Government Affairs

Do you sometimes feel like you have spent your precious time performing tests that no longer seem relevant or meet an arbitrary deadline? Have you ever come across a nonsensical rule that continually trips up you or your staff and you think to yourself: “it would be so much easier if…”?We all know... READ MORE

For the second time in a week, an important committee in the U.S. House of Representatives has approved legislation that could undermine the Labor Department’s proposed fiduciary rule.The most recent step was a 26-12 vote by the House Ways and Means Committee on Feb. 3 to pass the Strengthening... READ MORE

As the Department of Labor (DOL) moves forward with its new fiduciary standard, lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives are working on legislation to address concerns that the final DOL proposal will harm access to retirement savings advice.The House Committee on Education and the Workforce... READ MORE

The IRS on Jan. 29 issued guidance on mid-year changes to a safe harbor plan under Internal Revenue Code Sections 401(k) and 401(m). It provides that a mid-year change either to a safe harbor plan or to a plan's safe harbor notice does not violate the safe harbor rules just because it is a mid-year... READ MORE

Neither rain, nor snow, nor dark of night — could keep the Department of Labor (DOL) from getting the updated conflict-of-interest/fiduciary regulation to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review.That’s right, despite the massive snowstorm that hit the Washington, D.C. area last week,... READ MORE

The IRS has issued a proposed rule on the determination of whether the normal retirement age under a governmental pension plan under Internal Revenue Code Section 414(d) satisfies the requirements of Code Section 401(a) and whether the payment of definitely determinable benefits that begin at the... READ MORE

A recent Supreme Court ruling may have implications for retirement plan overpayment recoveries.Now, the payments made in the case of Robert Montanile v. Board of Trustees of the National Elevator Industry Health Benefit Plan, case number 14-723 (U.S. Supreme Court Jan. 20, 2016) weren’t made from a... READ MORE

November was a good month for those who believe that the government should take over the private retirement system.Since far too many Americans continue to lack access to a retirement plan at work, state governments have been legislating retirement policy in recent years to address this significant... READ MORE

Small businesses in the Garden State will soon be able to use a virtual marketplace to choose a private retirement plan. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) has signed into law a measure establishing that marketplace.The New Jersey Small Business Retirement Marketplace Act is intended to create a... READ MORE