"Excess deferrals can be prevented by both employees and employers.... How do excess deferrals occur? ... How do excess deferrals through a single employer impact plan qualification? ... Why are the correction methods for excess deferrals often confused? ... What are the tax implications to the individual? ... What are the tax reporting procedures for excess deferrals? ... What is the impact of excess deferrals on nondiscrimination testing?"

"[L]imited scope audits are history, being replaced by ERISA Section 103(a)(3)(C) audits. This newly named audit does not change any of ERISA's laws or applicability. However, it does affect how 401k plans are audited, effective as of on December 15, 2021."

"Victims of Hurricane Ian that began September 23 in Florida now have until February 15, 2023, to file various individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.... Individuals and households affected by Hurricane Ian that reside or have a business anywhere in the state of Florida qualify for tax relief."

"IRS Employee Plans presented the seminar, Retirement Plans: Avoid These Pitfalls When Managing Your Small Employer Plan.... Part of [the] presentation focused on a series of plan checklists that may help small business owners keep their plans in compliance. [1] 401(k) Plan Checklist; [2] SEP Plan Checklist; [3] SIMPLE IRA Plan Checklist; [4] SARSEP IRA Plan Checklist.... [A]nswers to some of the most common questions [submitted after the presentation are included in this document]."

"Plan Sponsors should have documentation in place as to how their information can be accessed, who has and who should have access, and tools in place to protect that information.... [T]hey should have a process in place to continually monitor who has access to the data to ensure that only current employees have access to the information.... It is very important to secure all data that is sent/received from Third Party Administrators and plan participants. Secure portals or encrypted data are typical means of safely sending sensitive information."

"Victims of Alaska severe storm, flooding and landslides occurring between September 15 and September 20, 2022, now have until February 15, 2023, to file various individual and business tax returns and make tax payments ... Individuals and households affected by severe storm, flooding and landslides that reside or have a business in the Regional Education Attendance Areas of Bering Strait, Kashunamiut, Lower Kuskokwim and Lower Yukon qualify for tax relief."

"Plan sponsors must work with their service providers to craft a communications system that is responsive to employees. Depending on the precise demographics of the employee population, communications might need to use several different platforms simultaneously. Messaging needs to be empathetic to best engage employees."

"Employee turnover among a plan sponsor's benefit staff -- from switching jobs, termination or retirement -- can lead to a loss of valuable knowledge and experience, as well as operational failures and possible litigation.... It's important for all retirement plan sponsors ... to thoroughly document their plan procedures. That will ensure the plan can continue to operate smoothly as the operations team changes."

"The final regulations increase the renewal user fee for enrolled retirement plan agents from $67 to $140. In addition, the final regulations increase both the enrollment and renewal of enrollment user fees for enrolled agents from $67 to $140. These regulations affect individuals who are or apply to become enrolled agents and individuals who are enrolled retirement plan agents."

"Firms should integrate transactional interfaces into homepage/dashboard modeling tools ... Value of dynamic updating capabilities in retirement contribution tool design ... Importance of financial wellness resources."

"Plaintiffs agree to settle for $267 million in a class action suit that alleged that PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP undercalculated lump-sum payments made to pension participants.... PwC used a 30-year Treasury return as the interest rate, and calculated the normal retirement age as either 65 years old or 5 years of service, whichever came sooner. Both of these methods were found to be in violation of ERISA in previous hearings[.]" [Laurent v. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, No. 06-2280 (S.D.N.Y. motion for approval of proposed settlement filed Sep. 19, 2022)]

"While there is not much plan fiduciaries can do if a participant is careless with his or her personal information or 401(k) plan account login credentials, plan fiduciaries can take steps to protect their plan from experiencing cybersecurity-related losses."

"[R]eplacing the total rewards statement with a digital, highly-personalized total rewards experience [provides] a tool that accurately reflects the multiple components of the total rewards employers deliver to employees.... The ideal personalized total rewards view encompasses pay, stock, health and wellbeing, retirement, and work/life benefits.... Embedding personalized messages that drive employee behaviors is the real value behind the communication."

"The updated interpretative bulletin [IB 2022-01] lets plan administrators hire a qualified public accountant who held the plan sponsor's publicly traded securities during the plan year covered by the audit if the accountant divests those securities before starting the engagement. The updated guidance ... takes effect immediately."

"This notice provides guidance on the corporate bond monthly yield curve, the corresponding spot segment rates ... and the 24-month average segment rates ... [as well as] the interest rate on 30-year Treasury securities ... as in effect for plan years beginning before 2008 and the 30-year Treasury weighted average rate[.]"

"A typical platform might use age and salary to generate investment recommendations. However, additional factors [could] lead to more customized solutions ... Tailored content and delivery may have the added benefit of keeping people engaged even as attention spans become ever shorter ... [S]tart embedding customization options where possible and aligning them with goals and overall strategy."

"When the 401k plan blossomed in the 1980s, ... [p]lan sponsors understood they needed to offer an education program to their employees. What started as simple enrollment meetings quickly evolved into makeshift investment training.... If plan sponsors remain responsible for education, then they need to adopt audit and control procedures to ensure the program is executed properly."

"Victims of Hurricane Fiona beginning September 17, 2022, now have until February 15, 2023, to file various individual and business tax returns and make tax payments ... Individuals and households affected by Hurricane Fiona that reside or have a business in all 78 municipalities in Puerto Rico qualify for tax relief."

"[The Milliman] final prediction is that for 2023: The compensation limit will increase to $330,000 ($25,000 more than in 2022). The highly compensated employee (HCE) dollar limit will increase to $150,000 ($15,000 more). The individual elective contributions limit will increase to $22,500 ($2,000 more). The sum of individual and employer contribution limits will increase to $66,000 ($5,000 more)."

"The updated Interpretive Bulletin is focused on three areas: [1] The time period during which accountants and firms are prohibited from financial interests in the plan or plan sponsor.... [2] Other services an accountant or firm may provide to a plan or plan sponsor.... [3] Definition of office for purposes of determining who is a member of a firm for an 'independence' analysis."

"[1] Vendor questionnaire and evaluation ... [2] Service contract review ... [3] Cybersecurity policies and procedures ... [4] Participant communication ... [5] Security risk assessment ... [6] After the review ... document."

"If you are thinking of raising your fees, ... make sure to do the new client and participant fee disclosures. Failure to do so can subject you to penalties, including the potential that your service agreement with your clients becomes a prohibited transaction.... And if you don't have any agreement in place, use this as an opportunity to do so. Not having a service agreement can mean not only that you are engaging in a prohibited transaction, but it can also void or increase the costs of your insurance coverage."

"[D]uring the past year, the percentage of retirement investors classified as financially healthy has dropped to 47% from 60%.... At the same time, overall satisfaction with their retirement plan's digital experience declined.... Just over a third of investors say they can manage their accounts digitally without contacting customer service. And only 22% say retirement plan websites and apps offer proactive guidance and help[.]"

"This year, Rev. Proc. 2022-4 made some notable changes to the determination letter application filing process. This article provides background on changes made under the Revenue Procedure to the determination letter filing process, including utilizing pay.gov, some 'nuts and bolts' advice regarding navigating the website, filing an IRS Form 2848 electronically, and related considerations."

"In general, the 415(c) limit is straightforward. When it's not, a skilled 401(k) provider will know how to account for the complicating factors.... [This article provides] a FAQ with answers to the most common questions."