<nobr>Sep 2, 2005</nobr>

ERIC Seeks Broad Relief for Member Employees Affected by Hurricane Katrina

Washington, D.C. – September 2, 2005 – The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC) is spearheading an effort to lobby members of Congress and regulatory agencies to provide broad relief for plan participants affected by Hurricane Katrina.

ERIC today issued a memorandum to its members seeking information on the number of employees who may be affected and the type of relief necessary, such as immediate distributions or relief from payment of participant loans.

“People may need to make hardship withdrawals from their 401(k) accounts because of losses due to the hurricane,” stated Mark J. Ugoretz, president of ERIC. “Our intent is to determine what type of relief is needed so we can effectively lobby on their behalf.”

Currently, the Internal Revenue Service and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation already have announced their intent to waive certain penalties and extend certain deadlines in response to the hurricane.

Once ERIC has assessed the needs of its members’ employees who have been affected by Hurricane Katrina, it will contact members of Congress and regulatory agencies to request appropriate relief.

For additional information please contact:

Brendan LaCivita, Director of Communications
blacivita@eric.org


ERIC is a non-profit association committed to and represents exclusively the advancement of the employee retirement, health, and compensation plans of America’s largest employers. ERIC’s members provide benchmark retirement, health care coverage, compensation and other economic security benefits directly to tens of millions of active and retired workers and their families. ERIC has a strong interest in proposals affecting its members’ ability to deliver those benefits, their cost and their effectiveness, as well as the role of those benefits in the American economy.

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