2023 Western Benefits Conference

Thursday, October 19

11:30am - 12:30pm - Check-In

12:30pm - 1:30pm - Secure 2.0: IRS Update

This session, led by the Director of Employee Plans for the IRS, will update the audience on the matters EP is working on including: self-correction of eligible inadvertent failures under section 305 of SECURE 2.0, the development of an IRA correction program under SECURE 2.0; the development of guidance on overpayments under section 301 of SECURE 2.0; pending guidance on combining the 401(a) and 403(b) pre-approved plan programs; examination priorities; and EP hiring.

Eric Slack, Tax Exempt & Government Entities, Director of Employee Plans, Internal Revenue Service

1:30pm - 2:00pm - Break

Break - Sponsored by JP Morgan

2:00pm – 3:00pm - Ethics

Join us for an entertaining and practical look at professional ethics. We will talk about the various sources of ethics rules and guidance and focus on practical topics like –

- What to do when your clients don’t provide information or pay your fees;

- How to handle problems when they come up; and

- Tips for effective client communications.

Jim Paul, Employee Benefits Law Group

3:00pm – 3:30pm - Break

Sponsored by PIMCO

3:00pm – 4:00pm - Plan Design

Karen Casillas, CAPTRUST

Theresa Conti, Sunwest Pensions

James Goldstein, U.S. Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration

4:00pm – Program Concludes

The Honorable Phyllis C. Borzi, JD, MA, retired as the US Assistant
Secretary of Labor for the Employee Benefits Security Administration
(EBSA) in 2017. She was confirmed by the US Senate in 2009. During
her tenure, EBSA oversaw nearly 708,000 private-sector retirement
plans, approximately 2.8 million health plans and a similar number
of other welfare benefit plans that are covered by the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and that provide
benefits to approximately 150 million workers and their families. Ms.
Borzi led the Department's efforts to implement the Affordable Care
Act, the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, the Genetic
Information Nondiscrimination Act and other health and pension laws.

She also represented the Secretary of Labor on several governmental
boards, including the Board of Directors of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, which the Secretary chairs, and as Trustee of the Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds.

Previously, Ms. Borzi was a research professor in the Department of Health Policy at George Washington University Medical Center's School of Public Health and Health Services.

Eric Slack is the Director of IRS Employee Plans, the business unit responsible for compliance of the rules related to retirement plans. He is responsible for EP’s Examination, Determination, Voluntary Compliance and Technical programs. He’ll help guide EP in implementing changes required by the SECURE Act of 2019 and also SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022.

Eric served as the Director of Field Operations-West for the Western Compliance Practice Area in the Large Business and International Division. He formerly was the Senior Tax Law Specialist in the Employee Plans Division of TE/GE.

Prior to this, he was the EP Acting Area Manager, Mid-Atlantic area, overseeing examinations of qualified plans from Philadelphia to South Carolina and west to Ohio and West Virginia. Before leading the Mid-Atlantic Area, Eric served as Detailed Tax Counsel to the Senate Finance Committee under Ranking Member, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), where he worked on a variety of tax issues, including the negotiation of the omnibus spending and tax extender bill in 2015.

Eric began his IRS career as an Attorney-Advisor to the National Taxpayer Advocate in Washington, DC. After leaving the NTA, he worked in the IRS Tax Exempt & Government Entities Division. He developed and implemented a Knowledge Management strategy, working closely with the IRS TE/GE Commissioner, and internal and external stakeholders to effectively develop and retain information across the Operating Division.

Eric is a graduate of Washburn University of Topeka with a bachelor’s degree in English and Spanish. He has a J.D. degree from George Washington University and an LL.M. degree in Taxation from Georgetown University in Washington, DC. He has lived around the world from Kansas to Hawaii to Rio de Janeiro and is most proud of his wife Robyn, and two children Charlie and Hera.

Kendra Kesko Isaacson serves as Pensions Policy Director and Senior
Tax Counsel for Senator Patty Murray and advises her on ERISA,
retirement, and tax issues. Prior to joining Sen. Murray's personal
office, Ms. Isaacson served in the same role on the Senate Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee during Sen. Murray's tenure
as Chair of the Committee.

Ms. Isaacson received her B.A. in Government from Dartmouth
College, a J.D. , with honors, from the Catholic University Columbus
School of Law, and an LL.M. in Taxation with a certificate in Employee
Benefits from the Georgetown University Law Center. Following law school,
she was an Associate with Slevin & Hart, P.C. and Venable LLP in
Washington, DC. Before joining the Senate, Ms. Isaacson worked in the Employee Benefits Security Administration at the Department of Labor where she worked in the Office of Policy and Research.

Before his recent early retirement from practicing law, Ronald Rutherford-Triche was Branch Chief, Qualified Plans Branch 2, in the IRS Office of Chief Counsel in Washington, DC. While there, his work focused on regulatory issues affecting employers’ qualified plans. Prior to joining the IRS Office of Chief Counsel in 2017, Mr. Rutherford-Triche spent over 20 years practicing in the field of employee benefits law. Mr. Rutherford-Triche received his bachelor’s degree from McNeese State University and his law degree from the Tulane University School of Law.

Bruce J. McNeil is a partner with Leech Tishman Fuscaldo & Lampl and a member of the Employment & Labor Practice Group where he leads the ERISA, Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation Group. Bruce is based in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office, where he focuses his practice on assisting clients in a variety of employee benefits matters including tax-qualified plans, executive and nonqualified deferred compensation arrangements, equity arrangements and phantom equity arrangements, and employee benefits litigation.

Bruce is a Fellow of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel. He was appointed to serve on the U.S. Department of Labor’s Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans by the Cabinet Secretary of Labor, Elaine Chao, and he is considered one of the country’s foremost authorities on executive and deferred compensation.

Even in law school, Sherrie became excited about the evolving area of employee benefits. To Sherrie, it’s about collaboratively working with clients to find the best solutions to their employee benefit challenges.

Since 1983, Sherrie has focused her law practice and ongoing education on finding solutions in this ever-changing and complex area of today’s employee benefit challenges. She enjoys unraveling the mysteries of ERISA with her clients with a clear focus on truly understanding each client’s issues while carefully and clearly defining the best options for each situation.

Sherrie has represented clients before the Internal Revenue Service, the United States Department of Labor, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, arbitrators from the American Arbitration Association and the United States District Court, with respect to employee benefits issues.

With an emphasis on retirement and deferred compensation plans, Sherrie advises and counsels a broad range of clients including employers, employees, plan fiduciaries, financial institutions, government agencies and trade associations, on a wide array of employee benefits matters. Sherrie has extensive experience and is a highly sought-after speaker, writer, and advisor on employee benefits topics.

Sherrie takes pride in bringing a practical and down-to-earth approach to resolving complex benefits issues involving qualified plans, non-qualified plans and health and welfare plans.

David Schneier is a Director with Fidelity’s Customer Protection team. He is an accomplished IT professional with well over thirty years of experience, the past twenty-six of which have been focused on Cyber Security. Prior to joining the Customer Protection team, he led a team responsible for assessing cybersecurity programs for Fidelity suppliers and third parties. He possesses the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) and Certified Third Party Risk Professional (CTPRP) certifications.

Elham "Ellie" Fayyazi started her career with EBSA in 2002 as a Benefit Advisor, then served as an Investigator and Senior Investigator. In 2010, she became a Supervisory Investigator and in 2018, the Chief of Criminal Investigation Division. Her entire professional career has been with EBSA. Ms. Fayyazi is currently the agency’s point of contact on Cybersecurity. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Molecular Biology from University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) and a law degree from Suffolk University Law School.

James Goldstein is a Senior Technical Advisor with the US Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Los Angeles Regional Office. During his two-decade career with the agency, he has worked on many large civil and criminal investigations involving single-employer and multi-employer sponsored health and retirement plans. Mr. Goldstein is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, where he received an American Jurisprudence Award in Constitutional Law and earned a JD with honors. In 2012 he served as an adjunct professor at Southwestern Law School, where he co-taught a course in employee benefits law sponsored by the Department of Labor. Mr. Goldstein frequently speaks on EBSA’s enforcement program before various industry groups.

Jim counsels employers on employee benefits issues in mergers and acquisitions and guides employers and fiduciaries in the formation and operation of Employee Stock Ownership Plans, including stock purchase transactions, as well as complex deferred compensation issues. He provides practical and understandable guidance, advice and support to employers, plan sponsors and fiduciaries.

From qualified 401(k), profit sharing and pension plans, welfare plans, nonqualified plans, executive compensation and other benefit programs, Jim has done almost everything in the employee benefits arena. With 35 years of experience, he counsels employers on design, compliance and operation of qualified retirement plans, nonqualified deferred compensation plans, welfare plans and stock-based compensation plans, including corrections where needed. Jim also counsels clients on fiduciary issues and has experience in fiduciary litigation.

Jim received his law degree from Georgetown University Law Center, and is a member of the State Bars of California and Arizona.

Jim is a past-President of the Sacramento Chapter of the Western Pension & Benefits Council, and has served on the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA) Leadership Council and Government Affairs Committee (Co-Chair) and is a Fellow of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel.

Karen Casillas is a nationally recognized industry advocate specializing in investment advisory, retirement plan consulting, and fiduciary governance services. Joining CAPTRUST in 2012, she previously held leadership positions within Fidelity Investments and American Funds. Karen is passionate about creating exceptional client and employee experiences, financial wellness, and delivering actionable and impactful guidance.

Karen received her B.S. in economics from University of California, Davis, and passed FINRA Series 6, 7, 8, 24, 26, 63, 66 exams. She is a Board member for WP&BC San Francisco, and past-President for WP&BC Los Angeles. Within CAPTRUST, Karen is Co-Chair of the Women’s GROW Initiative, a Peer Group Co-Leader, mentor, and CAPTRUST Community Foundation Grant Committee member. She volunteers as a sustainer for National Charity League Vista, and Chairman of the Assistance League of Ventura County’s Investment Committee. Awards include NAPA Top 50 Female “All Star Advisor” 2015-2022 and Top 100 DC Advisor Teams 2017-2022.

Scott is the head of the Equity and Executive Compensation practice at the San Francisco based employee benefits law firm of Trucker Huss. He has over 30 years of experience working with clients on all types of qualified plans and nonqualified deferred compensation plans, equity and synthetic equity plans, and change-in-control and severance arrangements. He also assists clients with Internal Revenue Code section 83(b) and 409A compliance and correcting qualified plan compliance errors under various Internal Revenue Service and Department of Labor remedial programs.

Scott has served as Chair of the Sacramento County Bar Association's Tax Section, as well as President of the Sacramento Chapter of the Western Pension & Benefits Council. He continues to serve on the WPBC Board of the Sacramento Chapter. He has also served as a member of the Executive Committee of the Governing Board of the Western Pension & Benefits Council and as a board member of the Sacramento Chapter of the National Institute of Pension Administrators (NIPA). He served as President of the Sacramento Chapter of NIPA and instituted its merger into the Sacramento Chapter of Western Pension & Benefits Council in 2020. Scott is a member of this year’s Western Benefits Conference Planning Committee.

Scott is a Fellow of the highly selective American College of Employee Benefits Counsel, and he is a frequent writer and speaker on new developments in employee benefits and the author of The Benefit of Benefits blog. Scott was named a Top Lawyer for Employee Benefits (2015-2017 and 2020-2022) in the lists published by Sacramento Magazine. He was also named a Super Lawyer in Northern California Super Lawyers 2021-2023 for excellence in employee benefits law. Scott was recently recognized as a 2024 Best Lawyers in America for Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law. He is rated as an AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated lawyer by Martindale-Hubbell.

Theresa Conti has been a leader in the Retirement Plan industry for more than 30 years. In the early days of her career she felt that she could offer clients more personalized service and consulting than they were getting with traditional TPA firms, so she decided to start her own firm in 1998, Sunwest Pensions. Theresa holds a QKA (Qualified 401(k) Administrator) designation with ASPPA and an APR (Accredited Pension Representative) designation with NIPA. In 2011, she also earned her Enrolled Retirement Plan Agent (ERPA) designation with the IRS. In 2019, she earned her CPFA (Certified Plan Fiduciary Advisor) with NAPA. In 2023, she sold her firm and is now a Senior Consultant with July Business Services.

Theresa was a member of the Board of Directors of NIPA for 11 years and was President for 18 months during 2007 through 2008. Theresa spent six years as a board member with the Arizona Chapter of NIPA, including serving three years as President. Theresa has also worked with NIPA’s Annual Conference Committee for three years, served as it’s Chairperson for the 2003 conference, and has served on the Chapter Leadership Task Force. Theresa also worked in conjunction with NIPA, ASPPA and the IRS on the development of Circular 230 and the ERPA Licensing Program. In 2016, Theresa was awarded NIPA’s Lifetime Achievement Award for her service to the industry. She is also a frequent speaker at industry conferences and events and is quoted frequently in industry publications. She has also been on advisory boards for several of the industry’s leading financial firms. In 2022, she was added to the Board of WIPN (WE Inspire. Promote. Network).

She has dedicated her career to sharing her expertise throughout the industry and with her clients.

2023 WESTERN BENEFITS CONFERENCE

Western Pension & Benefits Council Membership

Conference Sessions

Program of Events

A summary of this valuable and economical conference:

Meet the Speakers

PHYLLIS C. BORZI

ERIC SLACK

KENDRA KOSKO ISAACSON

RONALD RUTHERFORD-TRICHE

BRUCE J. MCNEIL

SHERRIE BOUTWELL

DAVID LIN

DAVID SCHNEIER

ELHAM FAYYZAI

JAMES GOLDSTEIN

JIM PAUL

KAREN CASILLAS

SCOTT GALBREATH

STEPHANIE BENNETT

THERESA CONTI

Choose Your Registration Fee

MEMBER RATE

Early-bird - $395

NON-MEMBER RATE

Early-bird - $495

SPONSORSHIPS

Opportunities ranging from $1,500 - $10,000

Westin Kierland Resort