"Among the [DOL's changes to the 2023 Form 5500 filing instructions] was a modification of the participant counting methodology for small/large plan determination from all eligible participants to only those participants with account balances at the beginning of the year.... This counting method will push many plans, especially 401(k) and 403(b) plans, below the 100 participant audit threshold[.]"  MORE >>

"[1] Required minimum distributions ... [2] New rules on lump sum windows and pension risk transfers ... [3] New overpayment correction rules ... [4] Annual funding notices ... [5] Cash out of small benefits"  MORE >>

"[A]dding a [qualified student loan payment (QSLP)] matching contribution increases the administrative complexity of a plan.... [I]nclusion of a QSLP feature should act as an attraction and retention tool for employers looking to hire recent graduates, millennials and even older workers with remaining outstanding student loan debt.... Employers should proceed with caution as they consider amending their existing plan or starting a new plan that includes ... emergency savings accounts.... [E]mployee education can prove the difference-maker when it comes to perceived benefits to participants."  MORE >>

"[Notice 2023-27] explains that NFT ownership may provide the holder with a right with respect to an asset that is not a digital file, such as the right to attend a ticketed event, or may certify ownership of a physical item or some other particular item.... The IRS then indicates that pending issuance of guidance on the treatment of NFTs as collectibles, the IRS will apply a look-through analysis, under which the NFT's underlying right or asset will be tested for status as a collectible."  MORE >>

"A recent decision from the Eastern District of Michigan serves as a reminder that -- while courts are often quick to certify classes in ERISA cases -- plaintiffs must satisfy the requirements of Rule 23 and that courts can (and do) refuse class certification where those requirements are not met." [Davis v. Magna International of America, Inc., No. 20-11060 (E.D. Mich. Mar. 27, 2023)]  MORE >>

"[M]ost respondents foresee 88% of employers offering a DC plan by year-end 2026.... [T]his level of coverage is already achieved in the 100+ employee market. But ... just 46% of employers with 1 to 99 employees offered an employee-funded retirement plan ... [S]tate mandates will be essential in increasing coverage."  MORE >>

"During February, the estimated cost to transfer retiree pension risk to an insurer in a competitive bidding process increased from 99.3% of a plan's total liabilities to 99.7% of those liabilities.... During the same time period, the average annuity purchase cost across all insurers in our index also rose slightly, from 102.5% to 102.8%."  MORE >>

"The push to reinstate annual pension boosts to Rhode Island's retired state and municipal workers, as well as public school teachers, began anew ... with a plea from lobbyists for two groups -- police and firefighters -- to get 2.5% compounded annual Cost of Living Adjustments, or COLAs."  MORE >>