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Regulatory Compliance
Coming slightly more than a month after its first hearing on the Department of Labor’s proposed investment advice fiduciary rule, a second subcommittee of the House of Representatives debated the merits of the proposal, with the battle lines drawn between the two parties.
The Feb. 15 hearing by...
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Those who make filings with the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) now must use the agency’s new e-Filing portal. It became operational on Feb. 1, 2024.
The PBGC had announced on Jan. 8 that it would launch a new and improved e-filing portal at the start of the next month. The launch of...
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Following the assessment of an independent fiduciary that the settlement terms were reasonable, the parties in a 401(k) excessive fee suit have moved for approval by a federal judge.
The suit was filed back on Aug. 11, 2021—with plaintiffs Chris Carrigan, Michael Venti, and Sylvain Yelle (...
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A new report offers a new level of transparency on recordkeeping fees paid by the large plan targets of excessive fee suits—and calls out a number of misleading claims and benchmarks used by the plaintiffs’ bar in bringing those suits.
According to the announcement from Encore Fiduciary, formerly...
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Loans to pay for an education: an investment in the future, but also a drag on it. Research and recent insights suggest that while loans help fund steps intended to improve one’s position, in some ways they can threaten future security by affecting retirement saving. It’s a debt whose effects...
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The IRS has made the 2023 Cumulative List of Changes in Plan Qualification Requirements for Defined Contribution Qualified Pre-Approved Plans available. The new list, contained in Notice 2024-3, provides updated listings of required modifications and information packages for DC plans.
The 2023...
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Employer plan sponsors and fiduciaries that are subject to the prohibited transaction rules as set forth in ERISA and the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) will want to take note of new procedures for granting administrative transaction exemptions.
The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security...
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One provision in particular in the SECURE 2.0 Act is receiving the lion’s share of attention from retirement plan sponsors and participants. Section 110 allows student loan payments to be treated as elective deferrals for purposes of matching contributions.
Yet guidance on how it will happen is...
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There have been significant changes to the IRS Pre-Approved Defined Contribution Plan Program, and two of the IRS officials involved in the thick of it recently provided a refresher on the program rules and recent developments.
Milo Atlas of the Retirement Plan Forms and Publications Office at...
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The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) on Jan. 19 announced that it has chosen the firms that will participate in its Smaller Asset Managers Program (SAMP).
SAMP is intended to reduce barriers to competition and create opportunities for smaller asset investment management firms. SAMP...
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The Treasury Department, the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) have announced that they will issue a joint request for information (RFI) seeking public input to help them review the effectiveness of existing...
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The Department of Labor (DOL) announced Jan. 18 that its Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) released a proposed regulation on automatic portability transactions under SECURE 2.0.
The DOL said automatic portability transactions aim to help workers keep track of their retirement...
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On the heels of the recent IRS guidance on pension-linked emergency savings accounts (PLESAs), the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) followed suit on Jan. 17, issuing additional guidance in the form of FAQs.
Included in Section 127 of the SECURE 2.0 Act...
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The IRS has issued final regulations updating the minimum present value requirements for pension plan distributions. The IRS issued the final regulations on Jan. 19.
The IRS had issued proposed regulations in 2016 that updated the minimum present value requirements for defined benefit plan...
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Plan professionals may find it useful to know that plan sponsors continue to make participants’ retirement security a priority, and are boosting their work to enhance it.
JP Morgan, in its fifth Defined Contribution Plan Sponsor Survey, which provides the results of an online survey of 788...
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Often there can be confusion in more ways than one when trying to understand why actuaries report liabilities for defined benefit plans.
The reason actuaries report plan liabilities in different manners has to do with the interplay between interest rates, the economy, and the reporting purpose....
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Almost 20 years ago, the IRS issued proposed regulations for handling Internal Revenue Code Section 415(b) limits when multiple annuity starting dates (MASDs) are involved. While the approach given was simple—basically a straight actuarial adjustment to benefits paid, it led to some absurd results...
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Take a helping of government activity. Add a teaspoon each of plan design, controlled groups, and annuities, and also add a dash of EPCRS and a sprinkling of ethics. Voila! The recipe for the ASEA Actuarial Insights conference.
The conference will be held on Jan. 24-25.
Wednesday, Jan. 24
On...
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It’s a big year for the implementation of certain SECURE 2.0 provisions. While many of the items are optional, it represents an excellent opportunity to explain what they mean and their potential impact.
“There are two that are the big standouts,” Kevin Gaston said when asked about the provisions...
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The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has issued a final rule adjusting for 2024 the civil penalties for failure to provide certain notices or other material information and for failure to provide certain multiemployer plan notices. The PBGC is required to amend its regulations annually...
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