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After seeing their earlier proposal come under attack, House Republican leaders have revised their end-of-year tax and retirement savings legislative package, and carried forward key provisions from the Retirement Enhancement and Savings Act (RESA).
Beyond that, the revised package seeks to...
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As you probably know, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals threw out the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Fiduciary Rule. While the decision left no doubt, the consequences are not well understood.
To grasp the full impact of the court’s decision, it’s important to distinguish between non-...
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Will the 115th Congress act on a broad tax and retirement savings package before adjourning? It looks like we’ll have to wait a little longer to find out.
Following the memorial events following the death of President George H.W. Bush, lawmakers approved a two-week funding extension on Dec. 6 to...
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Managing participant data effectively is efficient, but it’s also more than that. Recent blog entries argue that it also provides a way to meet fiduciary responsibilities and address the problem of missing participants — if not obviate it in the first place.
It’s not hard to get into that position...
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Results from a new survey show that investors continue to have unrealistic expectations for investment returns, but their tolerance for risk is lower and few truly understand the ramifications of market volatility.
Natixis Investment Managers’ survey of 750 individual investors in the U.S. found...
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Many employers are interested in offering financial wellness programs to their employees, but there appears to be limited consensus on the approach, according to new research from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).
Last spring, EBRI began exploring employers’ interest in offering...
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October might have been a scary month for your 401(k) — but November was a month for giving thanks.
According to estimates from the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), the average 401(k) account balance for younger (25-34), less tenured (1-4 years) workers jumped 3.2% in...
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Effective 401(k) plan design features like auto-enrollment and auto-escalation have been shown to increase participation, boost deferral rates and improve investment diversification, but they can also bring unintended results, according to a new paper.
In their paper, “Best Intentions: The...
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The IRS has issued the required amendments (RA) list for qualified retirement plans for 2018. The IRS made the announcement — and said that there are no entries listing changes in qualification requirements on the 2018 RA List — in Notice 2018-91.
Section 5 of Revenue Procedure 2016-37, 2016-29 I....
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The parties in another proprietary fund suit have come to terms, both financially and with an agreement for “ongoing prospective relief.”
Under the terms of the settlement, Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc. will cause its fiduciary insurance carrier (RLI Insurance Company) to pay $4.875 million...
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The Auditing Standards Board of the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) has voted to issue a new auditing standard. It has taken this step to address auditor reporting on ERISA plan financial statements.
The new auditing standard, “Forming an Opinion and Reporting on Financial Statements of...
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The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) plans to seek the approval of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) of a form and instructions that will enable it to obtain information it needs to make coverage determinations. The PBGC made the announcement on Dec. 3.
The proposed form and...
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OregonSaves, the first of the state-run IRA programs for private sector workers, is getting ready to take things up another notch.
Specifically, the contribution rates for OregonSaves participants will, beginning Jan. 1, automatically increase 1% on the first day of each year, until they reach 10...
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There are a variety of factors behind retirement plan participation levels and saving rates; among them is the belief that one simply cannot afford to set much aside, if any at all. A recent blog entry suggests that budgeting — as in, helping participants or potential participants do it — can be a...
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Senate Democrats recently unveiled a bill that would, among other things, enhance the Saver’s Credit – a provision which retains bipartisan support, even as the take-up rate disappoints. Here are six things that people who don’t get the Saver’s Credit often don’t “get.”
The Saver’s Credit is, of...
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The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee on Nov. 29 voted in favor of Gordon Hartogensis to serve as Director of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC).
The HELP Committee’s nod follows on the heels of that by the Senate Finance Committee, which on Nov. 15...
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The IRS Employee Plans Compliance Unit (EPCU) on Nov. 29 issued a report on its study of whether sponsors reporting that their 401(k) plans are nonqualified were correct in doing so. The EPCU found that a strong majority were not, even though all of the sponsors in the sample intended their plans...
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A bipartisan agreement on addressing the problems facing multiemployer pensions has not yet been reached, but the co-chairs of the Joint Select Committee on the Solvency of Multiemployer Pension Plans are pledging that work will continue past Nov. 30. It had been anticipated that a measure would be...
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The Department of Labor (DOL) has announced that it is providing guidance and relief for victims of California’s Camp, Hill, Woolsey and other wildfires.
The DOL says that it “recognizes that these wildfires may impede efforts by plan fiduciaries, employers, labor organizations, service providers...
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There have been massive developments in the industry over the past year — the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017; the 2018 budget bill; the Retirement, Savings, and Other Tax Relief Act of 2018; the Taxpayer First Act of 2018; and so much more.
Each of these has led to significant changes in 401(k)...
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