Government Accountability Office

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  Financial Engines to Include IRAs on Income+ Offering

  By John Sullivan, AdvisorOne  |  May 13, 2013

  Financial Engines, which claims to be America's largest independent RIA, announced it is expanding its services to include IRAs.

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  Offshore Tax Evaders Taking Big Risk, Former IRS Attorney Says

  By Gil Weinreich, AdvisorOne  |  April 30, 2013

  Many taxpayers, in an effort to avoid onerous penalties and back taxes, are not joining the IRS’ tax amnesty programs, instead making "quiet disclosures" that could backfire, a former IRS attorney says.

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  94% of Pension Plans Underfunded: Wilshire

  By John Sullivan, AdvisorOne  |  April 11, 2013

  A low-interest-rate environment is wreaking havoc with corporate defined benefit plans.

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  Does Fiduciary Coverage for 401(k) Rollovers Lie Ahead?

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  April 3, 2013

  A just-released report by the GAO on rollovers foreshadows one of the more controversial aspects of what the DOL’s revised fiduciary rule will look like, industry officials say.

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  Financial Crisis’s Pricetag Could Top $10 Trillion: GAO

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  February 15, 2013

  Losses incurred by the financial crisis of 2007-'09 could exceed $10 trillion, and the effects could linger for years to come, according to a just-released report by the Government Accountability Office.

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  Guaranteed Income? Not Without Risk: GAO

  By Danielle Andrus, AdvisorOne  |  January 11, 2013

  A GAO report examined variable annuities with guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefits and contingent deferred annuities, as well as the regulations that cover each.

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  GAO to IRS: Shift Taxpayer Exam Priorities

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  January 4, 2013

  Correspondence exams of individual returns provide far more bang for the buck than broader and more complex field exams, the GAO found in a review.

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  Treasury Sells Remaining AIG Shares, Profiting From Bailout

  By Arthur D. Postal, PropertyCasualty360.com  |  December 12, 2012

  The Treasury Department on Tuesday sold its remaining 16% of AIG common shares for $7.6 billion, putting an end to the government’s 50-month shotgun financial tryst with the global insurer.

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  AIG Stock Sale Could Trigger Federal Regulation

  By Arthur D. Postal PropertyCasualty360.com  |  September 11, 2012

  American International Group is on the verge of becoming the first insurance holding company ever regulated by the federal government.

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  A Chat With CFP Board CEO Kevin Keller: Fiduciary, SRO and His Priorities

  By Melanie Waddell, AdvisorOne  |  August 21, 2012

  Providing the SEC with the resources it needs “is the best solution" to the advisor exam problem, says Kevin Keller, but finding a way to ensure advisors face more exam scrutiny—through an SRO or user fees paid to the SEC—will be a “long-term issue.”