DOL

Final regulations entitled Independent Contractor Status Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, issued by the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, have been received by the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The OMB provides final review of regulatory guidance before its official release. Generally, only if found to be in need of revision, is such guidance returned to the originating agency for changes. Unless this proves to be the case, official release of these final regulations could be imminent.

Appearing in today’s Federal Register is Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) Prohibited Transaction Exemption (PTE) 2020-02, which will provide guidance to investment advisors who counsel retirement and other investors. As noted in an Ascensus December 16 announcement, the guidance completes a process that began with 2016 regulations and exemptions issued under the Obama administration. Those regulations and exemptions were subsequently vacated in 2018 by a federal appeals court.

The Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has issued a long-awaited class exemption, Prohibited Transaction Exemption (PTE) 2020-02, providing guidance to investment advisors who counsel retirement and other investors. The guidance completes a process that began with 2016 regulations and exemptions issued under the Obama administration, which were vacated in 2018 by a federal appeals court, and a promise by new DOL leadership under President Trump to issue new guidance in its stead. Yesterday’s issuance of a news release, fact sheet, and PTE 2020-02 completes that process.

The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has issued a pre-publication version of final regulations, entitled Fiduciary Duties Regarding Proxy Voting and Shareholder Rights. These regulations were published in the Federal Register in proposed form on September 4, 2020, followed by a 30-day comment period that ended October 5, 2020. Accompanying the final regulations just issued are an EBSA fact sheet and news release.

The DOL has issued a proposed rule on registration for pooled plan providers (PPPs), who may begin offering pooled employer plans (PEPs) on January 1, 2021. As this date quickly approaches, those who are considering offering or adopting a PEP need further guidance. But at least this proposed rule starts to answer some of the many questions that must be resolved before PEPs can become a viable alternative for employers.

Few aspects of retirement plan governance have been as controversial as regulating investment advice. Exactly what obligation—if any—does an investment professional have to provide impartial, conflict-free advice to savers and retirees?  When do financial professionals step over the boundary that can make them a fiduciary, with the ethical and legal obligations that come with this duty?

The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has released a pre-publication version of a request-for-information (RFI) seeking public comments on issues pertinent to pooled employer plans (PEPs) and multiple employer plan (MEPs).

During the last few months, the Department of Labor (DOL), Treasury Department, and Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) have jointly issued multiple pieces of guidance intended to provide much needed relief to those suffering economic hardships from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In this article, we’ll explain how the most recent relief affects employee welfare benefit plans.

For the past three years, Congress has attempted to pass major retirement reform legislation. It has finally succeeded with the year-end passage of two spending packages meant to avert a government shutdown. One of the packages, the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 (FCAA), includes multiple bills—including the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, which contains several major retirement-related provisions. These provisions are nearly identical to those included in an earlier version of the SECURE Act that was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in May 2019. At the time of this publication, the President had not yet signed these bills into law. But it is widely anticipated that he will.