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John Iekel

The IRS on March 29 in Notice 2021-21 announced that it is delaying the deadline by which 2020 contributions to IRAs and Roth IRAs must be made until May 17, 2021.  The IRS took the action in light of the March 13, 2020 emergency declaration issued by President Trump that said the COVID-19... READ MORE
The ink on the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), signed on March 11, is barely dry—but its effects are, and will be, far-reaching. Two recent blog entries zero in on some of the ways it will affect private-sector defined benefit plans, including funding relief.  Discount Rates Pre-ARPA,... READ MORE
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has outlined impending changes related to premium filings involving software developed in the private sector. The changes will be implemented when the new version of the My Plan Administration Account (My PAA) premium filing application is launched on... READ MORE
Mistakes involving eligible compensation are often at the center of compliance problems. A recent blog entry offers suggestions on ways to avoid such errors.  So common are mistakes concerning eligible compensation, reports Cassell Plan Audits, that they saw no other kind of error as often in the... READ MORE
Many proposals have been floated to address the long-term solvency of the Social Security system, among them raising the full retirement age (FRA) so that benefits are claimed later in life. But while that may help the system, Social Security recipients may not consider it as great a boon, says a... READ MORE
Proliferation of technological applications and the need to increase retirement plan participation and savings. Seems like a match made in heaven. A panel of experts recently discussed how that pairing is faring and how it can function better.    In “Better Technology, Better Retirement Savings:... READ MORE
There is strong support for all workers having access to a pension plan, a recent study has found.  Dan Doonan and Kelly Kenneally, who respectively serve as National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS) Executive Director and communications counsel, report in the new NIRS issue brief on... READ MORE
The pandemic’s ill effects go beyond the obvious and literal, and include its impact on employment—which can affect retirement readiness. A recent study finds that the pandemic is pushing many faculty members at institutions of higher learning to consider retiring early, which would have an effect... READ MORE
Remember the required minimum distribution (RMD) rules and the recent changes that have been made to them, the IRS reminds. It issued the reminder in a March 16 news release that highlights those changes.  SECURE Act The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act changed... READ MORE
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has added its voice to those that highlight the critical importance of cybersecurity, but they go one better. In a new report, they call on the Department of Labor (DOL) to set minimum standards for mitigating cybersecurity risks and to formally state... READ MORE
Plan administrators and sponsors have some work to do in educating plan participants, a recent study indicates. Researchers add awareness of fees to the curriculum.  One-quarter of those surveyed do not know how much they pay in fees, found investment firm Rebalance.  But that’s just the tip of... READ MORE
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) intends to ask the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to extend its approval of the PBGC’s collection of information to enable it to find participants and beneficiaries and pay benefits to them.  The PBGC had sought OMB approval in August 2020 for... READ MORE
Punxsutawney Phil may have predicted six more weeks of cold at the outset of February, but he was dead wrong regarding the fortunes of the 100 largest private-sector pension plans, according to a recent report. They had a good month, much like the hypothetical plans monitored regularly in two other... READ MORE
There is concern regarding the effect of the pandemic on retirement security, and yet some of the more dire expectations have not come to fruition. That was the message of co-authors of a recently released report on retirement security, who offered a closer look at their findings.  In a Feb. 25... READ MORE
Maybe much of the country was encased in snow, ice and a deep freeze this February—but the environment for pension plans was red hot, recent reports reveal.  “Pension finance enjoyed its best month in more than three years in February,” said actuarial firm October Three in its February 2021... READ MORE
CalSavers, the retirement plan the state of California provides for employees whose employers do not provide one, showed growth in many areas in February.  The CalSavers Retirement Savings Board reports that the number of funded saver accounts, total saver assets, employer registrations and the... READ MORE
Virginia appears to be poised to become the next state to offer a state-run retirement plan for employees whose employers do not offer one. Legislation that would create one in the Old Dominion is headed for the desk of Gov. Ralph Northam (D), who has indicated that he will sign it into law.   The... READ MORE
The Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) on Feb. 26 issued guidance on the duration of the COVID-19-related relief provided by Disaster Relief Notice 2020-01 and a joint notice, the Notice of Extension of Certain Timeframes for Employee Benefit Plans,... READ MORE
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) on Feb. 25 announced that its Comprehensive Premium Filing Instructions for 2021 Plan Years are now available. The agency has made them available on its website after approval by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).  What’s New  The filing... READ MORE
Concern about retirement and paying for it cuts across sharp societal divisions and has been heightened by the pandemic; nonetheless, confidence regarding some saving vehicles persists, says a recent report.  In the National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS) study “Retirement Insecurity 2021... READ MORE

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