"The Advisory Committee consists of seven members appointed by the President from among individuals recommended by the PBGC Board of Directors ... The Advisory Committee members are ... [1] two representatives of employee organizations; [2] two representatives of employers who maintain pension plans; and [3] three representatives of the general public."  MORE >>

"[T]he new long-term, part-time employee rules have generated renewed interest in the application of the class exclusion rules, for example as they relate to groups like summer interns or co-op employees. ... With the hours threshold for participation changing, it is as important as ever for employers to revisit their existing eligibility exclusions to ensure that they continue to be primarily job and not service-based."  MORE >>

"Many sponsors of Solo 401(k) plans were given advice, and established plans with the understanding that there's no concern with the plan if they have no employees who work over 1,000 hours during a year. That advice, unfortunately, no longer holds true."  MORE >>

"Under Notice 2024-02, plans that either [1] are currently providing increasing pay credits or [2] are being changed to provide for increasing pay credits may do so prospectively, so long as they do not reduce a participant's 'accumulated benefit' (that is, the balance in the participants cash balance account) 'determined as of the end of the interest crediting period that includes the applicable amendment date.' "  MORE >>

"This Retirement Plan Compliance Calendar summarizes the major requirements that apply to Defined Contribution (DC) plans for 2024. Due dates are based on a calendar plan year and are applicable to plans subject to [ERISA]."  MORE >>

"Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) are minimum amounts you must withdraw from your IRA or retirement plan account when you reach age 72. Beginning in 2023, the SECURE 2.0 Act changed the age RMDs must begin to age 73 for taxpayers that are born after 1950." [Also see IRS Employee Plans News: Required Minimum Distributions -- Beneficiaries]  MORE >>

"The [DOL] has once again denied a request to extend the Jan. 2 deadline for comments on its new fiduciary rule proposal -- this time from lawmakers."  MORE >>

"[T]he DOL admonishes fiduciaries to 'not consider fees in a vacuum.' Why is that? ... [A] simple calculation ... shows that deferral rates, employer match rates and plan performance have the greatest impact on retirement income, and that changes in retirement plan fees have the least -- even if they are decreased by 20%."  MORE >>

"[If] you seek avenues to avoid a costly 401(k) audit, your focus should be headcount.... Beginning January 1, 2024, former employees with vested balances under $7,000 can be automatically 'cashed out' ... increased from the current limit of $5,000.... Even if you can't shed enough participants to skirt the 401(k) audit requirement, it is still likely healthy to regularly flush these employees from your plan as many 401(k) costs are based on asset levels or headcount."  MORE >>

35 pages. "One unfortunate underlying theme in both participant and plan sponsor encounters with the agency is an overall sense of mistrust by agency personnel who interface with the regulated community on a routine basis.... The agency has an extraordinary $44.6 billion surplus that is far in excess of anything that the agency needs.... [T]he agency has not shown leadership to help policymakers and legislators come to terms with options to relieve this extraordinary financial burden that is driving plan sponsors from the defined benefit structure, threatening the retirement security of upcoming generations who lack the economic security of a lifetime income in retirement. "  MORE >>

"Two days of panels with critics and supporters of the [DOL's] 'retirement security rule' proposal displayed the widely diverging views of the potential new regulation.... [This article provides a] lightly edited transcript from 25 key moments from this month's public hearing[.]"  MORE >>

"The standard for loss causation is a key element that defines the fiduciary standard of liability for plan sponsors. A 'would have' causation standard will make it exponentially easier for plaintiff law firms to recover damages in fiduciary breach lawsuits ... But there is an even more fundamental issue with respect to the causation analysis ... [T]he burden of proof should have shifted to the defense in the first place." [Vellali v. Yale Univ., No. 16-1345 (D. Conn. Jun. 28, 2023; on appeal to 2d Cir. No. 23-1082)]  MORE >>

"Select issues with the proposal: [1] Proposal will likely result in continued regulatory uncertainty ... [2] No carve-out for transactions with sophisticated institutional investors ... [3] Fiduciary adviser status may result from others' discretion over unrelated assets ... [4] Fiduciary adviser status may result from one time advice ... [5] Fund sponsors and other investment product providers may be deemed fiduciaries by virtue of selling activities or even recommendations by third parties ... [6] Lawyers, accountants, and consultants may be deemed fiduciaries based on regular provision of investment-related legal, tax and other advice traditionally viewed as non-fiduciary.'

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"While they are potentially powerful savings vehicles for highly compensated clients, deferred compensation arrangements are also complex from an operational and tax management perspective.... Getting the job right requires a lot of learning for advisors looking to expand their services in this arena ... These insights can help advisors as their clients either set up or benefit from nonqualified deferred compensation plan arrangements."  MORE >>