About the author

Kathryn Cimera

Kathryn Cimera concentrates her practice in the employee benefits area with a primary focus on retirement plans, including advising board members and plan administrators on fiduciary obligations and board governance best practices. Kathryn has experience in statutory compliance with respect to federal, state and local laws and helping employers and plan administrators navigate complex issues related to compliance. She also has extensive experience defending public and private employers in all types of employment matters in administrative proceedings and state and federal courts. Immediately prior to joining Bingham Greenebaum Doll, Kathryn served as general counsel for the Indiana Public Employees’ Retirement Fund. Kathryn also clerked at the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association from 1997 to 1999. Contact Kathryn.

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Posts by Kathryn Cimera

Are Public Pension Plan Trustees at Risk for Fiduciary Liability When Public Plans Are Underfunded?

It comes as no shock that as our economy struggles to rebound from recession and a record number of individuals reach retirement age, pension plans are feeling the squeeze.  Public pension plans, in particular, face unprecedented pressures.  Reports of states struggling to fund public pension plans have become commonplace.  Earlier this year, Bloomberg reported that twenty states either skipped or under funded their pension plans from 2007 to 2009 based on a report by Chicago-based Loop Capital Markets. …

The Public Pension Transparency Act Reintroduced in Congress

Representatives Nunes (R-CA), Issa (R-CA) and Ryan (R-WI) reintroduced The Public Pension Transparency Act in the House of Representatives on February 9th.   They first introduced the bill in December, at the end of the last session of Congress, and time ran out before any action could be taken.  The bill would require state and local public pension funds to report pension liabilities at market values using US Treasury bond rates as the discount rate.  The result is likely…

DB vs. DC: Not as Easy as A – B – C

In a December 13, 2010 Wall Street Journal editorial, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty stated, “. . . we need to end defined-benefit retirement plans for government employees.” Pawlenty isn’t alone: replacing public plans with defined contribution plans, which would follow an undeniable trend in the private sector, is being discussed in state legislatures around the country. Defined Benefit vs. Defined Contribution: The basics The desire to shift from defined benefit to defined contribution is understandable. Many public pension…