News Archive

"Data from the National Financial Educators Council (NFEC) found that participants say they lose out on $948 from their lack of personal finance knowledge, for a combined total of $246 billion in lost revenue. Further, close to half (48.6%) of survey respondents say that an inadequacy of their own financial prowess had led to losses of $500, while 14.6% report setbacks of $2,500."  MORE >>

"If you're running behind on retirement savings, you'll probably want to contribute the extra amount, even though there's not a current tax advantage.... A person who is currently age 50 and maxes out on both catch-up and super catch-up contributions could therefore end up with something in the neighborhood of $200,000 (assuming a 5% annual return) in the Roth 401(k) by age 65. And because contribution limits are adjusted for inflation each year, the total would likely be higher than that."  MORE >>

"The 2026 Roth catch-up rules require coordinated action across plan documents, payroll systems, and recordkeeping platforms. Employers should confirm that payroll can identify HPPs based on prior-year FICA wages, ensure timely Roth elections, and implement appropriate correction procedures. Early planning and clear participant communication will be essential to minimizing operational risk and maintaining compliance."  MORE >>

"A recordkeeper switch is not simply a checkbox for 'vendor change'. It is one of the highest-risk operational events in a plan lifecycle. Blackout periods must be communicated clearly, participant funds must be accurately transferred, and plan fiduciaries must vigilantly follow every step of the process. If you hand off everything to your provider, and then treat the transition like a lunch meeting that maybe one of your folks attended, you are creating systemic risk."  MORE >>

"One of the most important pieces of information that your TPA will request is retirement plan year wages ... Providing correct contribution totals is also essential ... Personal and employment data ... are necessary for determining eligibility and plan participation dates.... Identifying who the highly compensated employees are for each plan year is essential for accurate ADP test results."  MORE >>

"This post will: [1] Explain the requirements plan sponsors must follow to utilize the safe harbor correction method for automatic enrollment and automatic escalation errors; [2] Offer practical steps plan sponsors can take now to use the safe harbor; and [3] Serve as a reminder to plan sponsors that the ability to self-correct errors depends on having compliance practices and procedures in place for the plan."  MORE >>

"New IRS contribution limits, combined with a major shift in the rules for catch-up contributions, create fresh opportunities for long-term savers while also introducing new planning challenges. For employees in their peak earning years, especially those in their early 60s, these changes could meaningfully shape how retirement savings look. Here's what's new, why it matters, and how to prepare."  MORE >>

"Given the economic challenges and factors members of Gen X face ... 'saving for retirement is an outlier thought' for them. And that has ripple effects ... [T]hose who don't have retirement accounts are more gloomy about retirement than retirees, a sentiment fueled by fear of the unknown and uncertainty."  MORE >>

"Plan sponsors should be collaborating with their payroll vendors and recordkeepers to understand how mandatory Roth catch-up contributions will be processed for high wage earners ... [If] at least one applicable retirement plan within a controlled group permits super catch-up contributions, all controlled group retirement plans must also permit super catch-up contributions.... By February 16, 2026, each HIPAA covered entity and business associate must update its Notice of Privacy Practices (NPP) ... Some section 409A corrections under Notice 2008-113 must be completed by year-end, making now the ideal time to identify and finalize correction of any lingering errors."  MORE >>

"From Roth catch-up contributions to new paper statement requirements and distributions for long-term care premiums, the coming year promises to test your adaptability and attention to your clients' needs. [Here] are some factors to consider or questions to evaluate to ensure compliance and deliver value."  MORE >>

"An effective RFP will determine the quality of the respondents and will help reduce the time and effort expended in the overall RFP and selection process.... [T]he plan sponsor should provide audit firms with sufficient information about the nature of the plan and the engagement to allow them to make a meaningful and comprehensive proposal that addresses your specific needs and evaluation criteria."  MORE >>

"The Final Catch-up Regulations largely confirmed what we were expecting, by clarifying Highly Paid Individual (HPI) determinations, employer aggregation, and correction mechanics. However, there were some twists thrown in that plan sponsors should be aware of as 2026 approaches. The language was confusing, but this post will break it down in simple terms with simple dates."  MORE >>

"Compensation is the heartbeat of a retirement plan. It drives contributions, testing, employer matches, limits, and eligibility. You could have the best advisor in the world, a TPA who isn't asleep at the switch, and a plan document written in such perfect ERISA-speak that it should be framed in a museum. None of that matters if compensation is wrong. And it's wrong a lot."  MORE >>

"Until plan assets are properly distributed, the IRS generally treats the plan as ongoing -- with continuing compliance, amendment, and filing obligations.... Poorly executed terminations can result in delayed distributions, missed contributions, late Form 5500 filings, and unnecessary fiduciary exposure. This article explains how to properly terminate a 401(k) plan under IRS rules[.]"  MORE >>

"Many small-plan sponsors are being nudged toward [target date funds] that slot in the recordkeeper's stable-value fund, a move that reduces administrative costs. The resulting lower fees benefit participants, but when cost-sharing arrangements start to shape a target-date manager's allocation decisions, they introduce real trade-offs. [This article looks at] what's driving the trend, how widespread it's become, and what those trade-offs mean for investors."  MORE >>

"DC retirement plans have come a long way since [ERISA], and they continue to evolve. Widespread acceptance of automatic enrollment, automatic escalation, and sensible default investment options allow workers to outsource retirement plan participation decisions, savings rates, and asset allocation decisions to their employers, simultaneously increasing savings and (likely) decreasing the extent to which participants make common investment mistakes. The potential downside is a reliance on one-size-fits-all solutions to complex optimization problems that depend on a wide range of household characteristics and preferences."  MORE >>

"According to recordkeepers, plan sponsors and their payroll providers hold the critical data, since recordkeepers generally do not track FICA wages, so they cannot independently determine who crosses the threshold.... Recordkeepers expect more participants will encounter Roth options in 2026 and will need education on the differences between Roth and pre-tax contributions. "  MORE >>

"[L]oan defaults are the leak nobody talks about. You can have great fund lineups, low fees, and compliant disclosures -- but when participants leave their jobs and their loan becomes taxable income, that's a permanent loss of savings.... Will employers make [Custodia's RLP] an opt-in benefit or automatically apply it to new loans? How will costs be handled? Will participants understand it's insurance against default, not a free loan forgiveness program? Like every new benefit, the success will depend on communication and administration."  MORE >>

73 pages. "The total number of pension plans grew ... to approximately 836,800, a 4.4 percent increase over 2022. The number of DC plans grew by 4.7 percent, while the number of DB plans decreased by 0.6 percent.... The number of 401(k)-type plans increased by 5.6 percent, from 686,000 to 724,700.... There were 81.6 million active participants in 401(k)-type plans, reflecting a 2.7 percent increase from 2022." [Also available: data tables in XLSM and XML formats; and Historical Tables and Graphs, 1975-2021.]  MORE >>

"While third party administrators (TPAs) and other pension professionals play a critical role in successful 401ks, plan sponsors retain the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that the plan continuously operates in the best interests of participants. That's why it is wise for plan sponsors to avoid autopilot mode, and actively review their own fiduciary practices. [This article provides] pointers on common mistakes and misunderstandings to avoid."  MORE >>

"[T]he burden of requesting affirmative elections from all catch-up eligible participants will exceed the burden of sending a deemed election notice ... Assuming that service providers will take care of administering the Roth catch-up mandate will almost certainly land employers in correction-land.  ... Collaboration with payroll companies, bundled recordkeepers, and third-party administrators, as applicable, will be instrumental to the success of the Roth catch-up mandate administration."  MORE >>

"Many 401(k) plans likely need to be amended to reflect the RMD applicable age change. Whether a plan needs to be amended to reflect the changes to post-death distributions will depend on the terms of the plan -- some may already provide for distribution of a participant's benefit earlier than required under this provision."  MORE >>

"Since the rules go into effect on January 1, 2026, sponsors should begin communicating as soon as possible (if they have not started already) and consider using a phased and multi-channel approach tailored to their particular workforce."  MORE >>

"[Attorney Jamie Fleckner] recommends that fiduciaries make sure the plan document is 'consistent with what company and fiduciaries are looking for.' Fiduciaries should look holistically at the document, and 'if you want to offset, either mandate that or allow that.' ... [Attorney David Levine] makes a similar recommendation. Sponsors should look at their documents and evaluate their process to see if the two align."  MORE >>

"The plaintiffs contended that the plan documents stated that forfeiture funds should be used to restore participants' accounts or pay down plan expenses before being used to reduce company contributions.... [The judge] wrote that the plan document did not require the company to use forfeiture funds in any specific order. Instead, the employer had discretion to allocate the funds among the three listed purposes as it saw fit." [Garner v. Northrop Grumman Corp., No. 25-0439 (E.D. Va. Dec. 4, 2025)]  MORE >>