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Retirement Plans Newsletter

December 30, 2022

2 New Job Opportunities 2 New Job Opportunities

 

[Guidance Overview]

IRS Proposed Regs Would Permanently Allow Remote Witnessing of Spousal Consent

"Under the proposed regulations, remote witnessing by a notary public or by a plan representative is permitted, provided the process meets [certain] requirements ... [which] are very similar to the requirements in the IRS's temporary COVID-19 relief. Whether remote notarization is witnessed by a notary or a plan representative, the consenting spouse's signature must be witnessed using live audio-video technology, and the electronic process must comply with the general rules regarding electronic elections[.]"  MORE >>

Proskauer

[Guidance Overview]

It’s Official: SECURE 2.0 Enacted into Law

"[T]he SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 is now law, thanks to President Biden signing the legislation Dec. 29 after it was flown down to him while on vacation in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. The final SECURE 2.0 legislation was included in Division T of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 [HR 2617].... Dec. 29, 2022, will now serve as the date of enactment (DOE) ... [S]everal provisions become effective immediately, while others become effective in 2023 or later years."  MORE >>

American Retirement Association [ARA]

[Guidance Overview]

Exceptional Usefulness and Quality icon SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 Modifies Retirement Plan Provisions

"Plans and traditional IRAs may permit one withdrawal per calendar year up to $1,000 for an unforeseeable or immediate financial need relating to necessary personal or family emergency expenses.... The Act permits an automatic portability provider (APP) to rollover an automatic cash out IRA established with a participant's prior employer-sponsored retirement plan into a subsequent eligible defined contribution employer-sponsored retirement plan.... The Act reduces the excise tax [on late RMD's] from 50% to 25%.... Surviving spouse election to be treated as employee (for purposes of RMDs) ... Special rules for use of retirement funds in connection with qualified federally declared disasters.... Paper benefit statements [required] in certain cases."  MORE >>

VOYA Financial

[Guidance Overview]

SECURE 2.0 Changes Rules for Retirement Plans

"Effective immediately, several rules apply to the recovery of overpayments made from retirement plans.... Within two years, the IRS is directed to revamp the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS), ... Within two years following the date of enactment, the Secretaries of the DOL and the IRS are required to establish an online searchable database so that individuals can see if they have money owed under a retirement plan. Plan sponsors will be required to provide information needed to populate the database."  MORE >>

Foley & Lardner LLP

[Guidance Overview]

Top 5 Changes in the SECURE 2.0 Act for Plan Sponsors and Participants

"[1] Requires automatic plan enrollment for eligible employees as plan participants. [2] Changes the eligibility requirements under 401(k) plans so that it is easier for part-time employees to participate. [3] Includes a new employer match for student loan payments and addresses how to factor student loan payment matching contributions into a plan's discrimination testing. [4] Creates new starter 401(k) plans for employers without retirement plans. [5] Increases 'catch-up' contributions and modifies required minimum distributions."  MORE >>

Littler

[Guidance Overview]

DOL's New Rule on ERISA Investment Duties and Its Relationship to ESG

"[E]mployer plan fiduciaries may want to consider updating their investment policy statements and proxy voting policies to conform with provisions of the New Rule, even if doing so merely documents long-standing practices ... While employer plan fiduciaries may consider adding an ESG investment option because of participant preferences, plan fiduciaries should be wary of misleading media reports that it is now permissible to justify doing so because of such preferences."  MORE >>

Covington & Burling

Benefits in General

[Official Guidance]

IRS Disaster Relief Announcement NY-2022-09, for Victims of Severe Winter Storm in New York

"Victims of severe winter storm beginning December 23, 2022, now have until April 18, 2023, to file various individual and business tax returns and make tax payments ... [I]ndividuals and households affected by severe winter storm that reside or have a business in Erie and Genessee counties qualify for tax relief."  MORE >>

Internal Revenue Service [IRS]

Public Service Employer Workforce Trends to Watch in 2023 (PDF)

"[K]ey strategies and actions public service employers can take in 2023 to be employers of choice.... [1] Communicate the full value of benefits ... [2] Customize recruitment appeals ... [3] Maintain retirement plan funding ... [4] Restructure the workforce ... [5] Take a holistic view ... [6] Prioritize data driven decision making."  MORE >>

Mission Square Research Institute

Employee Benefits Jobs

View job as Plan Administrator / Plan Consultant
            for LAR Pensions, LLC

Plan Administrator / Plan Consultant

LAR Pensions, LLC

Norwalk CT

View job as Plan Administrator / Plan Consultant for LAR Pensions, LLC

View job as Assistant Director, Employee Insurance
            for Minnesota Management and Budget

Assistant Director, Employee Insurance

Minnesota Management and Budget

Saint Paul MN

View job as Assistant Director, Employee Insurance for Minnesota Management and Budget

Selected New Discussions

May a Plan Restrict Who Is an Acceptable Witness for a Spouse's Consent?

"As BenefitsLink yesterday informed us, this morning’s Federal Register publishes the Treasury department’s proposed rule that would permanently allow remote witnessing of a spouse’s consent, whether to a distribution not a survivor annuity or naming a beneficiary not the spouse. Some plans’ sponsor/administrators and those who advise them might use this as an occasion to reconsider what a plan allows for a spouse’s consent. ERISA § 205(c)(2)(A)(iii) permits recognizing a spouse’s consent “witnessed by a plan representative or a notary public[.]” But does anything require allowing both those means? May a plan provide that only a consent witnessed by a notary public allows something that requires the spouse’s consent? And further, may a plan provide that only a consent witnessed by a notary public who is neither an employee nor a nonemployee contractor of the plan’s sponsor/administrator is recognized?"

BenefitsLink Message Boards

'Assets Held for Investment' Requested by Participant

"A Participant in a Self-Directed plan, that is audited each year (100+ ppts), has requested the "Assets held for investment" since receiving the 2021 Summary Annual Report. Is it sufficient to provide a copy of the single page from within the audited financial statement that lists the assets held? All assets are held in Pooled Separate Accounts. This page reflects the 2021 Plan Year (the year requested) as well as the prior year. If so, should a copy of the Form 5500 Schedule D be included, listing all of the PSAs held? Should the plan provide a copy of the Schedule H Line 4i "schedule of assets (held at end of year)" Attachment, as well or in lieu of the above? Thank you"

BenefitsLink Message Boards

Press Releases

2023 Plan Sponsor of the Year Nominations Are Open

PLANSPONSOR

Webcasts and Conferences
(Retirement Plans / Executive Compensation)

Secure 2.0 for 401(k) and 403(b) Plans: What Employers (and Their Advisors) Need to Know Now

January 19, 2023 WEBCAST

Boutwell Fay LLP

Last Issue's Most Popular Items

SECURE 2.0: A Summary of Key Changes Impacting Employer-Provided Retirement Plans

Fox Rothschild LLP

Text of IRS Proposed Regs and Notice of Public Hearing: Use of an Electronic Medium to Make Participant Elections and Spousal Consents

Internal Revenue Service [IRS]

Text of IRS Form 5330: Return of Excise Taxes Related to Employee Benefit Plans (PDF)

Internal Revenue Service [IRS]

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

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