PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Big Changes to Catch-Up Contributions in 2025
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - New IRS Guidance on SECURE 2.0 Act Student Loan Employer Contributions
#WorkforceWednesday: SECURE Act 2.0 - What 401(k) Plan Sponsors Need to Know - Employment Law This Week®
ROCK OF AGES video
Three Timely Benefits Items Everyone Should Know
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Student Loan Benefits
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - New Hardship Distribution Regulations for 401(k) Plans
One topic that frequently arises is whether a qualified governmental plan, under Internal Revenue Code (Code) Section 401(a), may allow an employee the election on whether to contribute at different pretax employee...more
Employers that do not timely deposit participant deferrals and loan contributions to their employer sponsored retirement plans can be subject to Department of Labor (DOL) penalties for breaching their fiduciary duties....more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced (see Revenue Procedure 2025-19) cost-of-living adjustments to the applicable dollar limits for health savings accounts (HSAs), high-deductible health plans (HDHPs), and...more
Starting July 1, 2026, Maryland’s Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) law will provide up to twelve weeks of paid family and medical leave, with the possibility of an additional twelve weeks of paid parental leave,...more
Maryland’s Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) law will provide up to twelve weeks of paid family and medical leave, with the possibility of an additional twelve weeks of paid parental leave, through a state-run...more
Canada’s federal government announced it intends to remove the “30 percent rule” for investments by domestic pension funds in Canadian entities. The change is part of the Fall Economic Statement that was released on December...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued interim guidance on the SECURE 2.0 Act provision permitting employers to make matching contributions based on employees’ qualified student loan repayments (“QSLP”) under 401(k),...more
A much-used but often confusing element of governmental retirement plans are “pick up plans,” where an employer pays -- or “picks up” -- an employee’s required contribution under the State’s public employment retirement...more
Employees increasingly request (and expect) choice in their benefits. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently released Private Letter Ruling 202434006 (PLR), which approved an employer's program allowing employees to...more
Last year, we alerted you to the filing of several class action lawsuits alleging that plan fiduciaries violated their duties of prudence and loyalty under Title I of ERISA by using forfeitures to reduce employer...more
Until recently, employer matching contributions under qualified plans were required to be conditioned solely upon employee contributions made to the plan. However, one of the many changes enacted by the Consolidated...more
On August 19, 2024, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2024-63 (the “Notice”) for retirement plan sponsors that provide, or may wish to provide, matching contributions based on qualified student loan payments...more
IRS Notice 2024-63, published Aug. 19, 2024, provides interim guidance for plan sponsors on the SECURE 2.0 Act provision permitting employers to offer matching contributions to their retirement plans — including 401(k) and...more
Conflicting orders on motions to dismiss from two California courts foreshadow issues for a new theory of ERISA liability. Employers have faced a recent wave of novel ERISA class actions that challenge the reallocation of...more
Maryland Governor Wes Moore has signed a bill that further delays implementation of the Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program (also known as the Time to Care Act). In 2022, the Maryland General Assembly passed the...more
One of the most basic duties of a defined contribution plan sponsor is to ensure that that there is no delay and participants’ salary deferral elections are correctly and timely deposited into the retirement plan. Not only is...more
No matter the size of your organization, at some point in time employees leave. As we noted previously, it behooves human resources and other departments to provide departing employees with an exit letter that includes...more
On December 20, 2023, the IRS issued Notice 2024-2, which provides question-and-answer guidance on various aspects of the SECURE 2.0 Act. This post focuses on the ability to make employer contributions (match or nonelective)...more
The IRS issued Notice 2024-2 (Notice), which provides guidance in a question and answer format concerning certain provisions of the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0). The following is a brief overview of key provisions in...more
Total student loan debt in the country is estimated to be over $1.7 trillion. These loans are often a great source of worry for employees and their families. Student loan repayments may be one of the largest regular...more
In the final quarter of 2023, South Africa issued guidance on the new two-pot retirement system, Peru launched a new holiday starting in 2024, Singapore doubled its paid paternity leave, and Costa Rica reformed its pension...more
All Canadian employers other than those in Quebec are required to: Deduct Canada Pension Plan (CPP) contributions from their employees’ pensionable earnings if the employee meets certain conditions; Contribute an...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) gave plan sponsors an early Christmas gift with the release of new guidance late last year addressing several key provisions contained in SECURE 2.0. A welcome portion of the notice was...more
The IRS and the U.S. Department of Labor recently issued guidance which addresses the newly created Pension Linked Emergency Savings Accounts (“PLESAs”), a novel plan design option authorized under SECURE 2.0. PLESAs are...more
With required contributions to the Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) Fund starting this fall, Maryland employers should make sure employees have advance notice of the new deductions they will be seeing from their...more