"Congress adopted the SECURE Act to expand the ability of small employers, including self-employed individuals, to participate in pooled employer plans and benefit from the economies of scale such plans provide. Accordingly ... it is reasonable to similarly treat pooled employer plans as single employer plans for purposes of rule 180(a)(2).... [T]he staff would not object if a CIT issues interests to a pooled employer plan that covers self-employed persons without registering the offer and sale of the CIT's interests under section 5 of the Securities Act in reliance on rule 180; provided that the plan: [1] is subject to ERISA; and [2] the issuance meets all of the requirements in rule 180(a)(1) and (a)(3)."  MORE >>

"The cost and quality criteria specified in the order will narrow the IRAs eligible for being listed through the marketplace and may incentivize the development of new, low-cost, index-based products tailored to the new platform.... [T]he implementation timelines set forth in the Executive Order are tight. With the Saver's Match set to take effect on January 1, 2027, IRA custodians and recordkeepers will have a limited window to build the operational framework necessary to implement the federal matching contributions efficiently and accurately."  MORE >>

"The Fourth Circuit held ... that in the context of defined contribution plans, ERISA claims under section 502(a)(2) present claims for individualized monetary relief and thus are not appropriate for class treatment under Rule 23(b)(1).... If other circuits adopt the Fourth Circuit's reasoning, the decision could eliminate the availability of mandatory certification under Rule 23(b)(1), but the ruling does not foreclose the possibility that ERISA breach of fiduciary duty class actions arising under defined contribution plans can be filed under Rule 23(b)(3)." [Trauernicht v. Genworth Fin. Inc., No. 24-1880 (4th Cir. Mar. 10, 2026)]  MORE >>

"S-corporation payments to shareholder-employees are generally split between W-2 compensation and pass-through distributions. While distributions can be tax-efficient from an employment-tax perspective, shareholder-employees must still be paid reasonable compensation for services performed, and distributions generally do not count as 'compensation' for qualified plan contribution purposes. As a result, an owner who minimizes W-2 wages may also be unintentionally limiting retirement savings opportunities."  MORE >>

"6 in 10 [small and medium-sized business (SMB)] employers report paying fees they didn’t anticipate when they signed up for a plan - including charges for audits, ERISA counsel, and compliance filings. 73% reported that these fees drove up the overall cost of their benefits program. As a consequence of extra costs, employers terminated their plan (13%), lowered matching contributions (26%), or cut benefits to compensate (31%). 64% said participants withdrew from the plan because they found transaction fees unaffordable, unexpected, or confusing."  MORE >>

"Professional service providers -- e.g., accountants, bankers, advisors -- are trusted partners who can help convince small firms to offer retirement plans. However, many may unintentionally reinforce misperceptions about plan costs and administrative burdens, making adoption seem out of reach. Analysis of new survey results shows that the providers with the most success: [1] are familiar with simple low-cost plan options; [2] describe plans as a tool to boost recruitment and retention; and [3] provide hands-on guidance to help firms set up a plan."  MORE >>

"Relative to passive‑only investments, the additional returns from active fixed income are estimated to substantially improve retirement sustainability ... For a typical 20‑year retirement, these effects include 25% longer retirement horizons, retirement several years earlier, a 30%+ increase in match rates, or sustainable spending increases of roughly 9%, with benefits growing at longer horizons.... [C]ombining both active public and private fixed income further amplifies these gains, yielding improvements that are large, robust across historical regimes."  MORE >>

"[I]ndividuals and businesses affected by Super Typhoon Sinlaku in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands that began on April 11, 2026 ... now have until Nov. 2, 2026, to file various federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.... [I]ndividuals and households affected by Super Typhoon Sinlaku that reside or have a business in the Northern Islands, Rota, Saipan and Tinian qualify for tax relief."  MORE >>

37 pages; updated May 4, 2026. "This roundup focuses on recent federal and state actions to restrict noncompete provisions and provides links to federal and state resources from organizations, government websites, third-party resources, and news articles. The aggregated content in each section is organized in reverse chronological order[.]"  MORE >>

"[FAB 2026-01] contains a defect that is not merely analytical, but structural: it is internally inconsistent on its face. The Bulletin expressly conditions enforcement on alignment with 'clearly established case law,' yet the governing premise it adopts -- that fiduciary prudence may be satisfied by process alone -- is unsupported by, and in tension with, the very body of law it invokes. That contradiction is fatal."  MORE >>