Retirement Plan Analyst - Defined Contribution Plans M2B Retirement Consulting LLC
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Compass
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Employee Benefits Account Manager U.S. Retirement & Benefits Partners
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Regional Vice President of Sales The Retirement Plan Company
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Manager - Defined Contribution Plans M2B Retirement Consulting LLC
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BPAS
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Senior Retirement Plan Administrator Envoy Financial
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MAP Retirement USA, LLC
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Senior Retirement Plan Analyst - Defined Contribution Plans M2B Retirement Consulting LLC
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Text of DOL Statement of Enforcement Policy Regarding Return of Excess Special Financial Assistance Payments
Employee Benefits Security Administration [EBSA], U.S. Department of Labor [DOL] [Official Guidance] Mar. 18, 2024 "The Department confirms ... that these provisions [of ERISA] do not prevent plans from refunding any excess payments received through the SFA Program, or excuse any failures to return SFA funds to which the plans are not entitled. The excess payments would not have been made to the plans absent the inaccurate census data, and the excess payments gave rise to an equal and offsetting liability owed by the plans to the United States government. These excess payments can and must be repaid ... The [DOL] has confirmed its understanding with the Department of the Treasury and the [IRS]." |
A Cybersecurity Checklist for Employers: Safeguarding Your Company's 401(k) (PDF)
Mayflower Advisors Mar. 18, 2024 "The [DOL] has issued recommendations to aid employers in securing their plans. By adopting these guidelines and integrating cybersecurity best practices, you can significantly reduce the risk of data breaches, cyber fraud, and theft." |
1974-2024: Celebrating 50 Years of Protected Retirement Plans
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics [BLS] Mar. 18, 2024 "Although the first private pension plan in the United States was established in 1875, it wasn’t until 1974 that a law was enacted to set minimum standards for pensions ... While federal, state, and local laws do not require establishments to provide retirement benefits, ERISA established standards in case they do. This Spotlight on Statistics highlights recent data on retired persons and retirement benefits for private industry workers." Tags: Retirement Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Design • Social Security |
PEP Cost Savings May Take Years, and May Not Materialize
PLANSPONSOR; free registration may be required Mar. 15, 2024 "Retirement plans that include multiple employers have continued to grow in assets, but the growth of assets necessary to reach the critical size where economies of scale can be achieved may take years. The forecasted cost savings to plan sponsors of joining a pooled employer plan over using a single employer plan may not materialize, depending on the sponsor's pooled plan provider.... Boston College researchers provided [a] breakdown of the fees that should be considered[.]" Tags: MEP/PEP • Retirement Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Design |
Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies in Benefit Claim Disputes (PDF)
Barry L. Salkin, the Wagner Law Group, Via NYU Review of Employee Benefits Mar. 15, 2024 23 pages. "Notwithstanding the absence of an express statutory mandate, federal courts have created and uniformly apply a 'very important' judicially created exhaustion requirement under ERISA, ... a requirement that 'finds its genesis' in ERISA Section 503. Consistent with that genesis, exhaustion of administrative remedies does not extend to the seeking of external review." Tags: Health Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Administration |
Don't Set It and Forget It: Keeping Up Your Fiduciary Committee
Jackson Lewis P.C. Mar. 15, 2024 "[B]est practice items committees should consider annually: [1] Review the committee charter.... [2] Schedule fiduciary training.... [3] Consider establishing a committee for your health and welfare programs.... [4] Schedule regular committee meetings and document the process.... [5] Review the fiduciary liability insurance policy." Tags: Fiduciary Duties • Health Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Administration |
What Employers Sponsoring Defined Benefit Pension Plans Should Know About Class Actions Challenging Plan Assumptions
Jackson Lewis P.C. Mar. 15, 2024 "The 'actuarial equivalence' cases allege that plan sponsors or fiduciaries violate ERISA by adopting unreasonable actuarial assumptions.... [P]lan sponsors have responded that ERISA does not prescribe any kind of reasonableness requirement when mandating that actuarial assumptions be used.... Courts are split on the issues." Tags: Funding of DB Plans • Retirement Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Design |
Retirement Plan Recordkeepers Enter a New Era
CAPTRUST Mar. 15, 2024 "For retirement plan recordkeepers, the past few years have marked a significant transformation, set in motion by the dual forces of consolidation and the unyielding quest for innovation and scale. As the number of recordkeepers dwindles, those that remain are redefining what it means to be a recordkeeper in today's market.... These changes signal a new era for retirement plan sponsors and participants, one where the choice of a recordkeeper goes beyond basic recordkeeping to include a broad spectrum of financial wellness, technology, and personalized advice solutions." |
Settlement Reached in ERISA Data Breach Lawsuit
PLANSPONSOR; free registration may be required Mar. 14, 2024 "Retirement plan participants whose personal identifiable information was exposed in a 2021 data breach have asked a Georgia federal judge to approve an $8.733 million agreement to resolve allegations, which claimed national consultant Horizon Actuarial Services LLC failed to safeguard their sensitive data." [Sherwood v. Horizon Actuarial Services LLC, No. 22-1495 (N.D. Ga. proposed settlement agreement filed Mar. 11, 2024)] |
IRS Expects to Fix Glitch Affecting Improperly Withheld Form 8955 Refunds
American Retirement Association [ARA] Mar. 14, 2024 "Addressing improper withholding of tax refunds, says [Kelsey Mayo, the American Retirement Association's Director of Regulatory Policy], 'has, so far, been a manual process of corresponding with the IRS to have the penalty abated and the refund paid on an employer-by-employer basis.' However, Mayo reports that the IRS expects to implement a systematic fix for the impending corporate tax return deadline." |
Dealing with the Deceased Participants in Multiemployer Defined Benefit Plans
Morgan Lewis Mar. 14, 2024 "[P]lan fiduciaries may want to revisit the plan's processes for identifying deceased participants (terminated vested and retirees) to ensure that these processes reflect a proactive, rather than reactive, posture. [This article describes] several practices plans may wish to consider." |
Joint Board for Enrollment of Actuaries Proposes Eliminating Physical Presence Rule for CPE Programs
American Retirement Association [ARA] [Guidance Overview] Mar. 14, 2024 "The new proposed regulations would apply to CPE credits earned for programs held during the period from Jan. 1, 2023, through the date that is 30 days after the publication of the Treasury decision finalizing these proposed regulations. The extended -- a.k.a. permanent -- waiver of the 'physical presence' requirement would apply to active enrolled actuaries." Tags: Funding of DB Plans • Health Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Administration |
Text of FRTIB Final Regs: Removal of 30-Calendar-Day Waiting Period Between Withdrawals
Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board [Official Guidance] Mar. 14, 2024 "This direct final rule removes the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP)'s restriction on a participant's ability to request more than one withdrawal within a thirty-calendar-day period." Tags: Federal Government Plans • Retirement Plan Administration |
The Saver's Credit, 2024
Retirement Management Services, LLC [Guidance Overview] Mar. 13, 2024 "[This article provides] a question and answer explanation intended for employers and employees who want to know all the related details ... [and] a two-page notice to explain the rules to employees. There is no legal requirement that the notice be given to employees.... [E]mployers and others in the retirement services community [are encouraged] to give out the notice in order to promote retirement savings by eligible employees." Tags: Retirement Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Information for Employees |
Plan Sponsor Attitudes Toward Retirement Plan Management and Fiduciary Outsourcing (PDF)
Pentegra Mar. 13, 2024 18 pages. "More than 70% of plan sponsors say they find managing the details of their retirement plan a distraction from their core business ... Legislative compliance and fiduciary responsibilities rank high among chief retirement plan challenges ... More than 50% of plan sponsors use a professional fiduciary to outsource plan governance and oversight ... Plan sponsors judge retirement plan success by assessing participant success ... Nearly 40% of plan sponsors ensure plan success by using professional fiduciary resources ... More than 50% of plan sponsors employ a total benefits outsourcing approach." |
Text of JBEA Proposed Regs for Continuing Professional Education Requirements
Joint Board for the Enrollment of Actuaries [Official Guidance] Mar. 13, 2024 "These proposed regulations would remove the physical presence requirement for formal continuing professional education programs required for active enrolled actuaries and the physical location requirement from course certifications. These proposed regulations also would modify the continuing professional education requirement for certain actuaries who seek to return to active enrollment from inactive status due to their failure to timely satisfy the renewal requirements in the first enrollment cycle after their initial enrollment cycle. Finally, the proposed regulations would add a requirement that certificates of instruction for continuing professional education courses include the number of hours counted towards the required number of hours for formal programs." Tags: Health Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Administration |
How Employers Can Help Employees Guard Retirement Savings Against Market Volatility
USI Consulting Group Mar. 13, 2024 "Promote the usage of target date funds (TDFs) ... Provide retirement income planning tools and resources ... Establish emergency cash accounts ... [E]ncourage their employees to: Meet with a financial planner and use retirement income planning tools ... Develop a contingency plan ... Revise timing of retirement ... Ensure adequate insurance coverage during retirement for healthcare, long-term care and life insurance." Tags: Retirement Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Design |
Administration's Proposed FY 2025 Budget Targets 'Excess Retirement Accumulations', Back-Door Roths
American Retirement Association [ARA] Mar. 12, 2024 "The proposal would impose special distribution rules on high-income taxpayers with large retirement account balances.... [P]lan administrators would be required to report to the Department of Treasury the vested account balance of any participant or beneficiary for whom the vested account balance exceeds $2.5 million (adjusted for inflation).... [The proposal would limit] rollovers and conversions to designated Roth accounts or to Roth IRAs.... The proposal would also extend the statute of limitations for the excise tax on prohibited transactions from three years to six years." Tags: Retirement Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Policy |
Cyberattacks and the Role of Fiduciaries Under ERISA
Gary S. Young and Patrick A. DaSilva, via Law.com; free registration required Mar. 12, 2024 "It is important to note that the guidance offered by the DOL acts as a general rubric, containing default recommendations to help plan sponsors and participants better understand their joint responsibilities during these times of cyberpiracy and assault. No one should confine future actions exclusively to the guidelines, but rather go beyond the best practices contemplated by the DOL. These guidelines are in essence only a beginning, and not an end....Through the implementation of prudent actions, coupled with vigilance and training, plan sponsors can take the necessary steps to defray unwanted liability." Tags: Cybersecurity • Health Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Administration |
Text of IRS Publication 575: Pension and Annuity Income, for Use in Preparing 2023 Returns (PDF)
Internal Revenue Service [IRS] [Official Guidance] Mar. 12, 2024 52 pages, Mar. 7, 2024. "What's New: Distributions to victims of domestic abuse.... Reminders: [1] The direct payment requirement for certain distributions for payment of health or long-term care insurance repealed.... [2] Form 8915-F replaces Form 8915-E. " Tags: Misc. Distribution Issues • Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) • Retirement Plan Administration |
IRS Issues Favorable Initial PLESA Guidance on Match Restrictions (PDF)
Groom Law Group, via Taxes the Tax Magazine [Guidance Overview] Mar. 12, 2024 "[Notice 2024-22] is the first step into making these accounts viable, providing for allowable and prohibited restrictions for anti-abuse measures. But there remain a number of complexities and open issues to be addressed for these accounts that would benefit from simple, flexible rules, with a good faith implementation standard to bring these accounts into existence for 2024." Tags: 401(k) Plans • Retirement Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Design |
The Importance of Governance in Retirement Plans
Ferenczy Benefits Law Center Mar. 12, 2024 "While the goal for most companies that offer self-direction of investments to their participants is to avoid liability for the returns, that avoidance only happens if certain rules are met.... [H]aving a written set of practices and procedures ensures everyone involved in the administration of the plan is on the same page.... Turnover at a company is frequently where we see breakdowns happen in plan administration. Having a solid base of governance materials in place helps train replacements and avoids these breakdowns." Tags: Fiduciary Duties • Retirement Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Investments |
Lessons from a Successful ERISA Defense Against Participant Challenge to Target-Date Fund Investments
McGuireWoods Mar. 8, 2024 "[T]he defendants demonstrated that flexPATH recommended its own TDFs only after performing an exhaustive analysis of several alternative investments ... [T]he court rejected plaintiffs' contentions that Wood Group ... needed to document the justifications for engaging flexPATH in committee meeting minutes.... These rulings underscore the importance of not just having prudent processes, but also considering how those processes are documented." [Lauderdale v. NFP Corp., No. 21-0301 (N.D. Calif. Feb. 23, 2024)] Tags: Fiduciary Duties • Retirement Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Investment Costs |
A Look at the Proposed Long-Term Part-Time Employee Regs
Hodgson Russ LLP [Guidance Overview] Mar. 8, 2024 "Plans that are already subject to the LTPTE rules should already be working with their service providers to be certain administrative processes, if necessary, are in place to ensure compliance ... Plan amendments may be needed to reflect plan operations with respect to the LTPTE rules. Technically, plan amendments are not required until December 31, 2026, but the adoption of plan amendments prior to the final amendment deadline might be prudent.... [P]lans should be maintaining records as to how they are complying with the LTPTE rules." Tags: 401(k) Plans • Retirement Plan Administration • SECURE 2.0 |
DOL Enforcement Actions Serve as Strong Reminder to Plans to Exercise Fiduciary Prudence
Haynes and Boone, LLP Mar. 8, 2024 "Common areas [for] fiduciary breaches include [1] plan sponsors failing to timely remit employee contributions to the plan, particularly for off-cycle and manually cut checks; [2] plan committees not using best practices to monitor, choose, and remove plan investments and not properly benchmarking performance and fees; and [3] plan fiduciaries relying heavily on third-party administrators to process claims without reviewing the claims letters and/or procedures being used by the third-party administrators." Tags: Fiduciary Duties • Health Plan Administration • Retirement Plan Administration |