2011-2012 Management Council

President
Robert M. Richter, APM
Robert M. Richter, APM, is a vice president at SunGard Corbel LLC in Jacksonville, FL. Robert manages the consulting department, which is responsible for drafting and supporting qualified retirement plans, cafeteria plans and self-funded health plans. He is a frequent lecturer and author on topics related to cafeteria plans and qualified retirement plans. Robert is a Fellow of the American College of Employee Benefits Council and is a member of numerous associations including The Florida Bar and NIPA. He received his B.S.B.A. degree (major in finance) from the University of Florida. He received his Juris Doctor (J.D.) from Florida State University and his Master of Laws in Taxation (LL.M.) from the University of Florida.

President-Elect
Barry Max Levy, QKA
Barry Max Levy, QKA, is a pension consultant and president of Levy & Associates. A graduate of the University of Maryland, he has been a guest on financial talk radio and featured speaker on qualified retirement plans. He has been recognized in federal and state courts as an expert in the area of qualified retirement plans. He joined the predecessor organization, Leo Levy & Associates, in 1989. Barry has previously served on ASPPA’s Government Affairs Executive Committee (GAC), co-chaired the ASPPA Benefits Councils (ABC) Committee and served as General Conferences Co-chair. Locally, he has served as president of the ASPPA Benefits Council of South Florida (ABC South Florida).


Executive Director / Chief Executive Officer
Brian H. Graff, Esq., APM 

Brian H. Graff, Esq., APM, began serving as Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of ASPPA in November 1996. In this capacity, Graff oversees ASPPA’s operations, is a member of ASPPA’s Executive Committee and, working with ASPPA’s Board of Directors, charts the strategic direction for the organization. During his tenure, ASPPA has grown from a budget of $1.6 million to more than $13 million. Today, ASPPA and its sister organizations (NAPA, NTSAA, ACOPA) represent more than 8,500 retirement plan professionals  and provide advocacy, specialized education and training, networking, and business intelligence to a growing membership base.

Graff is well known for representing the interests of ASPPA members before Congress and the federal regulatory agencies. Most recently, he testified before the U.S. Department of Labor on the proposed “definition of fiduciary” regulation. Because of his “inside Washington” expertise and “tell it like it is” presentations, Graff is well known for his much anticipated Washington Update—a highlight presentation of every ASPPA conference.

In fact, Graff has been actively involved in the programming and growth of more than a dozen ASPPA conferences annually, including the renowned 401(k) SUMMIT. On the education side, Graff has been instrumental in ASPPA’s administration of more than 5,000 examinations per year that lead to various industry-related professional credentials such as ASPPA’s highly regarded QPFC credential for advisors—the Qualified Plan Financial Consultant.

Graff is also a well known industry speaker, frequently presenting at company and industry conferences on behalf of the employer sponsored retirement plan system. He is also regularly sought after by the trade and mainstream media, and has been quoted or interviewed recently by The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and Bloomberg TV. 

Earlier this year, Graff spearheaded the development and launch of ASPPA’s newest sister organization—NAPA, the National Association of Plan Advisors—which was created to give plan advisors a “seat at the table” and a voice in Washington, as well as targeted business intelligence and networking opportunities. In 2010, Graff organized The Lifetime Income Summit with AARP and WISER to draw attention to the decumulation phase of retirement ahead of regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Labor. In 2009, Graff helped pave the way for the National Tax-Sheltered Accounts Association (NTSAA)—an organization focused on the 403(b) and 457 plan industries—to combine operations with ASPPA and serve advisors in the non-profit markets as a sister organization. 

An attorney (District of Columbia) and certified public accountant (New York-inactive), Graff was formerly Legislation Counsel to the U.S. Congress Joint Committee on Taxation where he provided policy and technical analysis relating to pensions and employee benefits, health care and Social Security to members of Congress. While working for Congress, Graff participated in the development of legislation, including the Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996 and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. Prior to working on Capitol Hill, Graff was associated with the Washington, DC, law firm, The Groom Law Group, which specializes in employee benefits.

Graff received his doctoral degree in law, cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in Philadelphia. He holds a bachelor of science in accounting with distinction from Cornell University in Ithaca, NY.