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IRAs
While the most common default deferral remains 3% of pay (used by 36.4% of plans), more than half of those with automatic enrollment now have a default deferral rate higher than 3%, according to a new survey.
According to the Plan Sponsor Council of America’s (PSCA) 60th Annual Survey of Profit...
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The IRS and Treasury Department have issued an update to their joint 2017-18 Priority Guidance Plan. It reflects projects they hope to complete by June 30, 2018. The IRS and Treasury note that the update to the Priority Guidance Plan “reflects 29 additional projects, including those that have...
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President Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA) into law just before Christmas. The debate over tax reform roiled Washington, and the retirement plan community was among the many parties concerned about the outcome. A recent white paper discusses the new law and its possible effects...
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In the functional absence of the Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule, some states have taken matters into their own hands. The latest is New York — but the proposal recently unveiled is of limited scope and notable for what it leaves out.The New York Department of Financial Services’ (DFS)...
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The IRS has issued a revised version of its comprehensive brochure on the retirement plan checkup material it makes available for plan sponsors.TipsThe IRS offers these tips:Watch for law changes. Keep a plan up-to-date with the law and be mindful of what to change in the plan and when to do so. A...
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Individual retirement accounts generally show consistent growth, but differences do arise when comparing data samples, according to a new report from EBRI.For example, while the cross-sectional overall average balance increased 36.1% from 2010 to 2015, the increase for those IRA owners who...
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Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) will join the Senate Finance Committee, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) announced Jan. 9.The appointment of Whitehouse to the powerful Finance Committee resulted from a shift in the Senate's political makeup in the wake of the December 2017 special...
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U.S. retirement assets grew in the third quarter of 2017, according to a recent report, reaching $27.2 trillion by Sept. 30. So broad was the growth, in fact, that virtually every kind of retirement plan/asset category showed improvement from the second quarter.
According to the Investment Company...
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Congressional Republicans and President Trump are on the verge of enacting broad-based tax reform legislation once the House of Representatives approves the legislation for the second time in two days.The House must again approve the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1) after the Senate was forced to...
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House and Senate tax negotiators agreed on the final tax reform legislation Dec. 15, but they had to make some additional changes to pick up support from some wavering members. How did retirement plans fare?
Significantly, the retirement plan issues created by proposed tax changes affecting pass-...
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House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) announced Dec. 8 that conferees from the House and Senate will hold an open meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 13 to begin the process of reconciling the two chambers’ versions of tax reform legislation.Last week, the House and Senate both...
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IRAs play an increasingly large and important role in bolstering retirement readiness, says a recent analysis — and rollovers are a critical part of that vitality. It further reports that while contributions absent rollovers may be infrequent, so are withdrawals.In the December 2017 ICI Research...
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UPDATED 10:30 AM ET 12/6/2017
After a long and sometimes heated debate, the Senate took a major step toward enactment of landmark tax reform legislation, approving its version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1) at nearly 2:00 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 2.
The bill, as amended by the Senate, was...
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Legislation has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives that would boost the cashout limit for retirement plans, which its sponsors say will help make it easier for small businesses to offer retirement plans.Reps. Tim Walberg (R-MI) and Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan (D-Northern...
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As we all emerge from our turkey-induced food coma, all eyes will now be on the U.S. Senate, as Congress returns this week from its Thanksgiving break to make the final push to approve tax reform by the end of the year.
To pick up where we left off, both the House and the Senate Finance Committee...
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Quick! What are the beneficiary options under the regulations concerning required minimum distributions (RMDs) that were issued on April 17, 2002? A recent blog entry discusses these options and the importance of the distinctions.In “Working with the Beneficiary Options In the 2002 RMD Regulations...
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On Capitol Hill on Nov. 16 both the House and Senate took major steps toward completing the much-anticipated tax reform overhaul.Following a mid-day pep talk by President Trump, the House on Nov. 16 approved the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1) on a near-party line vote of 227-205. Thirteen...
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Late last night, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT) released a modified chairman’s mark for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, with — mostly — good news for retirement plans.The revised tax reform proposal embraced an amendment to the original proposal offered by Senator Rob Portman (R-OH...
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Retirement benefits are on the agenda in the IRS’ recently released 2017-2018 Priority Guidance Plan. The plan lists projects that the IRS says it hopes to complete by June 30, 2018, and sets forth guidance priorities for the Department of the Treasury and the IRS based on public input and...
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A weekend of lobbying on Capitol Hill has yielded some encouraging news on tax reform – but serious problems remain for retirement plans.
Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) has filed an amendment to strike the provision prohibiting catch-up contributions for business owners making more than $500,000, as well...
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