John Iekel

The government of Maine has enacted a measure that adjusts its state-run retirement savings program.  Gov. Janet Mills (D) on June 12 signed into law legislation that adjusts the Maine Retirement Savings Program, the plan that provides coverage to private-sector employees whose employers do not.... READ MORE

Participants in OregonSaves, the first state-run retirement plan for private-sector employees whose employers do not offer one, have now cumulatively saved more than $200 million through the program.  So reported the Oregon Retirement Savings Board and State Treasurer Tobias Read, who serves as... READ MORE

Nevada has become the latest state to provide retirement plan coverage for private-sector employees whose employers do not. The Nevada Senate passed legislation that would create a state program, SB305, on May 26; the Nevada Assembly followed suit on June 4.  The bill then went to Gov. Joe... READ MORE

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation’s (PBGC) regulatory agenda now includes proposed rules to reflect updates to the dollar limit for mandatory distributions under SECURE 2.0.  The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has outlined the PBGC... READ MORE

A big piece of fixing Alaska’s problem with teacher staffing is addressing retirement plan issues, says none other than the Majority Leader of the State Senate.  Cathy Giessel (R-Anchorage), the Majority Leader of the Alaska Senate, made her comments as a panelist in the June 12 National Institute... READ MORE

Vermont is now among the states providing a state-run plan for private-sector employees whose employers are not. Gov. Phil Scott (R) has signed into law the measure that called for the creation of their iteration.  On June 1, Scott signed S. 135, the bill that creates VTSaves.  Action on the... READ MORE

The shift from defined benefit plans to defined contribution plans is not new. It may be less common in the public sector, but it is not unknown among public employers. A recent study looks at what that has meant for the Alaska education sector.  The National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS... READ MORE

There is pressure from state legislatures for action concerning the windfall elimination provision (WEP) and the government pension offset (GPO). Both are benefit formulas that reduce Social Security benefits for workers and their eligible family members if the worker receives (or is entitled to) a... READ MORE

The IRS has issued guidance on the expansion of the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS) under Section 305 of SECURE 2.0.  The guidance is contained in Notice 2023-43, which provides interim guidance in advance of an update to Revenue Procedure (Rev. Proc.) 2021-30.  The issues the... READ MORE