[Guidance Overview]

IRS Clarifies Partial Plan Termination Rules During Pandemic

"[The updated five-part Q&A clarifies provisions of the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020:] ... [1] 'Active participant covered by the plan' is determined based upon a reasonable, good-faith interpretation of the term ... [2] The Act does not require the same individuals to be covered on the beginning and end dates, only that the number counted on March 31, 2021, include all individuals who are active participants covered by the plan on said date. [3] The reduction in the number of active participants is not solely limited to reductions related to the COVID-19 pandemic."  MORE >>

Ascensus

[Guidance Overview]

Cybersecurity Best Practices for Retirement Plan Administration

"[P]lan sponsors should engage with their internal technology security team to review and consider cybersecurity practices and training related to retirement plan administration.... [P]lan sponsors should consider cybersecurity training for employees to expressly cover security practices related to retirement plan participation[.]"  MORE >>

Troutman Sanders

[Guidance Overview]

DOL Announces Cybersecurity Guidance for ERISA Retirement Plans

"Fortunately for plan fiduciaries, the fact that a cyberattack has occurred does not necessarily mean that the fiduciary has breached its duties, even if the attack results in loss of plan funds.... [T]he DOL guidance can play an important role, helping fiduciaries to identify the controls [they] should prioritize."  MORE >>

Davis Wright Tremaine LLP

[Guidance Overview]

What ARPA Means for Green Zone Pension Plans

"[1] PBGC Multiemployer Insurance Program premiums will increase to $52 per participant after December 31, 2030 (up from $31 in 2021).... [2] PBGC Multiemployer Insurance Program will be solvent for longer. CBO estimated that ARPA would push PBGC insolvency from 2027 to the mid-2040s.... [3] Plans will have the chance to comment on agency regulations."  MORE >>

International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans [IFEBP]

What to Expect During Your 2020 401(k) Plan Audit

"Your auditor may request a walk-thru of how your processes are performed by sharing your screen. Some changes may have occurred in your processes and control structure during 2020. Your auditor will ask what those changes were and may test those specific processes and controls. You may be asked for documentation that you had not provided in the past."  MORE >>

Lindquist LLP

IRS Website Updates List of Top Mistakes in VCP Submissions

"While many of the submission mistakes listed on the updated webpage are essentially unchanged from the previous list, there are new items relating to the electronic submission of VCP applications on Pay.gov, VCP form errors, the required narrative detailing plan failures and correction methods, and late plan amendments."  MORE >>

Thomson Reuters / EBIA

Pension Plan Mortality Table Litigation: What's Next?

"Key legal questions remain unresolved, including: Does the alleged ERISA requirement exist? Can plan participants and beneficiaries enforce a reasonableness rule derived from tax law requirements for qualified plans? What does reasonableness mean in this context (under ERISA or the Internal Revenue Code)? Can fiduciaries be liable for paying benefits in accordance with plan terms based on a new interpretation of ERISA?"  MORE >>

Verrill Dana LLP

Caution Advised in Appointing Authorized Plan Representatives for Governmental 457(b) or 401(a) Plans

"In many cases, this [Authorized Plan Representative Form (APRF)] appears, at least from the perspective of the recordkeeper, to give APRs ... who may be mid- or lower-level staff members, many of the duties and responsibilities that the sponsor thinks it has reserved to the named fiduciary[.]"  MORE >>

Best Best & Krieger LLP

Bonds Beat Stocks at Pension Funds, Turning 60/40 Inside Out

"The retirement funds of the top 100 U.S. public companies, with combined assets of about $1.8 trillion, have ratcheted up their fixed-income allocations to a record level. At the end of their last fiscal year, they held 50.2% of assets in debt, while slashing money parked in equities to an all-time low of 31.9%[.]"  MORE >>

Bloomberg Quint

Retirement Plan Literacy for Participants: Spousal Consent

"A plan participant cannot take any actions that would reduce their spouse's future survivor benefit without the spouse's consent. It is not uncommon, however, for spouses to give up the survivor benefit and later regret this decision."  MORE >>

Pension Rights Center

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Who Is Included in the ADP Test When Safe Harbor Eligibility Is More Restrictive?

"A plan's eligibility for employee deferrals is age 21. But eligibility for Safe Harbor NE and Profit Sharing is age 21 with 1 year of service. We're assuming, because eligibility for the Safe Harbor is more restrictive than that of employee deferrals, that we do not get the 'free pass' on ADP testing. Who then do we include in the ADP test?"

BenefitsLink Message Boards

Should a Summary Plan Description Explain Cybersecurity?

"I'm wondering whether a 401(k) or other individual-account retirement plan's summary plan description ought to include a part that explains risks about an individual's data security, and ways for the individual to help manage those risks. What are your reasons for including or omitting such an explanation?"

BenefitsLink Message Boards

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iJoin

Anthem, Inc. Completes Acquisition of myNEXUS Home Health Benefits Manager

Anthem, Inc.

OneDigital Acquires Keystone Retirement & Insurance Advisors LLC

OneDigital Health and Benefits

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Plan Sponsors: What Keeps You Up at Night?

May 20, 2021 in GA

Worldwide Employee Benefits Network [WEB] - Atlanta Chapter

Employee Benefits Spring Update 2021, Part 4: Best Practices to Prepare for Litigation

June 9, 2021 WEBCAST

American Bar Association Joint Committee on Employee Benefits [JCEB]

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Aon Hewitt, Alight Win Lawsuit Alleging Pension Risk Transfer Failures

planadviser

401(k) Fee Study: 75% of Small Business Plans Pay 'Hidden' Fees

Employee Fiduciary

The Pandemic Is Pushing More Americans to Retire

MarketWatch