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Retirement Plans Newsletter

June 23, 2022

5 New Job Opportunities 5 New Job Opportunities

 

Senate Finance Committee Unanimously Advances EARN Act

"The Senate bill raises the [RMD] age from 72 today to 75 in 2032, while the House bill [HR 2954] would increase it to 73 next year, 74 in 2030 and 75 in 2033.... The Senate bill also includes provisions for some penalty-free withdrawals for the terminally ill, victims of domestic abuse, those affected by federally declared disasters, and the payment of long-term-care insurance premiums -- all measures that aren't in the House version."  MORE >>

The Wall Street Journal; subscription may be required

[Sponsor]

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It's Unanimous! EARN Act Passed by Senate Committee 28-0

"The EARN Act is now cleared for consideration by the full Senate, where it will be merged with the RISE & SHINE Act [S 4353], which was approved June 14 by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee."  MORE >>

American Retirement Association [ARA]

Sixth Circuit Backs Plan Fiduciaries in Fidelity Freedom Funds ERISA Suit

"The 6th Circuit takes on the argument frequently advanced by plaintiffs that they should not be required to prove a deficient process because they lack access to the fiduciary decisionmaking.... But the court ultimately responds that it is the role of Congress to set the standard, and Congress has established fiduciary law based on process, which does not allow hindsight challenges based on circumstantial evidence of allegedly imprudent outcomes." [Smith v. CommonSpirit Health, No. 22-5964 (6th Cir. Jun. 21, 2022)]  MORE >>

planadviser

Texas District Court Sacks NFL Retirement Plan Procedures for Disability Claims (PDF)

"The curtain has been pulled back as to the inner workings of Defendant The Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan. And what lies behind it is far from pretty with respect to how it handles disability benefit claims sought by former players ... What has become clear over the course of this litigation is that Plaintiffs claim for disability benefits was wrongfully and arbitrarily denied in a process that lacked the procedural safeguards both promised by the benefits plan and required by law." [Cloud v. The Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan, No. 20-1277 (N.D. Tex. Jun. 21, 2022)]  MORE >>

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas

Alert (High Risk Issue) icon Is Your Employer's Retirement Plan Imposing a Marriage Penalty?

"[A] growing number of lawsuits allege that companies are failing to ensure that pensions are actuarially equivalent -- and specifically that the companies' failures are systematically underpaying married couples. This means that you and your surviving spouse could be the subject of a 'marriage penalty' resulting in a substantial loss of benefits.... Here's what you need to know."  MORE >>

Cohen Milstein

DOL Fiduciary Rewrite, ESG, Form 5500 Proposals Delayed

"Based on updates to [DOL's] Spring 2022 regulatory agenda, it appears that stakeholders will have to wait a little longer for the agency's revisions to the definition of fiduciary, as well as final guidance on ESG-based factors and additional Form 5500 changes."  MORE >>

American Retirement Association [ARA]

Benefits in General

Alert (High Risk Issue) icon An Update on Remote Work Reimbursement Rules in California

"California employers have recently experienced a material uptick in lawsuits from employees seeking reimbursement for expenses incurred while working from home.... Many California businesses continue to have employees work from home or are now using a hybrid structure. These employers should be aware of their reimbursement requirements under California law and review their policies and telecommuting agreements to ensure employees are being properly reimbursed."  MORE >>

CDF Labor Law LLP

Executive Compensation and Nonqualified Plans

SEC Again Reopens Comment Period on Dodd-Frank Clawback Rules

"On the same day as the announcement, the SEC also released an internal memo from the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA) that provides a summary of what issues might be included in an economic analysis under any final regulations, if and when they are adopted. Beyond that, however, the SEC provided no explicit indications of what additional information they are seeking in this announcement."  MORE >>

Willis Towers Watson

Employee Benefits Jobs

View job as Retirement Plan Administrator
          for Hessel & Associates, LLC Retirement Plan Administrator

Hessel & Associates, LLC

Remote / IL

View job as Retirement Plan Administrator
          for Hessel & Associates, LLC

View job as Distribution \ Loan Clerk
          for Retirement, LLC Distribution \ Loan Clerk

Retirement, LLC

Remote / Oklahoma City OK

View job as Distribution \ Loan Clerk
          for Retirement, LLC

View job as Defined Benefits (DB) Plan Administrator
          for NPPG (National Professional Planning Group, Inc.) Defined Benefits (DB) Plan Administrator

NPPG (National Professional Planning Group, Inc.)

Remote / Owings Mills MD

View job as Defined Benefits (DB) Plan Administrator
          for NPPG (National Professional Planning Group, Inc.)

View job as Associate General Counsel - Employee Benefits
          for BlueCross BlueShield Association (BCBSA) Associate General Counsel - Employee Benefits

BlueCross BlueShield Association (BCBSA)

Chicago IL

View job as Associate General Counsel - Employee Benefits
          for BlueCross BlueShield Association (BCBSA)

View job as Executive Director
          for North Atlantic States Carpenters Benefit Funds Executive Director

North Atlantic States Carpenters Benefit Funds

Wilmington MA

Selected New Discussions

Plan Sponsor's Name and EIN Were Changed After 2021 Year-End -- What to Put on the Form 5558?

"Plan sponsor's name and EIN (as well as the plan's name) were changed effective 1/1/2021. When preparing the extension for the 2021 plan year, the ftwilliam software is using the old name and EIN (even after I updated them on the ftwilliam website). Can I assume this is the correct way to file the extension and then, when the client files the Form 5500-SF and reports the changed plan sponsor name/EIN/plan name on that, it will line up with the extension that was filed under the old name/EIN? It makes sense to me because the EBSA has no record of the new information until the 5500-SF is actually filed."

BenefitsLink Message Boards

Exclude Zero-Hours-of-Service Employee From Top Heavy Calculation?

"Participant has been working part time for years (under 1,000 hours of service in each year). In the last plan year, the individual worked zero hours, but employment hasn't been formally terminated. My recordkeeping system is excluding this person from the top heavy test, but the account balance is so large that it causes the plan to be top heavy. Could we exclude the participant from the calculation?"

BenefitsLink Message Boards

Press Releases

MDsave and Sana Partner to Offer Affordable Healthcare to Small Businesses

MDsave

Executive Compensation, Employment and Benefits Partner Joins Latham and Watkins in Boston

Latham & Watkins

Webcasts and Conferences
(Retirement Plans / Executive Compensation)

Benefits with Purpose

RECORDED

Willis Towers Watson

ERISA 401(k)/403(b) Fiduciary Developments: The Grab Bag Episode

June 23, 2022 WEBCAST

Ropes & Gray

Last Issue's Most Popular Items

DOL Regulatory Agenda, Spring 2022, Including Employee Benefit Items

U.S. Department of Labor [DOL]

Senate Committees Take Up Retirement Savings Proposals

Slott Report

IRS Regulatory Agenda, Spring 2022, Including Employee Benefit Items

Internal Revenue Service [IRS], U.S. Department of the Treasury

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

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