News

May 10, 2022 – Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) has introduced the Financial Freedom Act, legislation aimed at prohibiting the Department of Labor (DOL) from restricting the types of investments that plan participants can choose through participant directed accounts and self-directed brokerage accounts. The bill is in response to regulatory guidance released by the DOL and announced in March.

May 9, 2022 – The SEC has extended the period to comment on its proposed rule regarding climate-related disclosures initially released in March, and published in the federal register on April 11, 2022. The proposal would require publicly traded companies to include certain climate-related disclosures in registration statements and periodic reports such as the annual Form 10-K. Additional details were previously announced in March. The comment deadline was extended from May 20 2022, to June 17, 2022.

May 3, 2022 - The Department of Treasury and Internal Revenue Service have released proposed regulations to update the mortality tables that are used to calculate minimum required contributions for single-employer defined benefit pension plans. The regulations are proposed to be first effective for plan years beginning in 2023.

Comments must be received by June 9, 2022. A public hearing on these proposed regulations has been scheduled for June 28, 2022. The regulations will be reviewed, and additional details provided as warranted.

May 3, 2022 - The IRS has issued Revenue Procedure 2022-24, providing inflation-adjusted amounts for health savings accounts (HSAs) for calendar year 2023. Maximum annual HSA contributions will rise from $3,650 to $3,850 for those with self-only insurance coverage, and from $7,300 to $7,750 for those with family coverage.

Minimum deductible amounts for qualifying high deductible health plans will increase from $1,400 for self-only coverage to $1,500, and from $2,800 to $3,000 for a family plan. Maximum annual out-of-pocket amounts under self-only coverage will rise from $7,050 to $7,500, and from $14,100 to $15,000 for family coverage.

May 3, 2022 - Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Susan Collins (R-ME) have introduced S. 4103, the Helping Parents Save for College Act. The bill would provide low- and middle-income parents with a tax credit for contributions to 529 education savings accounts by expanding the Saver’s Credit. The credit would be worth up to 50 percent of 529 account contributions, with a maximum credit of $2,000 for low-and-middle income families.

Additionally, the proposal would allow plan beneficiaries to move excess funds from the 529 account to a Roth IRA without penalty, so long as the account was maintained for a 10-year period at the time of the distribution. This would alleviate concerns of adverse tax consequences if funds are not used for college. The amount eligible for rollover to a Roth IRA is limited to the lesser of the annual Roth contribution limit or the aggregate amount contributed to the program before the five-year period ending on the date of the distribution.

Employers of all types have expressed interest in learning more about multiple employer plans (MEPs). But the unified plan rule, sometimes known as the “one bad apple rule,” has discouraged some employers from pursuing MEP participation.

April 29, 2022 - The IRS has issued a revised 2021 Publication 590-B, Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs). The updated publication appears to correct several errors in the life expectancy tables found in Appendix B. The 2021 tax year publication reflects new life expectancy and distribution period tables that are applicable to distribution calendar years beginning on or after January 1, 2022.

Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) reintroduced the Information Needed for Financial Options Risk Mitigation (INFORM) Act of 2022. The proposal would require pension plan sponsors to provide retirees and participants with certain information when being offered a lump-sum buyout from their defined benefit plan.

The Department of Labor (DOL) has kicked off what is to be a series of roundtable discussions on how to improve retirement security for workers. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh and Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, the Secretary’s representative for pensions and retirement, joined several state officials, trade group representatives, educators, and others in New York City to review current retirement security policies.

In the coming months, Kennedy Townsend will host similar discussions around the country to promote retirement security reform and open a dialogue between various stakeholders. Topics of focus will include encouraging automatic enrollment, improving portability of benefits as workers move from job to job, and leveraging affordable lifetime income options.

Effective April 1, 2022, the maximum aggregate bankruptcy exemption amount for IRAs increased from $1,362,800 to $1,512,350. This exemption amount is subject to cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs), having risen from an initial exemption limit of $1,000,000 as enacted within the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005, Public Law 109-8. The limitation is reviewed every three years and increased if COLA measures warrant. There is no maximum exemption for assets accumulated in employer-sponsored retirement plans.