The computation of the 4044 expense loads was changed by PBGC’s final rule ... issued August 15, 2025. The 4044 expense is now computed as specified dollar amounts per participant for the first 100 participants and per additional participant. These dollar amounts will change annually. PBGC has determined the 4044 expense load factors applicable for valuation dates after 1/30/2026 but before 1/31/2027. A new webpage for ERISA 4044 expense load has been created and is now available.  MORE >>

"SECURE 2.0 expanded the small employer retirement plan startup costs credit.... SECURE 2.0 added ... the employer contribution credit, for certain employer contributions ... An eligible employer may claim a $500 auto-enrollment credit for the first taxable year in which it includes an eligible automatic contribution arrangement (EACA) in a qualified employer plan ... Military spouse participation credit."  MORE >>

"[Notice 2026-13] contains updates to the ... section 402(f) mandatory participant notice (AKA the Special Tax Notice) ... There have been a number of changes to the IRC relating to distributions under [SECURE 2.0] ... [If] a participant is receiving a distribution that is part pre-tax and part Roth, both versions of the Notice must be provided. With the new required Roth Catch-up Contributions, most 401(k) and 403(b) plans may need to provide both versions of the Notice more often than in years past. (... Another reason to move to electronic forms.)"  MORE >>

75 pages. "Justice Sotomayor (to counsel for the petitioner): 'Congress knew how to fix the use of assumptions to a particular date. It didn't do it here. Why shouldn't I assume it didn't mean to do that here?' ... Justice Alito (to counsel for the United States, supporting the respondent): 'Have very serious practical problems emerged since Metz or is it simply a matter of the fact that actuaries were used to doing things in a particular way and they don't want to change the way they've been doing it?' " [Also available: audio recording (MP3)] [M&K Employee Solutions, LLC v. Trustees of the IAM National Pension Fund, No. 22-7157 (D.C. Cir Feb. 9, 2024; cert. pet. granted Jun. 30, 2025 No. 23-1209; oral arg. Jan. 20, 2026)]  MORE >>

"If the Court affirms the Ninth Circuit's approach and endorses a strict meaningful benchmark requirement, it would make it significantly more difficult for participants to pursue ERISA claims challenging investment decisions beyond the pleading stage. Plan sponsors would benefit from a higher bar for plaintiffs, particularly in defending the selection of investment strategies that incorporate alternatives where truly comparable funds may not exist." [Anderson v. Intel Corp. Inv. Policy Comm., No. 22-16268 (9th Cir. May 22, 2025; cert. pet. granted Jan 16, 2026, No. 25-498)]  MORE >>

"[The judge] found that the Amazon 401(k) plan expressly allowed fiduciaries to apply forfeitures to reduce employer contributions, pay plan expenses or restore accounts, and that courts have overwhelmingly rejected the theory advanced by the workers." [Curtis v. Amazon.com Services LLC, No. 24-2164 (W.D. Wash. Jan. 16, 2026)]  MORE >>

"[ERISA Litigation Reform Act (HR 6084)] aims to curb meritless class actions by clarifying the pleading standard applicable to ERISA-prohibited transactions claims. The reform effort comes in response to recent litigation trends and the United States Supreme Court's decision in Cunningham v. Cornell last year, which effectively lowered the pleading standard for prohibited transaction claims under ERISA."  MORE >>

"Recent statements ... suggest the White House is considering a proposal to permit savers to invest a portion of their 401(k) retirement accounts in their personal residences.... [I]mplementation would involve myriad technical complications.... [1] Prohibited transactions and fiduciary responsibility ... [2] Structuring the plan's interest in the home ... [3] Execution and timing of investments ... [4] Tax implications ... [5] Valuations -- implications for reporting and distributions ... [6] Special situations: foreclosure, bankruptcy, and liability."  MORE >>

"U.S households moved an estimated $1 trillion in retirement plan rollovers in 2025 ... [O]ne in eight rollover transactions, or 16%, are over $100,000. Rollovers in new employer plans have doubled in dollars terms, at $160 billion today compared to $80 billion in 2022."  MORE >>

"There is no statute that requires a 'meaningful benchmark.' ERISA's prudence standard focuses on process, not performance relative to a counterfactual benchmark. Benchmarks were a judicial convenience, not a substantive legal test."  MORE >>

"[E]liminating tax-deductible contributions for retirement accounts that already contain at least $5 or $10 million would raise very little revenue on an immediate basis (less than $0.15 billion per year or $0.05 billion per year, respectively).... [In] contrast, requiring immediate disgorgement of excess balances would raise larger amounts of revenue on an immediate basis -- $84 billion for accounts in excess of $5 million, or $11 billion if the limit were set at $10 million. In all the examples, however, future revenue would change depending on rates of return, future tax rates, and the timing of distributions that would have been taken in the absence of the policy."  MORE >>

"EBSA stated that its investigations will continue to evaluate how plans and service providers protect against cybersecurity threats.... [T]he Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act and its 2013 regulations, as well as the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, remain ... an enforcement priority.... EBSA will be focusing enforcement efforts on the implementation of the No Surprises Act ... EBSA will be reviewing pension plan practices to notify participants who are approaching normal retirement age and required minimum distribution age[.]"  MORE >>