On May 6, 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights published its final rule revamping the regulations implementing the nondiscrimination requirements under Affordable Care Act Section 1557
The Internal Revenue Service released Private Letter Ruling No. 202434006, providing a series of favorable rulings on a benefit design that permits employees to make an irrevocable annual election to have an employer contribution allocated to a 401(k) retirement plan, a retiree health reimbursement arrangement (HRA), a health savings account or an educational assistance program.
The Underperformance Litigation Scorecard surveys the results of motions to dismiss for failure to state a claim (MTDs) that were considered in recent retirement plan cases involving claims of investment underperformance. The chart addresses relevant orders on MTDs and any related appellate decisions that were issued from July 1, 2022 through July 31, 2024.
A memorandum, courtesy of Davis and Harman LLP, summarizing the new final and proposed RMD regulations from qualified plans and IRAs, including two charts summarizing the post-death RMD rules for individual accounts.
WASHINGTON, DC – "The latest Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) projections report shows the agency's single-employer program in robust health, while pension plan sponsors continue to toil under excessive insurance premiums," American Benefits Council President James A. Klein said today. "The $72 billion surplus plainly suggests a perfect opportunity to lower premiums for single-employer plans, thereby keeping well-funded plans in the system and inviting new plan sponsorship."
The U.S. Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued their long-awaited regulations on required minimum distributions (RMDs) from qualified plans and IRAs. The regulation package contains final regulations and proposed regulations.
On June 26, the Council provided a detailed response to an RFI from Senate HELP Committee Ranking Member Bill Cassidy, including a five-part plan to enhance gig worker retirement security for independent workers:
On June 20, 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Notice 2024-55, providing guidance on the SECURE 2.0 provisions creating: (a) emergency personal expense distributions and (b) domestic abuse victim distributions.
The Internal Revenue Service on June 17, 2024, issued a series of frequently asked questions (FAQs) about Code section 127 educational assistance programs (EAPs).
The American Benefits Council and 10 other organizations will host the ERISA 50th Anniversary Symposium and Gala on Thursday, September 12, 2024, in Washington, D.C.
"I write on behalf of the American Benefits Council (\"the Council\"), in connection with the solicitation of recommendations for the U.S. Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) 2024-2025 priority guidance plan (Notice 2024-28), to strongly urge that Treasury and the IRS take action to provide employers with the certainty and the path forward needed to enable them to access substantial welfare benefit fund assets – oftentimes hundreds of millions of dollars or more – to provide health and welfare benefits to employees and their beneficiaries."
