"The rather complex (and onerous) process of obtaining relief from the 'one bad apple' rule in the revised proposed regulations ... picks up the numerous notice requirements that were in the initial proposed regulations and adds more complications with a participant election and required plan amendments."  MORE >>

"Some PEP providers provide greater flexibility in terms of the employer-provided contribution formulas, and plan features, while others provide little-to-no flexibility in plan design. Ultimately a PEP provider is balancing the extra services involved in managing various provisions against keeping a streamlined service."  MORE >>

"Key differences in the EARN Act include proposals for a major expansion of the Saver's Credit that would make the credit payable only to workplace plans and IRAs, a new automatic enrollment safe harbor, and an array of incentives for small employers to offer savings plans. The EARN Act drops a House proposal to require most new 401(k) and 403(b) plans to adopt automatic enrollment. Instead, it offers a tax credit to small businesses that adopt auto enrollment in their plans."  MORE >>

"In this hiring climate ... a DB plan can make the difference in someone choosing one company over another.... [W]ell-managed plans offer potential financial benefits. Starting with plan design, future DB plan accruals can be based on hybrid plan designs that mimic DC plan accruals, all the while costing less as a percentage of pay. Furthermore, surplus funding levels can be preserved using modern investment strategies that match pension assets with plan liabilities."  MORE >>

28 pages. "401(k) plan participants investing in mutual funds tend to hold lower-cost funds.... The expense ratios that 401(k) plan participants incur for investing in mutual funds have declined substantially since 2000.... The downward trend in the expense ratios that 401(k) plan participants incur for investing in mutual funds continued in 2021.... Employers and employees generally share the costs of operating 401(k) plans."  MORE >>

111 pages. "Almost two in three employed workers (63 percent) indicate their financial situation has stayed the same amid the pandemic while 22 percent say it worsened.... 39 percent of employed workers have dipped into their retirement accounts, including 29 percent who have taken a loan and 27 percent who have taken an early and/or hardship withdrawal. Just three in 10 'strongly agree' they are building a large enough retirement nest egg (30 percent)."  MORE >>

"Government attorneys filed a lengthy response Friday asking a Florida federal judge to toss one of two lawsuits challenging the [DOL] investment advice rule.... DOL attorneys cite 64 court cases, nine federal statutes and five regulations in making its arguments.' [American Securities Assoc. v. DOL, No. 20-0330 (M.D. Fla. defendant's motion to dismiss filed Jun. 24, 2022)]  MORE >>

"[T]he Sixth Circuit released a powerful opinion in defense of fiduciaries managing employees' investment options in 401(k) plans, stating that [ERISA] 'does not give the federal courts a broad license to second-guess the investment decisions of retirement plans.'... The decision provides cause to hope that in the future employer plan sponsors will find greater success at having such fees cases dismissed at the pleadings stage." [Smith v. CommonSpirit Health, No. 22-5964 (6th Cir. Jun. 21, 2022)]  MORE >>

"More than 100 state, city, county and other governments borrowed for their pension funds last year, twice the highest number that did so in any prior year ... Nearly $13 billion of these pension obligation bonds were sold last year, which is more than in the prior five years combined."  MORE >>

"New plan features include an updated participant log-in interface, a TSP mobile app and virtual assistant, the ability to electronically sign documents and complete transactions online, and the opening of a mutual fund window, which gives eligible TSP participants access to more than 5,000 mutual funds. Since the transition ... some participants have expressed issues with logging into their accounts, long customer service wait times and transaction difficulties."  MORE >>