News

12-page chart details provisions of the proposed regulations, along with plan document requirements and cautionary notes.

24 pages. "What's New: [1] Certain corrective distributions not subject to 10% early distribution tax.... [2] Disaster tax relief.... [3] E-filing returns.... [4] Increase in required minimum distribution (RMD) age.... [4] Information Reporting Intake System (IRIS). " [Also available: Draft 2024 Form 1099-R and Draft 2024 Form 5498]

"By December 31, 2023, all health plan sponsors must file their first 'gag clause' attestation. By January 1, 2024, health plans must provide information about rates and cost sharing for all healthcare items and services via a publicly available online tool."

"[This article] provides you with a 'To Do' List of items on which you may want to take action before the end of 2023 or in early 2024."

"While the current version of PTE 2020-02 does not extend relief for prohibited transactions resulting from robo advice, the proposal would extend the PTE's protections to conflicts of interest so long as the conditions of the exemption are satisfied. Some commenters have suggested that the new definitions of fiduciary status and of covered transactions are so broad that investment education would be considered fiduciary advice.... [T]hat is an exaggeration."

"[The Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave] issued its updated 2024 notices, posters, and rate sheets.... [T]he department appears to have recently begun increasing audits of employers to confirm compliance with notice requirements, and, in some cases, has issued significant fines."

"[CMS] publishes the Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement (ICHRA) Employer Lowest Cost Silver Plan (LCSP) Premium Look-up Table to help stakeholders access individual market Qualified Health Plans LCSP premium data by geographic location. The ICHRA Employer LCSP Premium Look-up Table contains data from states with Federally-facilitated Exchanges and State-based Exchanges on the Federal Platform.... This data dictionary describes the variables contained in ICHRA Employer LCSP Premium Look-up Table." [Also available: 2024 ICHRA Employer Lowest Cost Silver Plan Premium Look-up Table (XLSM)]

"[The Voluntary Correction Program (VCP)] gives the plan sponsor the opportunity to strategize proposed corrections with some flexibility and creativity, negotiating for a golden IRS stamp of approval at the end.... VCP tips: [1] Be prepared for the worst case scenario ... [2] It's okay to make an aggressive first move ... [3] Have a Plan B (or C or D) ... [4] Ask for a conference with manager.... Anything other than a straightforward correction should be assessed for VCP advantages."

"[W]hile IBM may have been uniquely positioned to revert to its cash balance plan, as the company's [defined benefit] plan, frozen in 2006, is likely now overfunded, many more firms may also be in the position of having an overfunded plan as a result of discount rate changes and high interest rates."

"[This update] explores [1] a decision ordering an IME prior to a ruling on summary judgment motions, [2] the extent claims reporting records can be sealed, [3] the scope of ERISA preemption in the context of removal, and [4] two decisions awarding summary judgment for the defendant despite the plaintiffs having received disability benefits for several years prior."

"When crafting messages for up to five generations of workers, a more succinct, informal approach can help 'maximize the exposure.'.... Big, blocky chunks of text are out. Short videos and visuals that succinctly drive home a key point are in. Email may reach older generations, but Facebook, LinkedIn and TikTok or Instagram are how many younger plan participants get information."

45 pages. "This report focuses on five states that ... closed or significantly changed their public pension plans.... Costs have risen markedly for plan sponsors since closing these plans.... This report documents some ways in which these states have attempted to address growing negative cash flows, but those efforts have mostly proven to be temporary fixes rather than long-term solutions that address fundamental challenges."

"[In a recent survey of employers, almost] three-fourths of respondents indicated that they have taken notice: 28% said they have recently reassessed their welfare plan oversight and fiduciary responsibilities and another 43% plan to do so in the near future.  ... [A]bout half of respondents conduct regular medical claim audits (or have one planned for 2024), which can help identify overpayments and other problems with provider reimbursement."

"A Social Security Bridge option that is formalized, accessible, and easy to understand would allow beneficiaries to boost monthly benefits and help protect against downward mobility in retirement. This bridge, while important for many, is not as relevant for those with little to no retirement savings. Thus, [the authors] also advocate for increasing the Social Security minimum benefit to ensure adequate lifetime retirement income for the over 63 million Americans who will retire without any retirement savings."

"As of December 1, the public company you work at or with will have adopted a compliant Dodd-Frank clawback policy. Now the hard work begins to figure out exactly how the clawback process will work ... This article covers the essential steps required to complete the process of clawing back erroneously paid incentive compensation. They are process-intensive and scalable to meet each company's unique circumstances."

"An [ACA] mechanism intended to help small companies support ACA health insurance for workers is now being used by large companies to satisfy their ACA obligation to provide insurance to employees ... They're saving money, and selling it as enhancing choice."

"[W]hile a plan with immediate eligibility for part-time employees would not be subject to the unfavorable break-in-service rules for participation purposes, it also could not benefit from the more lenient nondiscrimination and top-heavy testing rules."

21 pages; Nov. 30, 2023. "What's New: The temporary special rules for dependent care flexible spending arrangements (FSAs) have expired."

"Most of the focus on ... decision from the Second Circuit ... will be on the pleading standard for prohibited transaction claims.... [T]he key lesson of the Cornell case, like the Yale trial, is that the best proof of a fiduciary process in an imprudence case is to show a pattern of investment and fee changes over a course of years." [Cunningham v. Cornell Univ., No. 21-0088 (2d Cir. Nov. 14, 2023)]

"[If] LTPT employees are [or later become] eligible for employer contributions ... [they] must be granted a year of vesting service for each 12-month period in which the employee is credited with at least 500 hours of service. That is opposed to the 1,000 hours of service requirement generally used as a minimum by plans with a vesting schedule."

"Two FAQs address IDR batching, while a third addresses the [ACA] requirement to provide certain notices in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner."

"[1] End of remedial amendment period for timely adopted interim amendments.... [2] End of remedial amendment period for discretionary amendments made by adopting employers.... [3] Failure of adopting employer to timely adopt interim amendment.... [4] Starter 401(k) deferral-only plans.... [5] Qualified pre-approved plan cycles.... [6] Provider applications for opinion letters.... [7] Conformity with Section 403(b) pre-approved plan rules."

"[S]tarting January 1, 2024, for the first time, plan sponsors will have the option to file the Form 5558 electronically with the DOL, instead of the IRS, using EFAST2 ... Also starting January 1, 2024, the Form 5558 will no longer be the form used for extensions of Form 5330."

"[To] state a claim under MHPAEA, [the court said] a plaintiff must: [1] Plausibly allege that the relevant group health plan is subject to MHPAEA. [2] Identify a specific treatment limitation applied to MH/SUD benefits covered by the plan. [3] Identify M/S benefits covered by the plan that are analogous to the MH/SUD care for which the plaintiff seeks benefits. [4] Plausibly allege a disparity between the treatment limitation on the MH/SUD benefits as compared to those placed upon the analogous M/S benefits." [E.W. v. Health Net Life Ins. Co., No. 21-04110 (Nov. 21, 2023)]

"The court agreed with PBGC that a terminated plan that remains terminated does not have a zone status and therefore cannot qualify for SFA as a critical and declining status plan.... In addition, PBGC asserted that it may terminate a multiemployer plan involuntarily to prevent the agency's potential long-run loss from increasing unreasonably, which the court in [this] case accepted." [Board of Trustees of the Bakery Drivers Local 550 and Industry Pension Fund v. PBGC, No. 23-1595 (E.D.N.Y. Oct. 26, 2023)]