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Arnerich Messina Comment Letter to Legislators on IRA Investment Choice Limitations in House Reconciliation Bill (PDF)

"[W]hile the SEC worked to be more inclusive in their definition of accredited investor, this proposal eliminates retirement funds as a source these investors can use to fund these small businesses, completely reversing the intent of allowing more Americans to invest in the people who need their capital to get their businesses off the ground."

How Men and Women Invest Differently, and What We Can Learn from Each Other (PDF)

"Male and female investment behavior has been compared in numerous studies, polls, and papers over the past few decades. While results vary, there are some consistent themes that appear and reappear. Examining these findings ... can help us better understand the factors that influence our own investment behavior and to become more aware of which behaviors and strategies are most successful over time."

Paid Leave Oregon Is Here: What You Need to Know

"[M]ost Oregon employees who work full or part-time will be eligible for up to 12 weeks of paid leave per year. Both employers and employees started paying into the paid leave trust fund in January 2023, and those funds are what make the program possible. Benefits will become available starting on September 3, 2023."

Behavioral Economics: Becoming a Better Investor by Understanding Your Unconscious (PDF)

24 pages. "Many of the greatest investment mistakes occur due to investors acting from emotions or irrational thinking. Those investors who understand behavioral economics and how to counter our human tendency toward illogic are better equipped to avoid those mistakes."

Retirement Plan Best Practices: Participant Education (PDF)

17 pages. "[1] How to do a diagnostic review of your participant population and existing education, identifying gaps and areas of needed focus; [2] Selecting participant education delivery methods that will reach your participants; [3] Targeting education to be relevant to participants' different life stages; [4] Behavioral economics principles to guide your education and communication techniques; [5] Designing effective education programs and campaigns; [6] Follow-up surveys and data gathering to assess the success of your education."

Retirement Plan Best Practices: Plan Monitoring (PDF)

14 pages. "Monitoring your investment menu managers, your plan providers, and plan fees is an important part of your overall fiduciary responsibility. Plan sponsors vary widely in how they monitor their plans. What are best practices, and what standards should you be following in your monitoring practices?"

Retirement Plan Best Practices: Investment Menu Construction (PDF)

10 pages. "This paper outlines a method of menu construction based on a foundation of behavioral economics principles. The approach detailed here provides a strong balance between providing enough diversification while avoiding overwhelming participants with too much choice. [The authors also] strategize around the presentation of the menu options, providing some guidance on how to facilitate participant decision-making."

Retirement Plan Best Practices: Plan Design (PDF)

13 pages. "How you structure your plan can have tremendous impacts on participant outcomes. We'll examine the factors that you should consider as a fiduciary when making decisions about plan design, look at how other plans handle different options, and identify some best practices. The goal of this paper is to help you make the decisions that will lead your participants to retirement readiness."

Retirement Plan Best Practices: Plan Governance (PDF)

12 pages. "In this paper, [the authors] look at overall plan governance, answering questions such as: [1] What documents should you have? [2] What is an optimal structure for your committee and who should be on it? [3] What type of decision-making process should you implement? [4] How often does the committee need to meet and what should be on the agenda? [5] How can you monitor service providers? Additionally, ... a fiduciary checklist [is included] at the end of the paper so that you can check your committee practices against fiduciary best practices as they pertain to plan governance."

Roth Retirement Savings Are More Accessible Than Ever (PDF)

"One of the most important considerations is that of designing a communication program to explain the benefits of Roth contributions and how they differ from traditional contributions to participants. Such a program would ideally incorporate information about the conversion opportunity so that participants have a full understanding of the options available to them, as well as an awareness of the tax ramifications of converting assets to a Roth account."