohibited transactions subject to excise tax. See IRM Exhibit 4.72.11-1, List of Granted Class Exemptions for the DOL Web site address to obtain a list of class exemptions from the prohibited transaction rules.
IRC 4975(c)(1)(A) prohibits the direct or indirect sale, exchange or leasing of property between a plan and a disqualified person. Thus, the sale of securities or real property between an employer and a plan or the leasing of property to the employer by the plan is prohibited. IRM 220.127.116.11.1.
IRC 4975(d)(13) provides a statutory exemption for the acquisition, sale or lease by plans of certain employer securities or real property. See ERISA 408(e).
A plan's acquisition or holding of employer securities or employer real property is not a per se prohibited transaction, although IRC 4975 does make the acquisition of such property from, or sale to, a disqualified person a prohibited transaction.
However, ERISA 407(a), which is administered by the DOL, generally prohibits the acquisition or holding of employer securities or employer real property (defined in ERISA 407(d)(1) and (2)). That section does permit plans to acquire or hold a total of no more than 10 percent of its assets in the form of qualifying employer securities or qualifying employer real property (as defined in ERISA 407(d)(4) and (5)) or any combination of these types of property. Generally, an eligible individual account plan is exempted from this limitation. IRM 220.127.116.11.7.1 and ERISA 407(d).
To meet the requirements of ERISA 408(e), four requirements must be met:
Plan must be eligible
Securities or real property must be qualifying
Acquisition must be for adequate consideration
No commission must be charged with respect to the acquisition
Remember that the statutory exemptions described in IRC 4975(d) may not apply to a given transaction as a result of IRC 4975(f)(6). See IRM 220.127.116.11.2.1.1(c) and IRM 188.8.131.52.
Defined benefit plans and most money purchase plans may not acquire qualifying employer securities or qualifying employer real property exceeding 10 percent of that plan's assets. However, money purchase plans that were in existence on September 2, 1974 and on that date invested primarily in employer securities may invest in qualifying employer securities or qualifying employer real property exceeding 10 percent of their assets.
Example 3: Company A's money purchase plan was established in 1979. It recently acquired qualifying employer securities from the employer which increased its holdings in Company A to well over 25 percent of the plan's assets. The acquisition is a prohibited transaction because a money purchase plan established after 1974 may not acquire or hold qualifying employer securities exceeding 10 percent of its assets.
The excise taxes described in IRC 4975 apply only in the instance of a prohibited transaction between a plan and a disqualified person. Because ERISA 406 and ERISA 407 are broader in their application than the Code, there might be a prohibited transaction under Title I for which the IRC 4975 excise tax cannot be imposed.
A prohibited transaction under Title I can result from acquisitions from third parties as well as from the holding of securities or real property in excess of the prescribed limits.
However, real property acquired through a non-cash contribution by the employer to satisfy a funding obligation is considered a sale or exchange and is a prohibited transaction. See IRM 18.104.22.168.1, Sale or Exchange for the discussion on the Keystone case. The DOL in Interpretive Bulletin 94–3, 59 F.R. 66735 (December 28, 1994) applied the holding in the Keystone case to defined contribution plans and welfare plans as well as to defined benefit plans.
Other defined contribution plans, such as profit-sharing or stock bonus plans, are "eligible individual account plans" permitted to acquire qualifying employer securities or qualifying employer real property exceeding 10 percent of the plan's assets if the acquisition of these investments is specifically provided for in the plan.
However, if the benefits payable under an individual account plan are taken into account in determining the benefits payable to a participant under any defined benefit plan, the plan is not an "eligible individual account plan."
Thus, if a participant's benefit payable under a defined benefit plan is offset by the participant's profit-sharing plan account, the profit-sharing plan is not an eligible individual account plan. See ERISA 407(d)(3)(C).


text:
Is $250,000 really middle class?
How is it that a quarter-million dollars of income has come to represent the dividing line between the middle class and the wealthy?
This post comes from Alicia Munnell at partner site SmartMoney.
It seems as though no one reads the Census Bureau's annual publication "Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States" for anything but the number of people in poverty. The parts I find most interesting are those pertaining to the level and distribution of income. The numbers go to the heart of conversations about the "middle class" and the "rich."
Both President Barack Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney have adopted household income of $250,000 as a meaningful demarcation point for defining the middle class. In the case of the president, he proposes to retain the Bush tax cuts for households with less than $250,000 and eliminate the tax cuts for those above that threshold. Romney, in a recent ABC interview, offered the same definition of the middle class: "Middle income is $200,000 to $250,000 and less."
Where does this concept of $250,000 as the appropriate cutoff come from? According to the data in the Census Bureau report shown in Table 1 below, which presents the thresholds for being in different parts of the income distribution, the median household in 2011 had an income of $50,054. A household with an income of $143,611 was at the 90th percentile point, or in the top 10th of the income distribution. A household with an income of $186,000 was at the 95th percentile, or in the top 5%. The table does not even show households with $250,000, but they must be in the top 97th or 98th percentile.
Table 1. Household Income at Selected Percentiles, 2011
Dollar limit
50th (median)
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2011." Table A-2.
The thresholds must be interpreted with caution, because households include old and young, urban and rural, coastal and midland, and small and large. But it is very hard to understand how anyone could think of $250,000 as the middle. It seems as if both candidates have a mental picture of the very rich and everyone else.
The "very-rich-vs.-everyone-else" framework may come from data on the share of income earned by various households. Here the census data show that those in the top quintile -- the highest-earning 20% -- earn more than the bottom four quintiles combined (see Table 2). That is, the top 20% receives more income than the bottom 80%.
Table 2. Shares of Household Income by Quintile, 2011
Lowest quintile
Second quintile
Third quintile
Fourth quintile
Highest quintile
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2011." Table A-2.
And a recent study by economist Emmanuel Saez shows that within the top quintile the distribution is also very skewed, so that the top 1% receives about 20% of total income.
Thus, while the $250,000 threshold makes no sense in describing the middle class, it seems like a relevant divide for defining where the money is. Nevertheless, dividing the nation's households into the "wealthy" and "the middle class" doesn't seem like a useful exercise. It pits the majority of Americans against the top 1% or 2%.
It suggests that the majority of Americans should not be called upon to solve the nation's fiscal problems. It violates the notion that we are all in this together. Yes, the rich can contribute more, but we can all contribute something.
More on SmartMoney/MarketWatch and MSN Money:
The middle class is everybody who is not rich and not poor! People who bring in millions each year are rich. People who bring in whatever is around the poverty line are poor. Everyone else is middle class, and that can be subdivided into lower-middle and upper-middle.
A combined family income of $250,000 is technically upper middle class, but middle class nonetheless. The rich make much more than that. Ask your celebrities, professional athletes,bankers and debutantes if they could live on $250,000 a year. They waste that much on a party.
The range of being middle class is huge. Just because two people combined earn more than you doesn't mean they are automatically rich.
Why politicians insist on embellishing or skewing reality is beyond me, are we so gullible? In general, our leaders have an unrealistic view of were the middle class income originates. Certainly where you live in the country affects the income/cost of living ratio and may limit the opportunities available to affect that ratio. With that said, if our political leaders truly wish lesion any notion of penalizing an income bracket then we, as a nation, need to begin discussions on a Flat Tax. Until that happens, it will be business as usual and begs the question, which power brokers do you really believe? Money still buys elections.
Everyone's comments are so valid. My husband and I just retired after working a combined 98 years (in the private sector). The $250,000. middle income bracket helps us to see our perceived middle class status is really upper or middle poor. Our one adult child and spouse oth work (also for the private sector). They have two young children. Based on the $250,000. they might just scratch the upper poor status. Middle income should allow two earners with two young children to make a mortgage payment, one or two car payments, food on the table, gas in the car, utilities, clothing, insurance for home, auto and life an emergency fund, savings and an annual vacation. I don't know where the numbers are coming from or who is feeding Washington the numbers but they are far from average. 80% of the working people don't make anywhere near $250,000. Maybe the numbers would be more realistic if they came from the IRS.
Due the ecomony my wife and I live in different areas. We can't afford to sell the house in suburban Atlanta and my job took me to No. VA. where we now have a second home. We file our taxes seperately as when I moved we refinanced the GA home in her name, the VA home is in my name. I live in the "richest county in America" and my income is right at the medium household income in the county, my wife is in the second highest income county in GA and her income is 15% higher than the mean. We are not rich, we live comfortably take vacations, max our 401K and have 1 years emegery funds (mortage, utilities, taxes) for each house in regular savings. We consider ourselves upper middle class, we make charitable contributions etc. Yet our combined incomes is slightly less than Mitten's lower end figure fo rmiddle class.
He has no idea about the citizens of this country that cannot afford to belong to country clubs, yatch clubs or have their own private aircraft.
Also I currently pay about 12 percentage points less on my income tax today than when Ronald Reagan was president, after his tax cuts. This country does need tax reform and going back to the Clinton era rates is a good begining, across the board at all income levels.
These fools call $250k middle class so they can include themselves based on their congressional salary. if you take 50% of everything from the rich, who combined earn a total of around $750 billion, it won't put a dent into fixing the problem. The problem is their incessant spending and giving away money, like bankrupt green companies, bank bailouts etc. and bloating the free-stuff bandwagon moochers.
The easy solution is a VAT, the more you consume the more you pay. Exempt clothes up to say $250 per purchase, food (groceries, not caviar). Someone buying a Hyandai for $15K pays say $1,500, someone that buys a $150k lamboghini pays $15,000. The rich that buy boats etc will be forced to pay more. Those of us that don't buy lots of stuff wil be relieved. This way no loopholes, or shinanigans.
Then do what Romney wants, eliminate write-offs but lower the marginal rates. Over the past 20 years my federal tax rate has been between 15-17% of gross income, while my tax bracket is defined as the 36% level. Eliminate deductions and everyone pays 20%. Of course this is way to simple so therefore be greek to the bureaucrats
$250 is not rich by any means UNLESS you are a single adult who has been earning this income for at least a few years. If you are a family man who has only recently earned his way up to this income then it's barely enough and does not make you rich. It also depends on where you live. If you are using that money to put four members of society (aka my kids) through college, and have a wife that stays home to raise these members of society so they are productive adults then NO this is barely enough. But we've made sacrifices all along (no day care will raise my children, no vacations, no fancy cars, no fancy house) and I have only recently came into this income as the result of very very hard work. It's disheartning to hear now that I may be considered rich. Now what? If I'm taxed even more then college for my kids, and my wife staying home to raise them is in jeopardy. How is that a good thing for society?? Will this push folks into considering a two parent income where kids are left to be raised by day cares and people who will never care for them like their parents?
Honestly, I neither know nor care whether it's middle class or not. My wife and I manage nicely (kid grown and out of college - yeah!!) on annual gross of around $80K per year. We're certainly NOT rich. Definitely NOT poor. Can't get some stuff I'd like to have. Blow money on other things I want but don't need. Give to charitable causes as much as possible. All in all, a good life.
I honestly don't give a rats #$$ who makes more than me and what they have that I don't. This whole conversation is in my view, pointless.
I see alot of people posting here who are making excuses for their high income and saying we make 250K per year but were not well off because it's expensive where we live or our taxes are high...waaa, waaa, waaa...
if your family income is over 80K per year your doing alright, if your over 120k per year your doing better than alright..but if your family income is 250K per year, your not midle class anymore..No excuses !....you would not be able to afford that place in NYC if you were middle class....and I really dont give a rats **** how hard you think you worked to make that much or if your college education helped you get there, there are plenty of us who work long hours and break our backs but dont make half what you do..
So lets call it like it is and stop complaining and be glad you live in a country where you can make that much .....I'd love to be making 250K a year...I would not waste it living in NYC or Chicago or LA...
250K is an arbitrary number. As many folks have pointed out, you have Federal, State, and Local taxes. Depending on your familial status and location, 250K has different meanings.
I dont know HOW or WHY the political machine is focused on this number. Where we got this number from...and why we are using it to determine "class".
If you are single in the big city and live a minimalist lifestyle you can have a very comfortable lifestyle. If you have tons of kids and only one salary and a spouse in a major metropolitan area, you may have to watch your budget close. If you are in the middle of gods country where groceries cost pennies on the dollar (compared to the city) you are doing very well.
The typical profile of someone making 250K in NYC is a college graduate (usually an advanced degree) who is now a working professional (Doctor, lawyer, engineer, accountant) in mid to advanced level in thier career. (In NYC its not hard to get 80K and above). Now this person will pay fed, state and local taxes, commuting costs, housing costs (very high in NYC metro area), groceries (also very high), utilities, and most likely STUDENT LOANS (which is how they got their salary)...and if they have kids and a spouse that doesnt work then your 250K is not so sweet.
Take the mechanic/plumber or electrician in nyc making 80K-100K (again in NYC if you are skilled it wont be hard to get that) . If they have no kids and live in the outer boroughs so they pay no local taxes (just fed and state) and rent is cheaper. They are single and have no student loans (because they didnt go to college). They are actually paying a higher percentage of taxes but net they come out with more disposable $$$$...
Thats just an example of how 250K is not some magical sweet spot. Depends a lot on you, your decisions, your familial position and location.
Im single with no kids, I make 101K and my SO makes $150K (plus bonus of $24K). We do okay now that we live together. We each have no kids and the split in housing costs is a great help. We are comfortable. Now if there were a couple of kids and a need for larger space then those costs rise!
250K is great if you plan properly. lots of people increase thier spending when thier salary increases. Those who stay on a minimalist lifestyle (and are happy with simple things) do the best financially. Those who make $250K and spend $150K after taxes (due to increase in lifestyle) can be worse off than those who make 100K and spend 20K after taxes living a simple lifestlye. Most of NY'ers who have a large salary...have large debt (student loans or business loans) to accompany it.
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I suck at keeping proactive here. Every time I try to do admin stuff, a million things come along to distract me. Also, I've been majorly depressed if my posts yesterday didn't tiip you off. I'm sorry for that, guys!
So now, I'll be trying to post a bit tomorrow as far as confessions go. Right now, I need sleep.
~Leon Mod
I apologize about my absence and the lack of posted confessions. :I I fell really ill in the past week.
I'm back now and we're gonna work on making this confession blog running smoothly!
Group Name:Ask Soldierhero And Flowergirl
"Welcome to Midgar Sector 5 Old Church. Sometimes you'd see two lover souls 'dancing' around the sword and the flowers behind the water pool. You may wanna drop question to them and they'd be happy to talk to you."
Ask or RP and Appreciation Blog of Zack Fair and Aerith Gainsborough from Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
NOTE: At first, this was just an ask and appreciation blog but now it's also an rp blog. But although the blog status is changed. you don't have to be an rp account just to leave ask. Both muses will always see you as a normal church's visitor.
Gunamod: Welcome affiliate!
Once I have the affiliate page up and running we'll add you to it.
On behalf of ffrpconfessions I like to apologize for those who have submitted confessions but have not been published yet! We will be getting to them right away!
Please continue to send in those wonderful messages and continuous support. Thank you!
Mod: Cinque
Just gonna take a moment to thank everyone for all the support we've received this past month.
We're at a staggering 76 followers. WOW.
The support from each and everyone one of you is absolutely wonderful. Thank you.
Love ya,
PS. Expect a wonderful graphic soon ;)
OOC; UGH! That awkward moment where you don't realized your photoshopped image is off by one pixel until after you post the confession and/or it's been reblogged. Tidus-Mun, I apologize for being unable to serve you koala tea like you ordered. ;w;
Remember folks! Each confession is tagged by the name of the mod who ran it through and posted it. If at any time you see that I have mis-referenced something, or you are unsatisfied with how I framed your confession, please let me know! Drop a line in my ask box on Leo's blog! I will patiently listen to complaints or concerns and try my utmost to appease them.
This isn't so much as a confession I guess but just giving thanks to a few of my really close RP partners; forgottenribbon, retinentiax, and iracaelos. It's really something yknow? These guys are some of my best friends here and I don't know how it happened but it did and I'm blessed to have them in my life. Our muses' interactions, their relationships with each other…but beyond that. They're my friends and I am thankful to have them as people I trust, care for, and can just have all sorts of fun with. Thank you.[ SOURCE REFERENCE ] :: Official Renders
I'm really thankful for PariahXIV. She's a wonderful Xion RPer and the mun is wonderful to talk to as well. I honestly wasn't too attached to Xion's character when I first started playing KH 358/2 Days but her portrayal and our interactions have made me adore Xion and appreciate her character all the more. I see Xion in a new light. Thank you so much Xion-mun. Thank you for letting me see such a wonderful character in a new and different way.
[ SOURCE REFERENCE ] :: Xion || PapouJunkie
Sometimes I feel like a terrible person for taking several days to reply to threads. I seem to lose my muse more often than others and its very sad. I hope my rp partners don't think I'm neglecting them. On a more cheerful note, the final fantasy community is very loving. When I feel down I always have someone on here to turn to, and that's something I haven't been able to find in other fandoms.
— Anonymous


text:
In the space of one day, OkCupid has tried to set me up with…
…3 polyromantic women, all wanting a 3rd for their heterosexual relations.
…1 Socialist who wants someone who is '420 friendly'.
…1 asexual 'anarcho-feminist' (whatever the hell that is).
…and at least one person whose page succinctly stated that they wish all Republicans would die.
I'm done.
I'm done.
Unless one of you ladies wants to move here and be my cuddle buddy, I'm officially finished.


text:
A reward is being offered for information that leads to an arrest in connection with a Christmas Eve burglary.
At about 4:30 p.m. on December 24, 2012, someone broke into a home on the 1000 block of South Roys Avenue.
Once inside the home, the suspect began removing gifts, cash, gift cards and other personal property.
A home security camera recorded the male suspect loading the stolen goods into the trunk of a black late-model Honda Civic.
At one point, as the suspect was backing out of the driveway, he stopped the car so he could go back and pick up a stolen item he had dropped.
A $2,000 reward is being offered by Crime Stoppers for information provided by January 30, 2013, that leads to an arrest in this case.
Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 614-645-TIPS (8477) or go to our website at www.stopcrime.org and e-mail your tip. You can text a tip to "CRIMES" 274637, key word CMH.


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Royal Air Force British Aerospace Harrier GR.7 ZD346
Konstantinos Tls
Tilen Sinkovec
Alexey Filatov
Hans Scholtens
Michał Wallo
Vladimir Link
Dai Ngo
Joao Marcos
Ismael Jorda
Nello Corrado
rob neild
Uwe Deffner
thom zalm
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Rafal Slawny
Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren
Liam Paul McBride
Jeffrey Schäfer
Sebastian Elijasz
mir zafriz
Milan Kučera
Colin Hunter
Jacek Waszczuk
Jack H
Michael Carbery
wallace shackleton
martin third
Martin Krupka
Tony Marlow
Michel Mourmans
David James Clelford
Tony Scruton
Rick Ingham
stuart lawson
Roman N.
piotr bieluszewski
Heather Arnold
Bob Logan
JPC van Heijst
Emanuel Linert
Image ID: 52336
Views: 13988
Operator: Royal Air Force - ZD346
Aircraft: British Aerospace - Harrier GR.7
Airport: UK - England - Off Airport
Category: Military
Photo taken on 2006-2-28 by sunshine band [Contact]
EXIF information is not available.
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Photographer's remark
Leading his wingman to land on HMS Illustrious in the North Sea.
1 Spencer Wilmot
(6 July 2009 - 20:00 CET)
Hi, I believe that's a GR9A, fantastic image however, really effective.
2 Roman N.
(6 July 2009 - 20:53 CET)
3 JPC van Heijst
(6 July 2009 - 21:14 CET)
Incredible image for so many reasons. This really makes me jealous... The definition of an eyecatcher!
(6 July 2009 - 21:50 CET)
5 ***** from me also, it ticks all the right boxes.
5 Michael Carbery
(7 July 2009 - 12:35 CET)
Superb photo.
6 Emanuel Linert
(7 July 2009 - 13:01 CET)
7 Jack H
(7 July 2009 - 22:15 CET)
Truely Fantastic!
8 Jack H
(7 July 2009 - 22:15 CET)
What carrier was this taken on?
9 Drzemi
(8 July 2009 - 00:20 CET)
10 sunshine band
(12 July 2009 - 17:12 CET)
Jack, it was taken from onboard HMS Illustrious in the North Sea.
11 Si Jones
(11 April 2010 - 17:59 CET)
Great photo, great memories...I was the Flight Deck Officer for that trip.
12 Simon Mathoi
(23 July 2010 - 14:45 CET)
Awesome shot!
13 Adam Yang
(23 October 2011 - 12:48 CET)
Looks like if it was from a game!! Excellent shot.
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Melatonin releases from the pineal gland, reaching its peak at night to help maintain healthy cell health throughout the body.82 Secretion of melatonin declines significantly with age, as the pineal gland becomes calcified.83 Jet lag, shift work, and poor vision can disrupt melatonin cycles.84-86
Melatonin keeps our circadian cycle in tune.87,88 Not only does this hormone work to maintain cell health, it appears to regulate a system of self-repair and regeneration.89-94 As melatonin diminishes with age, our biological functions are impaired.95,96 Melatonin also has strong antioxidant properties. It directly scavenges both hydroxyl and peroxyl free radicals, and it does so more effectively than most other antioxidants. It also greatly potentiates the efficiency of other endogenous and exogenous antioxidants.97 Melatonin is especially important for protecting cellular DNA against peroxynitrite damage by inhibiting peroxynitrite free radical reactions.98 Some research has found that melatonin increases the speed of falling asleep and adds to the quality of sleep in about 60% of people who use it.99-102
Serving Size 1 vegetarian capsule
Servings Per Container 100
300 mcg
Other microcrystalline cellulose, vegetable cellulose (capsule), vegetable stearate.
Consult your healthcare provider before taking this product if you are being treated for a medical condition (especially autoimmune or depressive disorders). Use caution if combining with alcohol. This product is not intended for children, pregnant or lactating women, or women trying to become pregnant. Do not attempt to drive or operate heavy machinery after taking this product.
Natural Stress Relief, 30 vegetarian capsules