As explained in the September 2023 edition of The Speed Reader, in the IRS’s September 1, 2023 edition of its Employee Plans News publication, the IRS addressed a programming issue in its system that receives Forms 8955-SSA. As a result of that issue, the IRS distributed CP 283-C penalty notices to many plan sponsors that […]

On February 13, 2024, the DOL posted an article to its website to summarize its 2023 activity regarding employee benefit plans. The majority of its $1.4 billion in recoveries consisted of the following: The article also states that in addition to those monetary recoveries, during 2023 the DOL “made a difference for current and future […]

Given the continuing wave of ERISA litigation, this article has become a mainstay of The Speed Reader. A sample of recent cases is provided below.  The most common type of ERISA case for approximately the past seventeen years involves retirement plan participants’ allegations that plan fiduciaries caused participants to pay excessive recordkeeping and investment fees […]

On February 7, 2024, the IRS published its Employee Plans News newsletter to explain that the IRS has started the second phase of its pilot Pre-Examination Retirement Plan Compliance Program (the “Program”). Under the Program, the IRS notifies plan sponsors via a letter that their retirement plan has been selected. The letter gives plan sponsors […]

On January 18, 2024, the DOL issued a proposed regulation addressing the following DOL concerns: In connection with those concerns, a niche has recently developed in the retirement plan industry. Specifically, several companies now serve as what the DOL calls an “automatic portability provider.” In that role, those companies facilitate “automatic portability transactions.” Those transactions […]

On December 20, 2023, the IRS published Notice 2024-2 (the “Notice”) to help explain various provisions of the voluminous law known as SECURE 2.0. (The February 2023 edition of The Speed Reader provided an overview of dozens of SECURE 2.0 provisions, and I continue to provide training for clients in this regard.) This article summarizes […]

IRS Issues Guidance Regarding Long-Term, Part-Time Employees:  As background, the so-called SECURE 1.0 Act provided that if a part-time employee who is at least 21 completes at least 500 hours of service for three consecutive years, then he or she must be allowed to make elective deferrals to his or her employer’s 401(k) plan. The […]

As the end of 2023 quickly approaches, retirement plan sponsors should promptly consider several important potential tasks. Examples include the following: The failure to comply with most of those requirements can be addressed under the IRS’s formal correction programs for retirement plans.

On November 1, 2023, via Notice 2023-75, the IRS announced the effect of cost-of-living adjustments on certain 2024 dollar limits for various retirement plans (e.g., 401(k) plans and 403(b) plans). As expected, several limits will increase for 2024 because of inflation, as the increase in the cost-of-living index met statutory thresholds that triggered their adjustment […]

This guidance, issued on October 6, 2023 as Advisory Opinion 2023-01A, responds to Citigroup Inc.’s (“Citigroup’s”) request for the DOL’s views on Citigroup’s Action for Racial Equity Asset Manager Program (the “Program”). Under the Program: Citigroup will pay all or some portion of the investment management fees charged by “Diverse Managers” who are retained by […]