"[SECURE 2.0] eased the requirements for overfunded pensions that make transfers to a 401(h) plan for retiree medical benefits, known as 420 transfers ... SECURE 2.0 extended Section 420, set to expire at the end of 2025, through the end of 2032. It also lowered the threshold at which plans may use surplus pension assets to pay retiree health and life insurance benefits for newly created de minimis transfers."  MORE >>

"The plaintiff brought suit against the trustee of the plan for breach of fiduciary duty and sued former shareholders ... under ERISA 502(a)(2) alleging that the company overpaid the shareholders for their stake in the company." [Lysengen v. Argent Trust Co., No. 20-1177 (C.D. Ill. Sep. 7, 2023)]  MORE >>

"[1] Lack of a diverse plan committee ... [2] Not benchmarking and reviewing your plan every 3-5 years ... [3] Not understanding and explaining employee eligibility ... [4] Not having frequent committee meetings and recording notes ... [5] Late remittance of employee deferrals."  MORE >>

"A decline in overall market performance as of August 2023 lowered the estimated funded status of the 100 largest U.S. public pension plans from 76.8% as of July 31, 2023 to 75.3% as of August 31, 2023 ... In aggregate, ... the PPFI plans experienced investment returns of -1.6% in August, with individual plans' estimated returns ranging from -2.4% to -0.8%[.]"  MORE >>

"The Teacher Retirement System of Texas, which manages $200 billion, has taken an active approach to investing, hiring managers across strategies, including hedge funds and private equity firms.... The Public Employees' Retirement System of Nevada, meanwhile, pays lower fees, given that the portfolio is mostly index funds and cash. NV PERS's $54 billion portfolio doesn't track the benchmark quite as closely as TRS's does -- the plan's ten-year performance is 9.2 percent, just over the benchmark. But it's still relatively consistent."  MORE >>

14 pages. "The purpose of this white paper is to inform fiduciaries of some factors they might want to consider ... [when] adding a GLI option that provides lifetime income which incorporates the use of a CIT as part of a managed GLI arrangement.... The practical impact of the differences between the provision of CIT/GLI options through CIT-owned insurance and when provided under plan owned insurance can be substantial. These differences become apparent in key areas including portability, complexity, and the personalization of guarantees."  MORE >>

"Two bills introduced in 2023 would replace the current-law WEP approach with a proportional formula for certain individuals who would become eligible for Social Security benefits in 2025 or later[.]" [IF11355 Sep. 19, 2023]  MORE >>

"[A California] law firm is sending copycat ransom letters to large American corporations demanding settlements based on contrived assertions of excessive recordkeeping fees compared to misrepresentations of the 401k Averages Book.... The premise of [these] threats ... is that [1] courts allow these cases to proceed to discovery even without proof of imprudence; [2] these cases are super expensive to defend; [3] it is hard for plan sponsors to prove that they acted prudently in managing plan administration costs; [4] most cases eventually settle; and [5] the plan fiduciaries should, therefore, write a huge check to avoid litigation."  MORE >>

"Changes by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 to capital gains and income tax brackets and rates made profits interest plans even more favorable than they were before the passage of this law. When structured carefully, profits interests combine the leveraged growth opportunity of corporate stock options, the design flexibility of a performance-based stock plan and the long-term capital gains tax treatment of outright equity ownership."  MORE >>