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A bipartisan task force in Pennsylvania is recommending the establishment of a state-run auto-IRA program to help workers who don’t have access to a private-sector retirement plan.
The task force, which was established in September 2017 by State Treasurer Joe Torsella, released a report March 27 ...
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A pair of Senate Democrats, one of whom is a 2020 presidential candidate, introduced legislation on April 4 that would require businesses to pay at least 50 cents into an employee’s retirement savings plan for every hour worked.
Noting that 3 in 10 workers lack access to a workplace retirement...
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The American Retirement Association is asking the ERISA Advisory Council to examine issues concerning the extent to which an ERISA-covered retirement plan may use plan assets to pay the costs associated with plan design changes and other features that encourage retirement savings.
In an April 3...
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David Levine of Groom Law Group will be covering this hot topic during his session at ASPPA Eastern Regional Conference to be held May 9-10 in Philadelphia PA.
The problem of plan participants who go missing after leaving their employers is a challenge for plan fiduciaries attempting to:
comply...
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In response to unilateral actions taken by the American Academy of Actuaries, the ASPPA College of Pension Actuaries (ACOPA), part of the American Retirement Association (ARA) has taken steps in defense of its members, and the actuarial profession at large.
In September 2018, the American Academy...
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The Maryland Senate Finance Committee has overwhelmingly voted to recommend the rejection of a pending fiduciary bill.
In fact, 10 out of the 11 committee members voted in favor of a motion to consider Maryland Senate Bill 786 – The Financial Consumer Protection Act of 2019 – as “unfavorable.”...
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The Oregon Retirement Savings Board (ORSB) on April 2 reviewed a proposal to change the rules and amend OregonSaves to allow a presumption of employer exemption.
The Oregon Treasury filed the proposal on Feb. 16. It held a public hearing on the proposal on March 19 and accepted public comments...
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The most powerful committee in the U.S. House of Representatives has advanced a powerful piece of retirement reform legislation – unanimously.
Signifying the importance of the issue, the first markup meeting of the House Ways & Means Committee for the 116th Congress on April 2 featured the...
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Ever since passage of the Economic Growth Tax Relief and Recovery Act of 2001 (EGTRRA), individuals who are age 50 or over at the end of the calendar year can make annual catch-up contributions – as much as $6,000 in 2019.
The provision was designed to allow workers to “catch up” on contributions...
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Hello ACOPA –
It has been a tiring first three months of 2019, work-wise. January Madness did not stop with March as we dealt with March 15 deadlines. The April 15 deadline is fast approaching with a new burst of stress. Summer can’t arrive soon enough as it brings on vacation time, summer...
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In 2013, I responded to an ad on our beloved ACOPA discussion board to volunteer for the EA2-L Exam Writer’s committee. For those who don’t know, EA2-L is what I like to call the “everything but the funding law” exam. It is an incredible way to remain sharp on topics that you might see day-to-day...
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This column is to update ACOPA members on the view of progress from the President of ACOPA.
Much ACOPA leadership time in recent months has been spent on responding to September 2018 actions of the American Academy of Actuaries. To briefly review, the Academy voted to remove ACOPA and the...
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Recently, many of our colleagues have received inquiries about “401(h) plans.” A 401(h) is not a type of plan but rather an ancillary benefit of a defined benefit plan. A 401(h) account provides a highly efficient way to fund retiree health benefits. Contributions to the account are tax-deductible...
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The Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA), part of the American Retirement Association (ARA), has launched a new and innovative education program and credential: the Certified Plan Sponsor Professional (CPSP™).
Developed by plan sponsors in collaboration with education experts at ARA and some of...
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The leaders of the Senate Finance Committee, Chairman Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR), have introduced the Retirement Enhancement and Savings Act (RESA) once again.
The Senate action comes as members of the House Ways & Means Committee are poised to pass its own...
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Concluding that “DOL’s Final Rule stretches the definition of ‘employer’ beyond what ERISA’s text and purpose will bear,” a federal judge has thrown the Labor Department’s association health plan rule for a loss.
The association health plan (AHP) rule, finalized last June, claimed to make...
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A federal appeals court has affirmed summary judgment in a class action suit involving 270,000 plan participants across more than 13,000 plans.
The suit was filed in 2015 by plaintiff John Teets, a participant in the Farmers’ Rice Cooperative 401(k) Savings Plan, which had contracted with Great-...
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The parties in one of the oldest excessive fee suits have finally come to terms.
Those parties – Tussey v. ABB – settled for $55 million which, if approved by a federal judge, would bring to conclusion litigation that was filed in 2005 by Schlichter Bogard & Denton.
The suit had alleged that...
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While noting that the case “presents novel legal questions concerning state-mandated retirement savings accounts,” and “implicates a significant body of judicial and regulatory interpretations of ERISA,” a federal judge has ruled – for the moment – that California’s state-run auto IRA retirement...
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Key members of Congress have introduced separate legislation to revamp the Internal Revenue Service as well and to make it easier for small businesses to offer retirement benefits.
Taxpayer First Act of 2019
House Ways & Means Oversight Subcommittee Chairman John Lewis (D-GA), Ranking Member...
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