John Iekel

PBGC Issues 2022 Premium Rates, Extends Opinion Letter Pilot

By John Iekel 10/15/2021

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has issued the premium rates for 2022. In a separate action, it also has announced that it will be extending its coverage opinion letter pilot program. 2022 Premium Rates The PBGC determined the premium rates applicable for 2022 plan years in... READ MORE

PBGC Issues Guidance on ARPA’s Impact on ERISA Section 4010 Reporting

By John Iekel 10/15/2021

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) on Oct. 15 issued guidance on the effect of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) on annual financial and actuarial reporting under section 4010 of ERISA and part 4010 of PBGC’s regulations. The guidance is contained in Technical Update 21-1.... READ MORE

Knowledge About Social Security Could Use a Boost, Says Report

By John Iekel 10/13/2021

Americans are confident about their knowledge of Social Security, says a new report. But their confidence may be a little unwarranted: researchers also found that they know less than they think they do. In a recent study, Nationwide Retirement Institute found that while many people are very... READ MORE

IRS Issues Funding Relief for Multiemployer DB Plans

By John Iekel 10/13/2021

The IRS on Oct. 12 issued funding relief for multiemployer pension plans under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP). The relief is contained in Notice 2021-57. Notice 2021-57 provides guidance for sponsors of multiemployer DB plans on the elections under Sections 9701 and 9702 of the ARP,... READ MORE

Pension Risk Transfers Rebound

By John Iekel 10/8/2021

U.S. single-premium pension buyout sales in the second quarter of 2021 were double those of the same period last year, and pension risk transfers likely will remain robust, say recent reports. In the second quarter, reports the Secure Retirement Institute (SRI) in its U.S. Group Annuity Risk... READ MORE

Cybersecurity: Do More Than Simply React

By John Iekel 10/8/2021

Retirement plans are in cyber criminals’ sights, and it takes positive action to head off the threat, said experts in an Oct. 7 Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA) webinar. “The retirement plan community is a very attractive target” for cyber criminals, warned Tom Briggs, Divisional Sales... READ MORE

ARA Suggests EPCRS Be Modified to Permit Use of SCP for Missed Pre-Approved Plan Restatement Deadlines

By John Iekel 10/6/2021

The American Retirement Association in an Oct. 4, 2021 letter to the IRS has recommended that the IRS continue its efforts to promote plan sponsor compliance and reduce the burden of plan sponsorship by modifying the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS) to permit a sponsor that... READ MORE

Pension Finances a Poor Harvest in September

By John Iekel 10/5/2021

September may be harvest season, but the finances crop was sparse this year for pension plans, say new reports. October Three, which tracks two hypothetical defined benefit plans—one that is invested in a more traditional way and another invested in a conservative manner—reports that in September... READ MORE

Experts Offer Ideas on Improving Retirement Saving

By John Iekel 10/4/2021

While there is broad agreement that it is necessary to boost retirement savings, there is less uniformity of thought regarding how exactly to accomplish that. A panel of experts recently shared some ideas. “Building a Better Retirement System for all Americans,” a Brookings Institution webinar,... READ MORE

ARA Calls for Permanent Relief for Remote Witnessing Procedures

By John Iekel 10/4/2021

The American Retirement Association (ARA) has called on the IRS to make its temporary relief from the physical presence requirement for spousal consents permanent. In a Sept. 30 letter, the ARA and 15 other organizations tell the IRS that they “appreciate the relief and extensions the Service... READ MORE

IRS Updates Issue Snapshot on Participant Loans

By John Iekel 10/4/2021

The IRS on Sept. 28 updated the Issue Snapshot in which it discusses the laws and regulations governing plan loans. Many retirement plans make it possible for participants to take out loans against their retirement accounts, although plans are not required to do so, the IRS reminds. Qualified... READ MORE

SSA Streamlines Social Security Statements

By John Iekel 10/4/2021

The Social Security Administration (SSA) has updated the Social Security Statement, the report that conveys information regarding earnings and future Social Security benefits. The statement, available online through the My Social Security portal and by mail, is shorter, uses visuals and plain... READ MORE

Good News for Retirement Assets in Q2

By John Iekel 10/1/2021

Retirement assets in the United States grew in the second quarter of 2021, says a recently released report. According to the Investment Company Institute (ICI), retirement assets comprised 33% of all household assets in the United States. At the end of the second quarter, U.S. retirement assets... READ MORE

IRS Seeks to Change User Fees for Enrolled Agent and Enrolled Retirement Plan Agent Exams

By John Iekel 9/30/2021

The IRS is proposing changes to the user fees for enrolled agents (EAs). These changes would increase the user fees for each part of the special enrollment examination (SEE) for EAs, but also would remove the user fees for the SEE for enrolled retirement plan agents (ERPAs). The EA SEE The EA... READ MORE

PBGC Expands Info on Special Financial Assistance Interim Final Rule

By John Iekel 9/29/2021

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has expanded the information it makes available concerning the effects of its Special Financial Assistance (SFA) Interim Final Rule by adding a Q&A webpage. The PBGC issued the interim final rule on July 9. The rule implements a Special... READ MORE

Social Security Auxiliary Benefits Still Crucial, Says CRS

By John Iekel 9/27/2021

Social Security auxiliary benefits remain crucial in improving income security for surviving spouses and dependents, says a recently updated report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). “Social Security: Revisiting Benefits for Spouses and Survivors,” updated Sept. 21, 2021, says that... READ MORE

PBGC Multiemployer Program: Better News…For Now

By John Iekel 9/24/2021

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) reports that there is some good news for a change regarding its Multiemployer Program that provides financial assistance to multiemployer plans that become insolvent, to help them cover the cost of PBGC-guaranteed benefits to participants and the plan... READ MORE

Good News on PBGC Programs’ Solvency

By John Iekel 9/22/2021

In a marked turnaround, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) reports that the solvency of both its insurance programs—the single-employer program and the multiemployer program—is improving. The report marks a continuation of the growing solvency of the single-employer program, but a... READ MORE

No 2020 Form 5500 if Form 5558 Submitted for Retroactively Adopted Plans

By John Iekel 9/22/2021

There is no 2020 Form 5500 filing requirement for plan sponsors that already submitted a Form 5558 for plans retroactively adopted after the end of the plan year. The IRS issued a reminder of the relief on Sept. 22. The IRS also restated the clarification that plans retroactively adopted after... READ MORE

Social Security Deficit for the Rest of the Century, Says Report

By John Iekel 9/20/2021

Beginning this year, Social Security expenditures will exceed total revenues—and that trend will hold for the rest of the 21st Century, according to an updated report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). In its most recent Social Security Primer, updated Sept. 15, 2021, the CRS reports... READ MORE

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