News Archive

"The proposed regulations issued today provide rules on how the Secretary of the Treasury will make one-time $1,000 pilot program contributions to the Trump Accounts of eligible children for whom elections have been made. The proposed regulations provide guidance regarding the effects of making an election for an eligible child to receive a $1,000 contribution and define other qualifications."  MORE >>

"While it is true that annuities can't be a standalone default option, it is not legally correct to suggest that they can't be part of a default option ... In fact, the DOL has specifically ruled that ... a QDIA can include an insured income guarantee as a part of a qualified default investment alternative. The QDIA could, for example, be a managed account with an annuity or GLWB component, or a target-date fund with a GLWB."  MORE >>

"A group of regulators informally asked 25 insurers to provide their annuity illustrations and found: [1] One-third of the illustrations used a highest illustrated rate of 10% or lower. [2] For two-thirds of the illustrations, roughly half used highest illustrated rates ranging between 11% and 15% and the remaining half used highest illustrated rates ranging between 16% and 27%.... [3] The highest illustrated rates involved recently created indexes with volatility control, many of which are 'proprietary.' The illustrated rates were based on backcasted data."  MORE >>

"PBMs must now adhere to the same compensation disclosure rules applicable to other ERISA plan service providers and advisors, such as investment advisors, recordkeepers or brokers, and other entities receiving 'indirect compensation' (e.g., accounting, auditing, actuarial, banking, and consulting service providers), which, in turn, will enable employers sponsoring group health plans to better evaluate and negotiate PBM compensation under their contracts."  MORE >>

"Group health plans can access a model notice as well as a Word version of a model notice on the HHS website. Under the HIPAA privacy rules, group health plans and other covered entities that receive, maintain or transmit certain SUD treatment records must update their NPPs to include specific content related to how they use or disclose the records. The deadline for updating the NPP was February 16, 2026."  MORE >>

"Many plan sponsor challenges may stem from unclear expectations rather than poor intent or lack of effort. When roles are not well defined, sponsors may assume something is being handled by a provider when it remains the sponsor's responsibility. Outsourcing administrative or investment functions does not remove fiduciary responsibility from the employer sponsoring the plan, even when multiple providers are involved. Sponsors who establish clarity upfront may be better positioned to manage risk and maintain compliance."  MORE >>

"A newly released whitepaper details how a 'neutral, digital clearinghouse' can reduce retirement plan cash outs and the number of dormant accounts, all while enabling seamless interoperability across recordkeepers, custodians, and government programs."  MORE >>

"[Rev. Rul. 2025-4] outlines the federal income tax withholding and reporting obligations for employers with respect to state-run PFML programs.... IRS issued Notice 2026-6, delaying the compliance deadline until 2027 for some of the most complicated aspects of Rev. Rul. 2025-4.... [T]he extension applies to withholding and reporting obligations in connection with medical leave benefits paid by a state that are attributable to employer contributions."  MORE >>

"An employer offering group medical coverage to Illinois employees must provide a comparison of the plan's covered benefits with the essential health benefits (EHBs) provided by the Illinois benchmark plan. The law applies to fully insured and self-funded medical plans. Regulators have posted a sample template and FAQ. Although employers don't have to offer the EHBs listed, they do have to identify which EHBs the employer-sponsored plan includes and excludes."  MORE >>

"Not only are many young Americans not even beginning to think about retirement yet, but studies also indicate millennials and Generation Z prefer to go online for financial advice rather than engage with a professional consultant. A possible solution is for advisors to leverage technology in tandem with their industry experience to reach more people."  MORE >>

"Participation and savings patterns offer insight into how employees are engaging with their plan and whether contribution behaviors are supporting long-term savings goals.... Plan participation rate ... Average deferral rate ... Employer match utilization rate ... Automatic enrollment opt-out rate ... Automatic escalation success rate ... Participant registration rate ... Online engagement rate ... Call center volume and participant inquiry patterns."  MORE >>

16 pages. "Mental health and wellness programs (65%) top the list of employee concerns, signaling a strong need for emotional and psychological support in the workplace ... Healthcare affordability is a growing issue, with 55% of employers citing rising costs as a key concern among employees.... Forward-looking organizations are leveraging AI not just to automate tasks, but to architect benefits ecosystems that are data-driven, emotionally intelligent, and aligned with workforce expectations."  MORE >>

"A 65-year-old man enrolled in a Medigap plan with average premiums will need to have saved $120,000 to have a 50 percent chance of having enough to cover premiums and median prescription drug expenditures, and a 65-year-old woman will need to have saved $146,000.... [A] couple with particularly high prescription drug expenditures will need to have saved $469,000 to have a 90 percent chance of having enough money to cover their health care costs in retirement."  MORE >>

"[S]ome of the law changes included in the updated safe harbor explanations: [1] The list of distributions that qualify for an exception from the 10% early withdrawal penalty was expanded ... [2] The explanations have been updated for changes in the rules relating to Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) ... [3] Distributions from governmental plans to eligible retired public safety officers are not includible in gross income if paid by the employee for qualified health insurance premiums for the year.... [4] The explanations now include a description of the special rules and tax treatment of PLESAs."  MORE >>

"This document contains proposed regulations relating to Trump accounts.
The proposed regulations provide guidance on making an election to open a Trump
account and reserve additional sections for further guidance on Trump accounts. The
proposed regulations would affect children eligible to have a Trump account, individuals
who would make elections with respect to those children, and trustees of Trump
accounts."  MORE >>

34 pages. "This document contains proposed regulations relating to the Trump accounts contribution pilot program under which the Trump accounts of eligible children can receive $1,000 pilot program contributions. Eligible children must be U.S. citizens with valid Social Security numbers born in 2025 through 2028. The proposed regulations would provide guidance on making an election for the Trump account of an eligible child to receive a $1,000 pilot program contribution. The proposed regulations would affect eligible children and individuals who would make elections with respect to those children."  MORE >>

"[The company] explicitly acknowledged that climate change poses a material threat to its own business operations and moved to insulate its balance sheet, yet allegedly failed to apply similar risk analysis to its 401(k) plan....The case could have profound implications for the $12 trillion in retirement savings held in 401(k)-style plans, potentially establishing a legal precedent that recognizes climate risk management as a mandatory component of fiduciary duty." [Kvek v. Cushman & Wakefield U.S., Inc., No. 26-0736 (W.D. Wash. complaint filed Mar. 3, 2026)]  MORE >>

"[This] ruling underscores a fundamental reality in ERISA litigation: fiduciary duties may be similar across plans, but the way those duties are carried out -- and evaluated -- is often anything but uniform. Whether a plan sponsor acted prudently depends on its own monitoring process, its own interactions with service providers, and its own understanding of what was happening inside the plan. And that, the court concluded, cannot be determined with a single stroke across thousands of plans." [Carfora v. TIAA, No. 21-8384 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 3, 2026)]  MORE >>

18 pages. "This document corrects technical errors in the proposed rule that appeared in the February 11, 2026, Federal Register titled 'Patient Protection and [ACA], HHS Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for 2027; and Basic Health Program.' "  MORE >>

"RxDC reporting is now a routine part of the benefits compliance calendar. It is due annually by June 1 to report on the prior calendar year. Employers are typically responsible for collecting and providing to their reporting vendor certain information referred to as the 'P2' plan information and 'D1' average monthly premium information. Insurance carriers and TPAs impose deadlines as early as March."  MORE >>

"The proposal includes what the DOL terms as 'narrow' amendments to ERISA's two separate electronic disclosure safe harbors to implement the paper benefit statement requirement under [SECURE 2.0]. The proposed rule would apply to defined contribution (DC) and defined benefit (DB) plans that are subject to ERISA. Comments on the proposed rule are due by April 27, 2026[.]"  MORE >>

"[T]he Third Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of two companies accused of successor liability for a defunct employer's withdrawal liability, holding that the pension fund's eight-year delay in issuing a withdrawal liability demand violated the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act's requirement that notice and demand be made 'as soon as practicable.' " [RTI Restoration Techs., Inc. v. Int'l Painters & Allied Trades Indus. Pension Fund, No. 24-2874 (3d Cir. Mar. 3, 2026),]  MORE >>

"The net effect [of price transparency] is therefore ambiguous and depends on market structure, benefit design, and -- crucially -- who can practically use the information.... In many administered-price systems such as the UK and many EU countries, published prices already exist; transparency is more likely to operate through benchmarking, audit, and governance rather than consumer price shopping.... [The authors] argue that, in the US, transparency must be paired with steerage and competition guardrails to realize savings without inadvertently enabling coordination."  MORE >>

"Educational assistance programs under Code Section 127 currently can be used to help employees repay certain student loans, though certain restrictions apply.... The loan repayment provision, originally set to expire at the end of 2025 ... is now permanent and applies to payments made after March 27, 2020."  MORE >>

"[SECURE 2.0] narrowed the ability of plan sponsors to electronically furnish these participant benefit statements. Now, the DOL is proposing new regulations that implement this restriction and increase plan sponsors' obligation to furnish paper documents.... By ensuring that at least some plan documents are provided on paper, the DOL hopes that more participants will read and understand important plan information."  MORE >>