The landmark legislation aimed at modernizing the retirement system, SECURE 2.0, has finally arrived, and with its 90 provisions, there is a lot to unpack.
On Wednesday, January 4, 2023 at 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. ET, Groom...more
12/30/2022
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Deadlines ,
Employee Benefits ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Retirement ,
Retirement Funds ,
Retirement Plan ,
Retirement Plan Providers ,
SECURE Act ,
Webinars
Yesterday, the Senate passed the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (the “CAA”) to fund the government through September 30, 2023. Division T of the legislation is the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0”), which builds...more
The Department of Labor (the “DOL”) recently finalized a regulation amending the rules under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), related to the selection of plan investments and the...more
A September 27, 2022 decision by the Southern District of New York addresses several key theories recently advanced by the plaintiffs’ bar in ERISA-based lawsuits against plan service providers. In Carfora v. TIAA, S.D.N.Y....more
The Department of Labor (“DOL”) recently proposed an amendment (the “Proposed Amendment”) to Prohibited Transaction Class Exemption 84-14 (the “QPAM Exemption”). The Proposed Amendment would...more
In June, the Senate committees with jurisdiction over retirement approved their versions of retirement reform legislation. The Senate bills are the Enhancing American Retirement Now Act (unnumbered, the “EARN Act”), which was...more
On July 8, 2022 the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (“PBGC”) published its final regulation implementing the Special Financial Assistance (“SFA”) program for multiemployer pension plans under the American Rescue Plan Act...more
On March 29, the House overwhelmingly passed H.R. 2954, the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2021 (“SSRA”), by a vote of 414-5. This alert contains Groom’s summary of the legislation as passed by the chamber....more
Over the decades since the enactment of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), many plan sponsors, service providers, and industry groups have applied for, and been granted, prohibited...more
One day after President Biden’s Executive Order on Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets, the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (“DOL”) issued Compliance Assistance Release No....more
On December 29, 2021, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) released a final form revisions (“Final Revisions”) modifying the Form 5500 Annual Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan (“Form 5500”) for benefit plans. 86 Fed. Reg....more
When Congress first passed legislation to create “cash or deferred arrangements” – the original term for 401(k) plans – few people could have predicted that, over the course of a single generation, DC plans would come to...more
On December 21, 2021, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a statement concerning the investment in private equity by ERISA-covered defined contribution plans (the “Statement,” available here). The Statement is intended to...more
On October 14, 2021, the Department of Labor (the “DOL”) published a proposed regulation, “Prudence and Loyalty in Selecting Plan Investments and Exercising Shareholder Rights” (86 Fed. Reg. 57272, the “Proposed Rule”). The...more
The Department of Labor (“DOL”) is relying on a recent Supreme Court decision to effectively extend the amount of time the agency has to bring fiduciary breach claims. DOL investigations often last years, so it is common for...more
The Department of Labor (“DOL”), Department of the Treasury (the “Treasury”), and Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (“PBGC”) (collectively, the “Agencies”) recently released a notice of proposed revisions to the Form 5500...more
On July 26, 2021, the Department of Labor ( “DOL”) issued a brief set of Frequently Asked Questions (the “FAQs”) clarifying certain issues related to the interim final rule (the “IFR”) implementing the lifetime income...more
Groom has prepared a comparison here of the provisions in two key retirement bills being considered by the 117th Congress: the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2021 (H.R. 2954, “SECURE 2.0”) and the Retirement Security &...more
Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2021 as marked up by the House Ways and Means Committee on May 5, 2021....more
The House Ways and Means Committee has just approved the bipartisan Securing a Strong Retirement Act, often referred to as SECURE 2.0. Groom’s policy team will be hosting a brief discussion of the bill as well as the...more
5/7/2021
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Employee Benefits ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
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On April 13, 2021, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a set of Frequently Asked Questions (“FAQs”) on the DOL’s new class exemption for the provision of investment advice, known as Prohibited Transaction Exemption (“PTE”)...more
On February 8, 2021, in the latest turn in the saga of a closely-watched ERISA cybersecurity lawsuit, the Northern District of Illinois again dismissed fiduciary breach claims against Abbott Laboratories (“Abbott Labs”)...more
On March 10, 2021, the House of Representatives passed the version of the American Rescue Plan Act (H.R. 1319, the “Act”) previously passed by the Senate on March 6. President Biden is expected to sign the legislation on...more
3/12/2021
/ Affordable Care Act ,
CARES Act ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Flexible Spending Accounts ,
Health Insurance ,
Multiemployer Plan ,
Paid Leave ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Leave ,
Tax Credits
On March 10, 2021, the House of Representatives passed the American Rescue Plan Act (H.R. 1319, the “Act”), sending it to President Biden for his signature later this week. The Act includes a number of significant health,...more
3/11/2021
/ Affordable Care Act ,
American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Biden Administration ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Executive Compensation ,
Health and Welfare Plans ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Plan Sponsors ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Multiemployer Plan ,
Pensions ,
Relief Measures ,
Section 162(m) ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Planning ,
Webinars
On February 12, 2021, the House Ways and Means Committee approved key changes to the pension funding rules as part of its portion of COVID-19 budget reconciliation legislation pursuant to the budget resolution (S. Con. Res....more