Regulatory Compliance

Speakers at an Oct. 22 workshop session at the ASPPA Annual Conference provided an early “deep dive” into the final rules issued last month.   Robert M. Richter, Retirement Education Counsel at the American Retirement Association, and Michael F. Smith, Vice President Qualified Plan Consulting at... READ MORE

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has waived the requirement, subject to certain conditions, to report member-specific financial information. The action comes in Technical Update 19-1, which provides guidance on compliance with the annual financial and actuarial information reporting... READ MORE

The IRS has announced a public hearing on… MEPs. That’s right, the IRS has published notice of a public hearing on proposed regulations relating to the tax qualification of plans maintained by more than one employer – plans that, maintained pursuant to section 413(c) of the Internal Revenue Code,... READ MORE

If your workforce includes recent college graduates – or even not-so-recent college graduates – it’s likely that some of them have debt associated with their college years – and just as likely that it’s hampering their retirement savings.  Any number of studies have chronicled the impact of this... READ MORE

Guidance on student loan payments under qualified retirement and section 403(b) plans has been added to the updated Treasury/IRS Priority Guidance Plan released Oct. 8.  While the plan does not specify what the agencies are considering, the guidance – which could be issued in the first half of... READ MORE

Morgan Stanley has fended off a participant suit that a federal judge described as “opportunistic Monday-morning quarterbacking on the part of lawyers.” In Patterson v. Stanley (2019 BL 384508, S.D.N.Y., No. 1:16-cv-06568-RJS, 10/7/19), U.S. Circuit Judge Richard J. Sullivan, sitting by... READ MORE

Employees come and go — and sometimes come back. But are they eligible to enter the plan upon their rehire date? A recent ASPPA webcast addressed the legal requirements as well as optional plan design provisions that affect the handling of rehired employees. In “Rehires,” a Sept. 25 ASPPA webcast... READ MORE

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has issued a proposed rule that would amend its rules for administrative review of agency decisions. The proposed rule would make all agency coverage determinations subject to appeal and clarify the procedures for requesting administrative review.... READ MORE

ASPPA has received several reports of incorrect Form 5558 acknowledgments or extension denials being received by plans that had timely filed to extend the filing deadline for their 2018 Form 5500. In some instances, the acknowledgments are reflecting the extension deadline of Oct. 15, 2019 for off-... READ MORE