13 pages. "[EBSA] is issuing this Request for Information (RFI), in furtherance of the Executive Order on Climate-Related Financial Risk, to solicit public input on EBSA's future work relating to retirement savings and climate-related financial risk. EBSA's efforts will focus on agency actions that can be taken under [ERISA], the Federal Employees' Retirement System Act of 1986 (FERSA), and any other relevant laws, to protect the life savings and pensions of U.S. workers and families from the threats of climate-related financial risk." [Deadline for written comments is 90 days after publication in the Federal Register, scheduled for February 14, 2022. This RFI includes 22 specific questions relating to [1] Data collection regarding ERISA-covered plans; [2] ERISA Fiduciary Issues; [3] FERSA; and [4] Miscellaneous issues.]  MORE >>

"Here are several ways that public agencies can and do misunderstand their [Social Security Replacement Plans (SSRPs)] and participation in those plans: [1] You can't participate in an SSRP that has not yet been adopted.... [2] You can't authorize employee contributions on a retroactive basis.... [3] Qualified participation is required each and every day.... [4] A DCSSRP does not have to operate on a payroll-by-payroll basis."  MORE >>

"The proposed rules and amendments are designed to address concerns about Advisers' and Funds' cybersecurity preparedness and reduce cybersecurity-related risks to clients and investors; improve Adviser and Fund disclosures regarding their cybersecurity risks and incidents; and enhance the Commission's ability to assess systemic risks and oversee Advisers and Funds."  MORE >>

33 pages. "Sponsors have made significant progress over the past five years, but hundreds of employers have yet to adopt these best practices and, as a result, they continue to pay millions more in premiums than they need to, year-in and year-out.... [E]mployers have paid $500 million more in premiums than they needed to since 2012. Missed savings in 2019 alone were $34 million. And these missed opportunities were completely avoidable."  MORE >>

"Historically, workers couldn't set up guaranteed retirement income streams directly through their 401(k) accounts. But that's changing, and the annuity industry sees it as a big opportunity[.]"  MORE >>

"Only 1.2 percent of DC plan participants stopped contributing to their plans in the first three quarters of 2021, compared with 2.2 percent in the first three quarters of 2020, and 5.0 percent in the first three quarters of 2009 (another time of financial market stress)."  MORE >>

"Being fully prepared for retirement is just one aspect of financial wellness. And because its meaning can change with each life stage, financial wellness can be a hard concept to communicate."  MORE >>

"The plan can be designed with an annual match or provide for a true up match at year end instead of just a per payroll-based match, if employers are concerned that employees are not receiving the full benefit they intended.... This allows participants to time their deferrals any way they want during the plan year."  MORE >>

"[T]he proposed rule's persistent relegation of job creation/preservation to the status of mere 'collateral benefit' is a mistake and undermines ERISA's duty of loyalty. In reality, job creation and preservation are inextricably linked to fund financial health. Relegating that fact to a mere collateral benefit means trustees fail to consider the effect on a pension of investing in projects that eliminate the jobs of the fund's own participants, or ignore the benefit of creating new jobs and thereby new pension contributors."  MORE >>