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U.S. Secretary of Labor Appoints New Investment Counseling Industry Representative

U.S. Secretary of Labor Appoints New Investment Counseling Industry Representative

Published 04-28-03

Submitted by Center for Fiduciary Studies

PITTSBURGH, PA - U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Elaine L.Chao has appointed seven new members to the ERISA Advisory Council, including Donald B. Trone, a nationally-known fiduciary standards expert. The 15-member board, established by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), makes recommendations to the Secretary of Labor on employee benefit issues. Trone was selected to represent the investment counseling industry.

“These seven distinguished individuals bring a wealth of experience and expertise in their respective fields,” Chao said. “I know that they and the returning members of the Advisory Council will work hard to analyze and make recommendations about issues important to the security of workers' benefits, while also supporting employers' efforts to provide these benefits in our voluntary system.”

Trone is the director of the Center for Fiduciary Studies, a full-time training and research facility for investment fiduciaries, associated with the University of Pittsburgh’s Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business. He is also the president of the Foundation for Fiduciary Studies, and the chief executive officer of investmgt, a developer of Web-based tools for investment decision-makers. Trone has co-authored two investment industry handbooks, The Management of Investment Decisions and Procedural Prudence.

Trone was invited to testify before the ERISA Advisory Council’s Working Group on Fiduciary Education in July. Trone, an advocate of fiduciary education and training, supports the formation of an advisory committee charged with the responsibility of clarifying investment-related procedures, defining industry standards for investment fiduciaries, and addressing ethical issues surrounding investment decisions.

“I am pleased and honored to be asked to join distinguished members of the retirement plan industry in an effort to protect the nearly $5 trillion in retirement plan assets covered under ERISA,” said Trone. “To many people, retirement plan mismanagement is equated with companies like Enron and WorldCom. In reality, financial loss caused by common unattended, mismanaged investment decisions far exceeds the damage caused by the larger, more publicly known cases. Americans work hard to save for their future. We need to do a better job of protecting their assets.”

Center for Fiduciary Studies

Center for Fiduciary Studies

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