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21Apr

FLASHPOINT: WHAT PLAN SPONSORS SHOULD KNOW ABOUT CARES

The attached white paper by Ilene Ferenczy was commissioned by CUNA Mutual Group to help explain the advantages to both companies and their employees of the retirement plan provisions in CARES.  The article also discusses some of the ways in which sponsors can reduce or eliminate 2020 contribution obligations during this time of economic uncertainty. […]
14Apr

FLASHPOINT: THE CARES ACT: DO WE HAVE TO?

Much of the confusion around the CARES Act (“CARES” or the “Act”) centers on what is mandatory and what is voluntary.  This has produced a lot of controversy, mostly because CARES is not written in a manner that directly addresses that key question. For those of you who are in the retirement plan business, the […]
27Mar

FLASHPOINT: CORONAVIRUS RELIEF FROM CONGRESS – THE CARES ACT

On Friday, March 27, 2020, the House passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), a massive relief bill for those suffering as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic, which was passed earlier in the week by the Senate.  As the bill is the result of significant negotiations between both parties and […]
02Mar

FLASHPOINT: IRS REPRESENTATIVES SAY NO IMMINENT VCP CHANGES

IRS representatives attending the TE/GE Council meetings this week have confirmed that there is no significant action being taken by the IRS at this time to modify the Voluntary Correction Program (VCP) program. On February 25, 2020, the American Retirement Association (ARA) reported in its online newsletters that, according to an IRS whistleblower, the IRS […]
06Nov

FLASHPOINT: IRS ANNOUNCES 2020 COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENTS TO VARIOUS RETIREMENT PLAN LIMITS (AND SOME COMMENTS ON THE HARDSHIP REGULATIONS)

The IRS just released the cost of living adjustments for various retirement plan limitations that will take effect on January 1, 2020. Many of the limits will be increasing for 2020. The key limits that increased (shown below in bold italics) include the compensation that is taken into account for plan purposes, the salary deferral […]
30Jul

FLASHPOINT: THE DOL FINALIZES MEP REGULATIONS

As discussed in our FlashPoint dated October 25, 2018, available here: https://ferenczylaw.com/flashpoint-the-new-mep-meh-proposed-regulations/, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) previously introduced proposed regulations relating to certain defined contribution multiple employer plans (“MEPs”). These regulations were issued in final form on July 29, 2019 (the “Regulation”), and offer the ability of “bona fide” organizations, associations, and professional […]
26Jul

FLASHPOINT: IF YOU SPONSOR A MEP: YOU MAY NEED TO ACT BEFORE OCTOBER 15!

The Department of Labor (DOL) issued a Field Assistance Bulletin (FAB 2019-01) on July 24, 2019, relating to Form 5500 filings for Multiple Employer Plans (MEPs). If you sponsor or administer MEPs, it is likely that this FAB applies to you. As it warns of possible compliance issues and grants transitional relief, you need to […]
17Jul

FLASHPOINT: MID-SUMMER UPDATE: MORE ABOUT REG BI AND PREVENTING MEP SPOILAGE FROM THE ONE BAD APPLE

By S. Derrin Watson, Of Counsel More About Reg BI: Identifying, Disclosing, Mitigating, and Eliminating Conflicts of Interest In our earlier Flash, “Regulation Best Interest and More,” we provided an overview of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) recently finalized Regulation Best Interest (“Reg BI”), which impacts transactions between broker-dealers and retail customers, including retirement […]
11Jun

FLASHPOINT: REGULATION BEST INTEREST AND MORE … A PRESENT TO INVESTORS FROM THE SEC

By S. Derrin Watson, Of Counsel The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has published a package of rules and interpretations (“SEC Rule”) dealing with the duties broker-dealers and investment advisors owe to their customers, including individual plan participants. The SEC originally proposed the package in April 2018, weeks after the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals […]