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Regulatory Compliance
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has proposed a new requirement that multiemployer plans file certain forms electronically. If the PBGC issues the proposed requirement in final form, it would be applicable to filings made on or after Jan. 1, 2016.The PBGC proposes that the following...
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“Don’t sweat the small stuff.” Not always good advice — in fact, in the case of the Form 5500, it’s bad advice. The IRS found in its 401(k) Nonqualified Plans Project that plan sponsors sometimes enter information on the form that indicate that their plan is not qualified. But they don’t mean to —...
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The Department of Labor’s long-awaited fiduciary reproposal claims to protect consumers from “conflicts of interest” in retirement advice — but at what cost?While initial concerns about preserving the ability for 401(k) participants to work with the advisor of their choice on rollovers appear to be...
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Industry insider and fiduciary geek Pete Swisher has penned a timely and insightful piece on the history and potential future impact of the Department of Labor’s (DOL) new “conflict of interest” proposal.Swisher, who has spent years studying and preparing for the issues surrounding the “definition...
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The Investment Company Institute says the Obama administration relied on "fatally flawed" research in supporting its push for an expansion of the “conflicted advice” rule released April 14, and that the claim that retirement savers pay “billions of dollars a year” in excess costs “does not stand up...
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It’s been a long time coming, but after a nearly five-year odyssey the Department of Labor on April 14 unveiled a proposed regulation that redefines who a plan fiduciary is — and makes it clear that the Obama administration intends the rule to be a way to increase consumer protections for plan...
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The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) recently issued a report on the results of its audit of how well the IRS identifies and addresses excess contributions to IRAs. It also made recommendations regarding how the IRS can do a better job.IRA holders can only make...
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Small defined benefit plans that have received audit waivers need more frequent review, says the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Inspector General. The DOL’s IG sent Report 05-15-002-12-121, which concerns EBSA’s oversight of small plans claiming the audit waiver, to DOL Assistant Secretary for...
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Plans that have, or have been contemplating, automatic enrollment features just got some good news from the Internal Revenue Service.In Rev. Proc. 2015-28, issued April 2, the IRS provided new safe harbor correction methods for errors relating to automatic contribution features, including automatic...
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The Internal Revenue Service is moving to make it easier — and in some cases cheaper — to remedy plan problems with participant loans. In Revenue Procedure 2015-27, the IRS said it is reducing voluntary correction program (VCP) compliance fees relating to failures to meet requirements with respect...
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On March 24, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) announced that it seeks to revise forms that allow it to collect information it needs to implement Section 303(k) of ERISA and Internal Revenue Code Section 430(k). It also seeks that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) extend its...
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Expanded annual actuarial certifications for multiemployer plans are due March 31 for calendar year plans. The IRS issued the reminder in the March 25 issue of Employee Plans News. The Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014, enacted on Dec. 16, 2014, revised the annual funding certification...
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Do you have a question you’d like to ask the IRS? ASPPA’s IRS Q&A subcommittee wants to hear from you. We are currently gathering questions for the Defined Contribution IRS/Treasury Question & Answer general session at this October’s Annual Conference. The question and answer general...
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The Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Labor are both working on fiduciary issues — but their different approaches appear to be on different schedules. On March 24, it was SEC Chair Mary Jo White’s turn to take questions from Congress regarding the commission’s plan to impose a...
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http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-15-28.pdfSponsors of certain closed defined benefit plans got some good news from the IRS on March 19 — it has extended temporary relief from nondiscrimination rules under Internal Revenue Code Section 401(a)(4) for another year. The extension applies to DB plans...
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Time draws short for required minimum distributions (RMDs) from traditional IRAs and employer-provided retirement plans to taxpayers who reached age 70½ in 2014. The IRS on March 19 in IR-2015-55 issued a reminder that the deadline is April 1.The April 1 deadline applies to owners of traditional...
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Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez used his first appearances before the 114th Congress to deliver a full-throated defense of the DOL’s controversial effort to expand the fiduciary standard of care to financial service providers under the jurisdiction of the department.Perez appeared at two...
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Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez used his first appearances before the 114th Congress to deliver a full-throated defense of the DOL’s controversial effort to expand the fiduciary standard of care to financial service providers under the jurisdiction of the department.Perez appeared at two...
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On March 19, 2015, the Government Affairs Committee (GAC) of the American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA) filed a comment letter with the IRS regarding suggested changes to the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS). The letter provided specific recommendations...
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Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Mary Jo White confirmed March 17 that the Commission will “implement a uniform fiduciary duty for broker-dealers and investment advisors where the standard is to act in the best interest of the investor.”The statement, reported by Investment News,...
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