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Retirement Plans Newsletter

July 26, 2021

3 New Job Opportunities

 

[Official Guidance]

Text of DOL FAQs: Pension Benefit Statements -- Interim Regs on Lifetime Income Illustrations (PDF)

"For participant-directed plans, what is the effective date of the IFR and the earliest statement for which the lifetime income illustrations are required content? ... For non-participant-directed plans, what is the earliest statement for which the lifetime income illustrations are required content? ... Our plan's third party administrator currently projects participants' account balances to normal retirement age, e.g., age 65, based on the framework the Department published in its Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in 2013. Will that approach fulfill our obligations under the IFR? ... The Department stated in the preamble to the IFR that it intended to adopt a final rule sufficiently in advance of the effective date. Will the final rule provide some transition relief if the final rule is not issued significantly in advance of September 18, 2021?"  MORE >>

Employee Benefits Security Administration [EBSA], U.S. Department of Labor [DOL]

[Guidance Overview]

IRS Adds Helpful New Features to Its Correction Program

"The IRS will replace its anonymous Voluntary Correction Program (VCP) submission process with a no-fee VCP pre-submission conference, effective January 1, 2022.... Although the new, less formal process is helpful, there are drawbacks -- the pre-submission conferences are granted at the IRS's discretion and the guidance is advisory and non-binding.... The new revenue procedure also relaxes the rules about when a plan sponsor may use the SCP to correct certain failures by retroactive plan amendment."  MORE >>

Jackson Lewis P.C.

[Guidance Overview]

New Revenue Procedure Updates Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS)

"The Self Correction Program (SCP) will now be available for significant errors corrected by the end of the last day of the third plan year (instead of the second) following the plan year for which the failure occurred.... Allows a plan not to seek return of overpayments of less than $250.... Extends the provision for correcting elective deferral failures in automatic contribution plans.... Expands the use of retroactive amendments to correct operational failures under SCP."  MORE >>

Venable LLP

[Guidance Overview]

DOL Plan Audits Updated to Include Several Questions About Compliance with Its Cybersecurity Guidelines

"The DOL would like to see how plan fiduciaries are communicating with their service providers to assess service provider cybersecurity risk, as well as the documents and other materials from service providers concerning the processing of plan data. Importantly, the DOL is not just looking for cybersecurity related information. The agency apparently wants to know how service providers are permitted to use plan data."  MORE >>

Jackson Lewis P.C.

[Guidance Overview]

Exceptional Usefulness and Quality icon Cybersecurity Guidance Welcome, But Unanswered Questions Remain

"What personal information and/or confidential information must be safeguarded by plan administrators and other plan fiduciaries to comply with ERISA's fiduciary standards? ... For purposes of misappropriation of PPI, is PPI a plan asset under ordinary notions of property rights? Does the resolution of this question affect the application of ERISA Section 404 to protect PPI? ... What losses due to cybersecurity breaches in plans' or the plan service providers' systems are covered by a bond under ERISA Section 412 and implementing regulations?"  MORE >>

The Wagner Law Group

Seventh Circuit Ruling Poses Hurdle To Multiemployer Funds Claims

"[The court] made it clear that ERISA does not provide an enforcement mechanism for collecting judgments.... The jurisdictional issue raised in this case creates a challenge for funds since the same defense may be used in future cases as a means of evading contribution obligations and avoiding withdrawing liability. However, there appears to be a solution." [East Central Illinois Pipe Trades Health & Welfare Fund v. Prather Plumbing & Heating, Inc., No. 20-2525 (7th Cir. Jul. 7, 2021)]  MORE >>

DeBofsky Sherman Casciari Reynolds P.C.

Since the Start of the Pandemic, Retirement Plan Sponsors Are Increasingly Focused on Ways to Support Employees

"72% of plan sponsors believe their plan is meeting its goals this year, up from 2/3 in 2020. Only 16% of plan sponsors reduced the employer matching contribution over the past two years, despite pandemic challenges. 34% of plan sponsors are looking to change advisors, up from 16% in 2020.... 88% [have made] changes to their investment menus and 82% [have made] changes to their plan designs in the past two years."  MORE >>

Fidelity

Competitive Pricing Rate for Pension Risk Transfer Costs Increases to 100.0% in June

"During June, the average estimated cost to transfer retiree pension risk to an insurer rose, from 102.0% of a plan's total liabilities to 102.4% of those liabilities.... [A]nnuity purchase costs reflecting competition amongst insurers also increased, from 99.7% in May to 100.0% in June."  MORE >>

Milliman

How Should the Increased Mortality Associated with COVID-19 Affect Your Retirement Plan?

"It is simply imprudent to plan to live only as long as your life expectancy -- 50% of individuals will live longer than their life expectancy.... COVID-19 has had a negative impact on life expectancies in the U.S. and elsewhere. It is not clear what the long-term mortality implications will be, however, particularly for those who have been vaccinated against the virus."  MORE >>

Ken Steiner, FSA Retired

[Opinion]

How to Close the Wealth Gap from the Bottom Up

"A more efficient and equitable strategy would promote homeownership, retirement savings and higher education through tax credits instead of deductions and direct cash support instead of subsidized loans. All such assistance should be targeted to those of modest existing wealth."  MORE >>

Editorial Board of The Washington Post; subscription may be required

Benefits in General

Aon and Willis Towers Watson Mutually Agree to Terminate Combination Agreement

"Aon plc and Willis Towers Watson announced today that the firms have agreed to terminate their business combination agreement and end litigation with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The proposed combination was first announced on March 9, 2020.... In connection with the termination of the business combination agreement, Aon will pay the $1 billion termination fee to Willis Towers Watson, Willis Towers Watson's proposed scheme of arrangement has now lapsed, and both organizations will move forward independently."  MORE >>

Aon

The True Worth of Employee Benefits

"Simply hiring one new employee costs more than $4,000.... [S]trong benefits packages can help companies avoid these issues. Eighty-nine percent of business owners with 50 or more employees say their benefits package boosts retention ... 58% of business owners in January 2021 said that employee benefits improve workforce productivity."  MORE >>

Principal Financial Group

Employee Benefits Jobs

View job as Enrolled Actuary or DB Administrator
for Cash Balance Actuaries, LLC Enrolled Actuary or DB Administrator

Cash Balance Actuaries, LLC

Remote

View job as Employee Benefits Attorney
for Barclay Damon Employee Benefits Attorney

Barclay Damon

Buffalo NY / Syracuse NY / Albany NY / New York NY / Rochester NY

View job as Actuary V
for Texas Pension Review Board Actuary V

Texas Pension Review Board

TX

Selected New Discussions

Deduction of Post-Termination Required Funding

"An employer is required to fund additional money due to market fluctuations to pay out the final benefits and close a plan. The date of the funding is past the deduction deadline (9/15/20) for the year of plan termination (2019). Can they deduct the contribution for the year it is made even though the plan was not active for that year? I am being told that it's not deductible for 2020 because they didn't have a plan for 2020."

BenefitsLink Message Boards

Press Releases

Lansing Business Owner Sentenced After Federal Investigation Finds They Failed to Forward Employee Contributions to Retirement Plan

Employee Benefits Security Administration [EBSA], U.S. Department of Labor

Webcasts and Conferences
(Retirement Plans / Executive Compensation)

U.S. Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Northwestern University Retirement Plan Fee Lawsuit

RECORDED

Ropes & Gray

Last Issue's Most Popular Items

IRS Makes Significant Enhancements to the EPCRS Program for Pension Plan Overpayments

Cheiron

IRS Proposes Electronic Filing Requirements for Certain Information Returns

Ascensus

COVID-19 Reduces U.S. Life Expectancy

Treasury & Risk; free registration required

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BenefitsLink Retirement Plans Newsletter, ISSN no. 1536-9587.

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