"[P]lans that started after Dec. 29, 2022 (the day SECURE 2.0 was passed) will have to implement automatic enrollment and escalation.... [Beginning January 1, 2025], plans under the mandate must automatically enroll their participants at a rate between 3% and 10%, and auto-escalate by at least 1% annually until the contribution rate is between 10% and 15%. Plans must give participants an opportunity to opt-out or elect different contribution levels."  MORE >>

"The decision to join the network is considered a fiduciary act. Unlike the safe harbor protections offered for auto-rollover IRAs, the [DOL] has not extended similar protections to employers who opt to participate in the auto-portability network.... Additionally, under the auto-portability proposed regulations, employers must meet certain notice requirements and appoint a plan official to oversee transfers into the plan and ensure that received amounts are properly invested."  MORE >>

"[1] Increased contribution limits ... [2] Accelerated catch-up contributions ... [3] Automatic enrollment for new plans ... [4] Raised income limits for the Saver's Credit ... [5] Start saving today."  MORE >>

"[1] Develop a (plan) budget.... [2] Check-up -- on your target-date fund(s).... [3] Pump up -- the default rate in your auto-enrollment plan.... [4] Set goals for your plan (designs).... [5] Do your homework."  MORE >>

"Having successfully preserved its right to litigate the matter at the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the DOL must have considered it had at least some paths to success in the face of clear and unrelenting Fifth Circuit precedent ... Post election, given the political landscape on which the battle will be fought (or not fought at all), the 2024 Fiduciary Rule may be heading to purgatory once again."  MORE >>

"Treasury was notified on Dec. 8 by a third-party software provider, BeyondTrust, that a hacker had gained access “to a key used by the vendor to secure a cloud-based service used to remotely provide technical support for Treasury Departmental Offices (DO) end users,” according to the letter."  MORE >>

"As the average age of financial advisors has reached 57, firms must urgently focus on attracting and training young talent to ensure sustainability."  MORE >>

"[S]imply getting rid of WEP and GPO without also introducing reforms to protect benefit parity is likely to result in some workers who have split their time between non-covered government jobs ... and covered private-sector jobs ... getting substantially higher retirement benefits than other workers with essentially equal earnings histories. Such workers tend to be relatively high earners in the first place -- meaning the elimination of WEP and GPO without corresponding policy actions is likely to make Social Security more regressive."  MORE >>