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Government Affairs
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) said Oct. 28 that the 2016 annual maximum guaranteed benefit for a retiree at age 65, as well as that for multiemployer plans, will remain at the same levels as those set for 2015.The 2016 annual maximum guaranteed benefit for a retiree at age 65 will...
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The U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation Oct. 27 that would block the Department of Labor from finalizing its fiduciary proposal until the Securities and Exchange Commission weighs in.By a 245-to-186 margin, the House passed the Retail Investor Protection Act of 2015 (H.R. 1090), which...
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An Oct. 23 hearing by a subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee became the latest stage on which House members expressed frustration over proposals related to fiduciary regulation. The Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government hearing, “Oversight of the SEC’s Division of...
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The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has raised the per-participant flat premium rates and the variable-rate premium for single-employer plans for plan years beginning in 2016. The PBGC made the announcement on Oct. 26.The per-participant flat premium rate for plan years beginning in...
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The biggest impact of the DOL’s proposed fiduciary rule, a.k.a. the “conflict of interest rule,” is on the IRA market, ERISA attorney Fred Reish told a workshop session at the ASPPA Annual Conference Oct. 20. Reish was joined by Marcy Supovitz, incoming president of the American Retirement...
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Concerned that prior guidance has discouraged the embrace of “economically targeted investments,” the Department of Labor (DOL) has issued a new interpretive bulletin.The DOL starts by broadly defining an economically targeted investment as “…any investment that is selected, in part, for its...
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The 2015 ASPPA Annual Conference offered a great opportunity to meet other pension professionals, hear from government leaders and experts, and gain insights on critical issues and developments facing the industry. Here’s a recap of our coverage of sessions and speakers from this year’s conference...
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As expected most of the limits were unchanged, because the increase in the cost-of-living index did not meet the statutory thresholds that trigger their adjustment — but there were some increases.The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) highlighted the following limitations that WILL change in 2016 from...
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There will be no cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for Social Security this year — a precursor of what can be expected for retirement plan contribution and benefit limits.It's just the third time in 40 years that those Social Security payments will remain flat. All three times have come since 2010....
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W. Thomas Reeder, Jr., is the new Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) Director. The Senate in a voice vote confirmed Reeder Oct. 8 to serve in that capacity. President Obama had sent his nomination of Reeder to the Senate on May 21.Reeder told the Senate Finance Committee in July that he...
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The IRS and Treasury have taken steps that curb lump sum pension buyout offers by pension plans to those receiving ongoing payments. In a recent post on his “Nerd’s Eye View” blog, Michael Kitces offers his take on their recent actions and what they mean.Kitces notes that lump sum buyout offers by...
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While many in the retirement industry are solely focused on the impending fiduciary rule, the Department of Labor is proceeding on another potentially far-reaching regulatory project at the direction of President Obama.In July 2015, Obama tasked the Department of Labor to issue new regulations and...
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Not one, not two, but three former chairs of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) want the agency they ran to join the effort to set a fiduciary rule. They made their remarks at a TD Ameritrade summit in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 6.Harvey Pitt, Christopher Cox and Mary Schapiro all expressed...
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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have taken steps to curb questionable practices concerning pension advance transactions, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) says. The GAO made the disclosure in “Pension Advance Transactions: Questionable...
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Economist Robert Litan has responded on Forbes.com to accusations of conflicts of interest leveled the last week of September by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) that cost him his position at the Brookings Institution.BackgroundIn a letter to Brookings president Strobe Talbot, Warren had claimed...
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As the Department of Labor (DOL) finalizes new fiduciary regulations, members of Congress on both sides of the aisle are considering new legislation to address their concerns with DOL’s proposal.On Sept. 30, the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Oversight held a hearing on the regulations’...
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Think administering loans and withdrawals is complicated now? New legislation introduced in the Senate claims to shore up retirement security for women — but it’s got implications for plan design and administration.Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Ranking Member Patty...
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The IRS Tax Exempt & Government Entities Office has issued its priorities for fiscal year 2016. Among these priorities are plans that concern TEGE’s work with employee plans and with government entities and shared services.Employee Plans OfficeFor FY 2016, TEGE’s Employee Plans (EP) office will...
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One of the important sources of retirement income is seriously misunderstood — Social Security. According to a survey conducted by AARP, (reported in August 2015) the Social Security benefit, overall represents roughly 38% of the income of senior citizens. For many, the benefit represents over half...
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On Oct. 1, the American Retirement Association (ARA) submitted a comment letter in response to IRS Announcement 2015-19 in which the IRS requested comments regarding changes to the Employee Plans Determination Letter (DL) Program.In the release, the IRS announced significant changes to the DL...
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