Defined Contribution Plans

House and Senate Democrats quietly reintroduced bills on July 27 to require spousal consent for 401(k) distributions. H.R.5060 and S.2627 would “amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to provide for greater spousal protection under defined contribution plans, and for other... READ MORE

As Generation X becomes the country’s next generation on deck to retire, a new report finds that many of those born between 1965 and 1980 are woefully unprepared for retirement.   When looking at median retirement savings levels for Gen X, the bottom half of earners has only a few thousand dollars... READ MORE

The IRS on July 14 made multiple announcements concerning required minimum distributions (RMDs), including relief concerning RMDs and rollovers in accordance with Section 107 of SECURE 2.0. The guidance is contained in Notice 2023-54.  Transition Relief  The IRS says that after SECURE 2.0 was... READ MORE

Hope your summer is off to a fun start. The end of June and beginning of July period truly feels like my one break during the busy year, even as the storm of September is on the horizon. First up this month, the ASEA Monthly staff presents its write-up of David Kupstas’ recent presentation—I  the... READ MORE

The lack of guidance to help implement a major new retirement plan design requirement contained in the new SECURE 2.0 Act is causing increased heartburn in the retirement plan stakeholder community.    Over 200 organizations recently wrote a letter to the four leaders of the tax law writing... READ MORE

Another target-date fund family has been…targeted…in a fiduciary breach suit that claims plan fiduciaries failed to prudently review—and remove—underperforming target-date funds. The target-date funds in question this time are the JPMorgan SmartRetirement series, while the plans in question are... READ MORE

For those born between 1964 and 1978, planning for the new retirement reality is particularly challenging.   Unlike Millennials, who still have plenty of time to save before retirement, and Boomers, many of whom are already in retirement, Generation X is realizing that retirement is getting closer... READ MORE

We are all painfully aware of the complexity of the tax and labor laws we work with. It is, therefore, no surprise that Congress makes drafting mistakes when amending these laws—particularly with voluminous and technical laws, such as the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022. Unfortunately, once enacted, many... READ MORE

Auto-enrollment can dramatically increase participation in a retirement plan—however, the degree to which it is beneficial varies depending on which party one considers, says a recent study. Richard Patterson, an Assistant Professor and a Director of Long-Run Research in the Office of Economic and... READ MORE