"IRS says [in Notice 2026-9] that it extended the deadline because it and the Treasury Department are still developing model language that may be IRA trustees, custodians, and issuers may use to amend an IRA for compliance with the SECURE 2.0 Act."  MORE >>

"The revised special tax notice incorporates wording recommendations in the GAO report. The GAO report took issue with the old version not clarifying to participants that one of their options was to do nothing at all. In other words, participants may leave their balance in the retirement plan. In addition, the GAO report thought it would be clearer and more concise to list the four distribution options in the beginning with a brief description of the corresponding tax consequences. Both of these changes are included in the new IRS templates."  MORE >>

"[The court held] that Kaiser was estopped from denying her participation in a defined benefit pension plan and related supplemental retirement plan after more than a decade of repeated misrepresentations regarding her eligibility.... Kaiser's later offer to make corrective 401(k) contributions did not cure the harm, particularly given Woo's career stage and the fundamentally different nature of the retirement benefits." [Woo v. Kaiser Found. Health Plan, Inc., No. 23-5063 (N.D. Cal. Jan. 26, 2026)]  MORE >>

"Once again, a federal judge has dismissed a suit alleging that the decision to offset employer contributions with forfeitures -- in accordance with the terms of the plan document (not to mention tax law) -- was a fiduciary breach." [Jacob v. RTX Corp., No. 25-1389 (E.D. Va. Jan. 22, 2026)]  MORE >>

"The likes of JPMorgan and Betterment are racing to offer solo 401(k)s to a new cohort: Post-pandemic contractors and self-employed DIY savers looking to shelter more income, grow assets tax-deferred or tax-free, all with the click of a button."  MORE >>

44 pages. "[The authors] compare household finance trajectories for individuals who later develop dementia and those who do not.... [W]ealth divergence between the two groups is not explained by reduced earnings, higher healthcare spending, intentional 'spend-down' to qualify for Medicaid coverage, state-dependent utility, or reverse causation by which wealth declines cause dementia.... [R]esults point to impaired financial decision-making beginning about six years prior to clinically recognizable dementia."  MORE >>

"[T]he current proposal would apply to all PRT business, regardless of the specific investment and risk management strategies employed by the issuing company. However, the ARCS noted in our discussions that evaluating the appropriateness of many of the elements of the proposal requires an integrated analysis of the liabilities, the supporting in force assets held on each valuation date, and the company's investment and asset/liability management (ALM) strategies."  MORE >>

"The DFVCP was introduced in 1995 in an effort to allow plan administrators to correct delinquent Form 5500 filings for a significantly lower cost than if the DOL discovered the non-compliance first.... The new rules expand the types of entities that can use the DFVCP beyond just employer plans filing the Form 5500. The DFVCP can now also be used by multiple employer welfare arrangements (MEWAs) and Entities Claiming Exception (ECEs)."  MORE >>

"Employers should review their mail-dependent processes now and consider: [1] building additional lead time into mailing schedules for deadline-sensitive documents, [2] requesting manual postmarks at retail locations for time-critical mailings, or [3] transitioning to electronic delivery where legally permissible."  MORE >>

"42% of HR teams are actively using AI in some capacity ... often replacing people-facing tasks for automation. Today's benefit leaders will need to be more technically and analytically-minded to keep up with the shift[.]"  MORE >>

"[1] Outsourcing will expand, but auditor accountability will tighten ... [2] AI will influence EBP audits, even when it's behind the scenes ... [3] M&A will continue to reshape the EBP audit landscape ... [4] SECURE 2.0 will shift from awareness to execution ... [5] Cybersecurity and fraud will become frontline risk areas.'

   MORE >>

"Requirement to report ... Electronic delivery requirements ... Format of statement/return ... Unique account numbers ... Electronic submission of IRS returns ... Submission through FIRE ... Submission through IRIS ... Internal Revenue Code penalties for non-compliance ... Disqualifying disposition of ISO shares ... Disposition of ESPP stock."  MORE >>