"This notice provides guidance on the corporate bond monthly yield curve, the corresponding spot segment rates ... and the 24-month average segment rates ... [as well as] the interest rate on 30-year Treasury securities ... as in effect for plan years beginning before 2008 and the 30-year Treasury weighted average rate[.]"  MORE >>

"The DC Cycle 3 restatement will only cover document changes required prior to February 1, 2017, which are listed in Notice 2017-37. Thus, it will not cover, for example, the final hardship withdrawal rules nor the voluntary or mandatory provisions of the SECURE Act or the CARES Act.... The trust under the plan will now have to be 'unbundled' into a separate document that is no longer part of the approved plan itself."  MORE >>

"This [ruling] calls into question the continued viability of a popular practice among some funds -- that of using an interest rate assumption for purposes of determining withdrawal liability that is much lower than the interest rate assumption used to determine a plan's minimum funding requirements." [United Mine Workers of America 1974 Pension Plan v. Energy West Mining Co., No. 20-7054 (D.C. Cir. Jul. 8, 2022)]  MORE >>

"[T]he Sixth Circuit upheld a lower court decision dismissing plaintiff's claim on these issues, finding that: [1] There is nothing imprudent about actively managed funds per se ... [2] Simply pointing (retrospectively) to underperformance is not enough to state a claim ... [3] It is generally not appropriate (in attempting to show imprudence) to compare the performance of actively managed funds to index funds because they have different goals and strategies[.]" [Smith v. CommonSpirit Health, No. 22-5964 (6th Cir. Jun. 21, 2022)]  MORE >>

"Equitable agreed to pay $50 million for providing account statements to about 1.4 million variable annuity investors that included [what the SEC called] 'materially misleading statements and omissions' concerning investor fees. Most of the investors who received the account statements are teachers or other employees of public-school districts who invested in Equitable's proprietary 'EQUI-VEST' variable annuities within a 403(b) or 457(b) defined contribution plan."  MORE >>

"The trusts maintained to hold assets of ERISA plans are separate tax entities from the employers sponsoring the plans. Therefore, each is required to have its own federal tax ID number. Knowing when and where to use whose EIN can be confusing. Here are a few tidbits ... [for] single employer plans."  MORE >>

"[S]econd-order questions [surround] what parameters should be in the loan program (e.g., only one loan outstanding, interest rate is prime plus 1% and minimum loan of $1,000). These are significant compliance and fiduciary related matters that employers should consider when deciding whether to include a participant loan program in the company 401(k) plan."  MORE >>

Topics include: [1] Defined benefit pensions and PBGC ... [2] Background on Delphi pension plans ... [3] Termination of Delphi pension plans ... [4] Lawsuit by Delphi Salaried Employee Association ... [5] Recent executive and legislative actions. [IF12171 Jul. 22, 2022]  MORE >>

"[D]emand for advice ... increases with age, account balance, annual contribution level, web access, and changes in marital status.... [P]articipants who invest solely through target date funds -- the dominant default investment option -- are significantly less likely to seek any form of advice throughout the age distribution ... Advice seeking increases significantly following the introduction of online tools[.]"  MORE >>

"[We] need a much more nuanced way of thinking of plan data than we might expect from class action plaintiff lawyers.... As an industry, we need a legal framework that respects the duties fiduciaries owe participants, respects the privacy needs of participants, allows participants to use their own information without derailing plan administration, and allows data to be used to improve outcomes through better financial wellness solutions."  MORE >>