Retirement Income

While not quite the bump received from last year’s record inflation, the health savings account (HSA) limits will still receive an increase for 2025, as determined under Section 223 of the Internal Revenue Code.  The new limits were announced May 9 by the IRS in Revenue Procedure 2024-25. The IRS... READ MORE

Target date funds (TDF) start off strong, only to vary more in investment performance and risk as they approach the specified retirement date, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO)—which asked the Department of Labor (DOL) to do something about it. The GAO has called on the DOL... READ MORE

Mid-spring was mild for private-sector pension plans, according to several analyses that generally report modest improvements in their fortunes in April.  This marks a continuation of a trend that has held sway all year. Corporate defined benefit plans had a mild winter, and showed some... READ MORE

It’s been said that a crisis is a terrible thing to waste. But what if it’s a figment of your imagination? “Crisis” is a word much bandied about these days, most particularly as a label applied to retirement—by foes and fans alike. Indeed, while not so long ago headlines posed that premise as a... READ MORE

Disasters can create a sudden need for resources to address the situation at hand.  But some resources are more readily accessible than others—resorting to certain kinds of funds can itself create some hardship.  To help avoid that circumstance and risk having a response to an emergency itself... READ MORE

The climate is warming. No, not that one—the climate for annuities. Interest in them among retirement investors is rising, according to recent reports.  This actually is not a new trend, says LIMRA. They report that interest in annuities stood at 33% of those whom they surveyed in 2018 but “jumped... READ MORE

So nice to get a break from deadlines as the weather heats up. Hope your vacation and concert schedule is full of fun times ahead. Perhaps you will prepare a hundred or so Cycle 3 document restatements during down time? Remember preparing your 2023 PBGC Forms that reflected big asset losses in... READ MORE

Of all the promising provisions in the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022, one of the most expensive (as the federal government does math, anyway) is likely to be one of the most challenging to implement. It’s not effective till 2027, so there’s still some time to figure it out—but I’m talking about the new... READ MORE

Gordon Hartogensis’ term as Director of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) will end on April 30, 2024. The PBGC made the announcement on April 24.  Hartogensis, the first PBGC Director to complete a full five-year term in that office, was nominated in May 2018 by then-President Trump... READ MORE