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Hurricane Irma Relief; Harvey Relief Expanded

"The IRS has provided the same relief to those affected by Irma as it gave to Harvey's victims, and has announced new defined benefit funding relief for the victims of both disasters. This article ... explain[s] the new announcements, and [notes] that the deadline to contribute 401(k) safe harbor employer contributions is not extended."

The Final RMD Regulations: The High Points

"The good news is that the Final Regs did not make major changes to the 2022 proposed regulations. But there are important refinements and clarifications, and, of course, discussion of many of the SECURE 2.0 RMD changes that Congress passed after the Treasury released the proposed regulations. However, certain SECURE 2.0 changes are in the proposed regulations ... and the two sets of documents are intended to be read together. This article will highlight some of the most important changes."

COVID-19: Retirement Plan Questions and Answers (PDF)

30 pages. Topics: [1] Coronavirus-related distribution; [2] Coronavirus-related loan extensions; [3] Qualified individual/certification; [4] Spousal consent; [5] Safe harbor/QACA 401(k) suspensions; [6] Required Minimum Distribution relief; [7] Plan amendments: CARES and other; [8] Defined benefit funding relief; [9] Deadline extensions; [10] Partial plan terminations; [11] Interim valuations; [12] Termination/severance/separation; [13] Treatment of furloughed employees/service crediting; [14] SIMPLE plans; [15] Regular hardship Distributions; [16] FFCRA: compensation; [17] PPP forgivable small business loans; [18] Miscellaneous questions. (See also a small correction issued by the author pertaining to rollovers of Roth and after-tax contributions).  [Editor's note:  current as of Apr. 2, 2020; does not reflect guidance issued after that date, including IRS Notice 2020-23.]

Treasury Official Provides Favorable Interpretation of 401(k) Hardship Amendment Deadlines for Volume Submitter and Prototype Plans (PDF)

"Carol Weiser, Benefits Tax Counsel at the Treasury, discussed recent concerns about the deadline for preapproved plans to amend to conform to the recently published final hardship regulations. In effect, she said that the deadline is the due date of the employer's income tax return, plus extensions, if any, for the tax year which includes January 1, 2020. This is true even if the amendment was put into effect in 2019. This gives us more time than many of us had feared, based on a conservative reading of the final regulation."

Retirement Plan Relief for Hurricane Harvey (PDF)

"[IRS Announcement TX-2017-09] provides ... relief postponing numerous deadlines to January 31, 2019.... Announcement 2017-11 simplifies and streamlines loans and hardship distributions in the wake of Harvey.... The relief related to hardship distributions applies to plans that the law allows to provide for hardship distributions.... The documentation relief applies to all types of plans eligible to make plan loans, including qualified plans, 403(b) plans, and governmental 457(b) plans.... The Announcement does not provide any relief for 457(b) plans sponsored by tax-exempt organizations. While the Announcement does not expressly mention 409A plans, it is likely that the IRS would find that Harvey is an unforeseeable emergency permitting distributions under those plans.... The DOL issued a press release outlining several points relating to Hurricane Harvey[.]"

Can 'Open Multiple Employer Plans' Be Treated As Multiple Plans Under ERISA?

"Open MEPs have a real problem. There is no relationship between the employers other than their participation in the plan, and the cosponsors have little or no control over plan operations, selection of fiduciaries, or other matters. Frankly, that's part of the appeal of open MEPs: leave the tough decisions to the experts and cast your fiduciary responsibilities aside. And the DOL is not above looking at the way a MEP is marketed to determine that it is not sponsored by a bona fide employer association."

Perhaps the Judge Was Right About DOL Plan Asset Regulations

"A recent case from the United States District Court in Minnesota, Golden v. wwwrrr, has attracted a great deal of attention from the employee benefits community lately. It is the first case to discuss in detail the DOL's plan asset regulations on the deadlines for contributing employee deferrals."

Consequences of a Multiple Employer Plan Involving a Professional Employer Organization

"Under Rev Proc 2002-21, a PEO can choose to set up a multiple employer plan. This page has a series of Q&As explaining the workings, advantages, and disadvantages of a PEO multiple employer plan. Click on a question to view the answer."

A Commentary on Revenue Procedure 2002-21

"Revenue Procedure 2002-21 provides staffing firms who are sponsoring plans as a single employer with important relief from potential exclusive benefit rule problems. The relief comes with a price tag and a serious threat for those who don't comply. This article explains the Revenue Procedure in detail and comments on some of the questions it raises."

Attorney Publishes Annotated Version of Affiliated Service Group Regs, Highlighting Obsolete Parts

"The following is the complete text, including preamble, of the 1983 proposed regulations dealing with affiliated service groups. Although these regulations have never been finalized, taxpayers are promised that they can rely on them. Unfortunately, they have never been revised to deal with numerous changes in the Internal Revenue Code ... I have indicated those sections of the proposed regulations themselves (not including the preamble) which require modification."