Earlier this month, the Department of Labor proposed a significant prohibited transaction exemption that would allow a plan sponsor’s captive insurer to reinsure pension annuity risks. Proposed Exemption From Certain...more
On August 11, 2023, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a Request for Information (“RFI”) asking for stakeholder input on a number of regulatory issues related to the SECURE 2.0 Act. The wide-ranging RFI seeks feedback on...more
Earlier this month, the IRS announced a new pilot program under which retirement plan sponsors will be given 90-days notice that their plan has been selected for examination which they may be able to largely avoid by taking...more
A recent district court decision improperly (in our view) restricts the ability of plan sponsors to modify participant distribution elections after normal retirement age. We describe the decision, and offer some...more
The Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently issued an information letter, DOL Information Letter 06-14-2021 (the “Letter”), addressing the question of whether the ERISA claim regulation requires production of an audio recording...more
On April 27, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued informal guidance on partial plan terminations as part of the COVID-related tax relief provided under The Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 (the...more
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 amended long-standing periodic pension default withholding where a Form W-4P (or its substitute) is not received from the payee. Effective January 1, 2018, the Act replaced the “married with...more
IRS Notice 2020-68 (Notice) provides the first round of guidance on a number of provisions under the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act) and the Bipartisan American Miners Act of...more
9/22/2020
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
457(b) Plans ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Distribution Rules ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Contributions ,
IRS ,
Pensions ,
SECURE Act ,
Tax Planning ,
Vesting
On July 31, the IRS issued Notice 2020-61 (the “Notice”) to provide guidance related to the special funding rules applicable to single-employer defined benefit pension plans under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic...more
8/17/2020
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
CARES Act ,
Deadlines ,
Defined Benefit Plans ,
Employee Benefits ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Form 5500 ,
Guidance Update ,
IRS ,
Notification Requirements ,
PBGC ,
Retirement Plan
On June 29, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2020-52, which provides guidance and temporary relief for employers who may choose to reduce contributions during 2020 to their safe harbor 401(k) or 403(b) plan....more
On June 23, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2020-51, which provides much-needed guidance on how defined contribution plans (including 403(b) and governmental 457(b) plans) and IRAs implement the waiver of...more
6/26/2020
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
CARES Act ,
Defined Contribution Plans ,
Employee Benefits ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
IRA Rollovers ,
IRS ,
Required Minimum Distributions ,
Retirement ,
Retirement Plan ,
Retirement Plan Providers ,
SECURE Act
The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (the “SECURE Act”), the largest package of retirement system reforms in over a decade, was enacted on December 20, 2019. Many of the provisions in the...more
1/23/2020
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Contributions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Final Rules ,
Form 5500 ,
Health and Welfare Plans ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
New Legislation ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
PCORI ,
QACA ,
Required Minimum Distributions ,
Retirement ,
Retirement Plan ,
Safe Harbors ,
SECURE Act ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Planning ,
Unrelated Business Income Tax
On Thursday, December 19, the Senate passed two spending bills to fund the government through September 30, 2020, one of which (H.R. 1865, the “Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020” or the “Act”) contains the...more
1/10/2020
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
457(b) Plans ,
529 Plans ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Cadillac Tax ,
Church Plans ,
Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Defined Benefit Plans ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Lifetime Income Disclosures ,
Medicare ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
Part-Time Employees ,
PBGC ,
Penalties ,
Plan Administrators ,
Pooled Registration Pension Plans ,
Portability ,
Prescription Drug Coverage ,
QACA ,
Repeal ,
Required Minimum Distributions ,
Retirement Plan ,
Retirement Plan Providers ,
Safe Harbors ,
SECURE Act ,
Small Employer Plans (SEPs)