John Iekel
By John Iekel 10/19/2021
The American Retirement Association has suggested numerous improvements to the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS).
In an Oct. 14, 2021 comment letter responding to an IRS request (in Revenue Procedure 2021-30) for comments on improving the EPCRS program, the ARA thanked the IRS...
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By John Iekel 10/11/2021
A plan administrator can be required to produce a recording or a transcript of a conversation between a claimant and plan representative, the Department of Labor has indicated in a recent Information Letter.
In the letter, Eric Berger, Acting Chief of the Division of Coverage, Reporting and...
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By John Iekel 10/8/2021
Retirement plans are in cyber criminals’ sights, and it takes positive action to head off the threat, said experts in an Oct. 7 Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA) webinar.
“The retirement plan community is a very attractive target” for cyber criminals, warned Tom Briggs, Divisional Sales...
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By John Iekel 10/6/2021
The American Retirement Association in an Oct. 4, 2021 letter to the IRS has recommended that the IRS continue its efforts to promote plan sponsor compliance and reduce the burden of plan sponsorship by modifying the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS) to permit a sponsor that...
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By John Iekel 10/4/2021
While there is broad agreement that it is necessary to boost retirement savings, there is less uniformity of thought regarding how exactly to accomplish that. A panel of experts recently shared some ideas.
“Building a Better Retirement System for all Americans,” a Brookings Institution webinar,...
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By John Iekel 10/4/2021
The American Retirement Association (ARA) has called on the IRS to make its temporary relief from the physical presence requirement for spousal consents permanent.
In a Sept. 30 letter, the ARA and 15 other organizations tell the IRS that they “appreciate the relief and extensions the Service...
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By John Iekel 10/4/2021
The IRS on Sept. 28 updated the Issue Snapshot in which it discusses the laws and regulations governing plan loans.
Many retirement plans make it possible for participants to take out loans against their retirement accounts, although plans are not required to do so, the IRS reminds. Qualified...
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By John Iekel 10/4/2021
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has updated the Social Security Statement, the report that conveys information regarding earnings and future Social Security benefits.
The statement, available online through the My Social Security portal and by mail, is shorter, uses visuals and plain...
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By John Iekel 10/1/2021
Retirement assets in the United States grew in the second quarter of 2021, says a recently released report.
According to the Investment Company Institute (ICI), retirement assets comprised 33% of all household assets in the United States. At the end of the second quarter, U.S. retirement assets...
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By John Iekel 9/27/2021
Social Security auxiliary benefits remain crucial in improving income security for surviving spouses and dependents, says a recently updated report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
“Social Security: Revisiting Benefits for Spouses and Survivors,” updated Sept. 21, 2021, says that...
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By John Iekel 9/23/2021
The 2021 NTSA Summit provided a unique opportunity for industry experts to provide their insights on issues relevant to the NTSA community. Following is a look at our news coverage of the Summit.
Education Market in Transformation
The education sector of the retirement plan market is in a period...
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By John Iekel 9/20/2021
Beginning this year, Social Security expenditures will exceed total revenues—and that trend will hold for the rest of the 21st Century, according to an updated report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
In its most recent Social Security Primer, updated Sept. 15, 2021, the CRS reports...
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By John Iekel 9/17/2021
A strong majority of parents in a recent study expressed willingness to use their retirement savings to finance their children’s college education.
According to Lending Tree, 68% of parents in a survey of 1,000 parents of children under age 18 would take money from their retirement savings to...
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By John Iekel 9/16/2021
While it is more common than not for an employer to offer a retirement plan, still there are some that do not. The IRS offers information and materials for those that are considering offering a retirement plan—which, in turn, can be helpful information to provide potential clients and customers...
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By John Iekel 8/27/2021
The IRS has updated the information it provides concerning an aspect of aggregation of a 403(b) plan. Specifically, it addresses the application of Code Section 415(c) when a 403(b) plan is aggregated with a 401(a) plan.
Section 415(c)
In this Issue Snapshot, the IRS notes that Section 403(b)...
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By John Iekel 8/27/2021
Most employers in the Beaver State that do not offer a retirement plan must register with OregonSaves, the state-run retirement program. So how do things stand with the program in the last year?
Registrations and Assets
The program’s phased-in registration deadlines were Nov. 15, 2017 for...
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By John Iekel 8/27/2021
Nearly 8 in 10 employers did not report any out-of-pocket (OOP) costs associated with participating in the program.
Of course, one of the selling points of OregonSaves, the state-run retirement program for employees whose employers do not offer one, is that it spares employers the administrative...
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By John Iekel 8/27/2021
The increased prevalence of defined contribution plans has heightened the importance of portability and the rules and circumstances affecting it, says a recent analysis that addresses common questions that arise as a result.
In “In-Plan Guaranteed Lifetime Income: Debunking Portability Myths,”...
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By John Iekel 8/27/2021
The IRS has updated the information it provides concerning written plan requirements for 457(b) deferred compensation plans.
Generally, for years beginning after Dec. 31, 2001, an eligible deferred compensation plan under Code Section 457(b) must meet written plan document requirements.
In its...
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By John Iekel 8/27/2021
The pandemic has had a variety of symptoms and effects beyond the obvious, and one of them is the stress employees in the education sector experience, says a recent report.
The Mission Square Research Institute, formerly the Center for State and Local Government Excellence, reports that there is...
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