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Defined Contribution Plans
In a White House blog entry posted late on April 26, National Economic Council Director and chief economic advisor to President Trump Gary Cohn reiterated his earlier comments that retirement savings will be protected as tax reform proceeds.In the entry, “President Trump Proposed a Massive Tax Cut...
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Unveiling President Trump’s tax reform proposal on April 26, Gary Cohn, Trump’s chief economic advisor and director of the National Economic Council, said that “retirement savings will be protected.”While that was immediately reassuring to those concerned that this version of tax reform would...
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A recent article in the Wall Street Journal cautions: “Grab Your Pitchforks, Your 401(k) May Need Defending From Congress.”The article (subscription required) covers ground we have heard for months now — that “The lucky participants in one of the best retirement plans around are coming after yours...
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Despite the importance of educating 401(k) plan participants to prepare for their retirement by investing well, most programs that purport to do that fail in the attempt, says a recent blog entry.In “The Confident Participant: How To Create An Effective 401k Education Program,” a Penchecks Blog...
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The IRS on April 18 announced that it has extended the deadline for certain employers to adopt a defined contribution pre-approved plan and apply for a determination letter, if permissible, from Sunday, April 30, 2017, to Monday, May 1, 2017.Notice 2016-3 had extended the deadline from April 30,...
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A new survey finds that demographic shifts (yes, Millennials) and employee expectations (gig, anyone?) are redefining the workplace — and benefit priorities for plan sponsors. Guess what hasn’t changed?Asked to rank their top benefits priorities, more employers (83%) chose retaining employees as an...
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“I would encourage caution among policymakers when considering dramatic changes to retirement policy for tax policy purposes,” former Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND) told the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs’ Subcommittee on Economic Policy on April 5.“As tax reform discussions...
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With health care reform off the table (at least for the moment), Congress will now turn to… tax reform.Over the weekend, House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) said he aims to move a tax reform bill through his committee this spring. According to Reuters, Brady said he...
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Tax-exempt organizations, governmental employers and churches have different types of options available in order to allow their employees to save for retirement. How do these entities know which option(s) to choose? This question and more will be covered in detail at the ASPPA Eastern Regional...
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Some plan fiduciaries contend that passively managed funds allow one to avoid ERISA liability. But are they a panacea? A recently released white paper suggests they are not.In “Actively Managed Funds Remain Appropriate Investment Options For 401(k) Plans,” a paper by Stephen M. Saxon and Jason H....
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A new tax reform proposal has surfaced that would impose a 15% tax on retirement accounts.More specifically, the proposal includes a new 15% tax on interest paid to tax-exempt institutions and retirement plans.The corporate tax reform plan, by Alan Viard of the American Enterprise Institute and...
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The so-called “Trump bump” looks to be bringing good news to those 401(k) balances.For the month, the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) found that the average account balance for younger (25-34), less tenured (1-4 years) workers surged by 8.0% (that’s not a typo) in February,...
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The IRS has expanded the applicability of the examination guidelines relevant to hardship distributions from 401(k)s. On March 7 the IRS Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division issued a memorandum that sets forth substantiation guidelines for Employee Plans (EP) Examinations employees to use in...
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Much of the preparation for the Labor Department’s fiduciary regulation has involved a focus on rollover advice — but it now looks like the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is gearing up a larger focus as well.A new blog post from noted ERISA attorney Fred Reish reminds that the SEC’s...
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Drains on retirement income abound. That’s natural in the course of daily life. But one of them — long-term disability — is largely unheralded, despite its being less than rare, argues a recent analysis.In “Addressing the Risk of Long-Term Disability on Retirement Income,” an article appearing in...
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The so-called “Trump bump” looks to be bringing good news to those 401(k) balances.For the month, the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) found that the average account balance for younger (25-34), less tenured (1-4 years) workers surged by 8.0% (that’s not a typo) in February,...
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There’s strong support for employer involvement in facilitating retirement saving. Not only that, a healthy majority of workers at employers that do not offer a retirement plan would save for retirement if they were given access to a plan, says a recent study.In “Workers and Retirement Programs:...
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Timing, it is said, is everything. If that’s the case, financial wellness may offer yet more proof of the validity of that premise. Recent studies indicate that employers are increasingly interested in financial wellness — and that it can’t come soon enough.So what exactly is financial wellness?...
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U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) has introduced bipartisan legislation to make it easier for small businesses to offer retirement benefits to employees. It’s not the first time Buchanan has done so; he introduced an earlier iteration in the waning days of the 114th Congress in December 2016.H.R....
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U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) has introduced bipartisan legislation to make it easier for small businesses to offer retirement benefits to employees. It’s not the first time Buchanan has done so; he introduced an earlier iteration in the waning days of the 114th Congress in December 2016.H.R....
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