Skip to main content

You are here

Advertisement

Regulatory Compliance

Another suit filed against flexPATH by the law firm of Schlichter Bogard, LLP has been dismissed—with prejudice—though it seems to have turned more on good outcomes than prudent processes. This suit (Mills v. Molina Healthcare, Inc., C.D. Cal., No. 2:22-cv-01813, complaint 3/18/22) was filed by... READ MORE
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has updated a variety of interest rates used in determining the value of benefits, premiums, and penalties.  Variable Rate Premiums  The PBGC has adjusted the interest rates used in determining the value of vested benefits for purposes of variable... READ MORE
Editor’s Note: This is Part I of a two-part series on a recent report by the Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans to Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su.   Recordkeeping today is not your grandfather’s recordkeeping. Maybe not even your older sibling’s. So guidance and... READ MORE
March is coming in like a lion with a new “genre” of ERISA litigation. While it’s early yet, two—and now three—recent suits—filed by different law firms in different federal district courts—might be the first of a new wave of litigation. All focus on decisions to mitigate corporate risk exposure... READ MORE
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) Director Gordon Hartogensis defended PBGC actions and said that it is “providing crucial pension relief” in a March 20 appearance before the House Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions. The subcommittee, part of the House Education and... READ MORE
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) on March 12 issued the interest assumptions under the asset allocation regulation for plans with valuation dates in the second quarter of 2024. The assumptions are contained in a final rule that amends the PBGC’s regulation on Allocation of Assets in... READ MORE
The IRS has confirmed that they expect to fix a system-wide glitch that has resulted in improperly withheld refunds of erroneous penalties related to Form 8955-SSA filings.  Kelsey Mayo, the American Retirement Association’s Director of Regulatory Policy, reports that some plan sponsors’ refunds... READ MORE
The Joint Board for Enrollment of Actuaries (JBEA) on March 13, 2024 announced proposed regulations that not only would retroactively extend the temporary waiver of its physical presence requirement for continuing professional education (CPE) programs—they also would eliminate the requirement... READ MORE
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) received the fiduciary rule, listed as Retirement Security Rule: Definition of an Investment Advice Fiduciary, from the Department of Labor (DOL) on March 8. The OMB will review its costs and benefits within 90 days. However, the compressed two-month... READ MORE
The ink was barely dry on the denial of a motion to dismiss the suit, when American Airlines filed a motion of summary judgment, claiming that “there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and the [movant] is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Where We’ve Been Participant-plaintiff (... READ MORE
The release of final changes to the Department of Labor’s popular Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP) is apparently on the horizon, according to recent comments made by a senior agency official.  Speaking Feb. 27 at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business Retirement Summit,... READ MORE
Recently, we explored the reasons why small businesses DON’T offer a retirement plan to their workers. But there are quite different—and positive—reasons for choosing to do so. The obstacles that keep most small businesses from offering a retirement plan to their workers are an assortment of... READ MORE
It is now possible to offer plan participants in 401(k), 403(b), and 457(b) plans the option to treat employer contributions as Roth contributions, under the SECURE 2.0 Act.  More precisely, it is Section 604 of the SECURE 2.0 Act that allows plan participants to elect to have any fully vested... READ MORE
A big plan has struck a big cash settlement in an excessive fee suit involving the use of proprietary investment products in its 401(k) plan. The suit was brought by a number of plaintiff-participants relating to the management of the New York Life Insurance Company Employee Progress-Sharing... READ MORE
A bill currently before the Georgia legislature would affect the exercise of fiduciary duty regarding the investment of retirement plan assets. The legislation includes a provision that would require a fiduciary to put the interests of participants and their beneficiaries ahead of “nonpecuniary... READ MORE
Looks like an American Airlines participant-plaintiff who argued that plan fiduciaries didn’t act in participants’ best interests in including funds managed by firms that allegedly favored ESG interests will get his day in court. Participant-plaintiff (and pilot) Bryan P. Spence filed suit in the... READ MORE
The Department of Labor (DOL) has gone to court to protect retirement plan assets in a case of alleged embezzlement by a TPA. The DOL says that an emergency temporary restraining order (TRO) has been issued by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania against RiversEdge... READ MORE
Congress’ watchdog agency apparently thinks so. That was one of the recommendations in a newly released report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).  A “pension dashboard” could be useful in the United States to help participants track their retirement savings when they change jobs, but... READ MORE
Sometimes the most mundane details can be overlooked—which, for a plan, entails risk. In fulfilling the myriad responsibilities attendant to offering and running a plan, a retirement plan committee can be a great help.  Navigating increasingly complicated benefits administration—and against a... READ MORE
The plan document is not a suggestion; it’s a roadmap to compliance and competent and effective administration. But it’s not always given the regard it deserves—which can imperil a plan and those whom it ultimately was written to serve.  Oops Robert M. Kaplan, Director of Technical Education at... READ MORE

Pages