Retirement Plans Archives - Page 18 of 70

IRS Announces 2019 Employee Benefit Plan Limits

by Brian Tiemann, Jeffrey Holdvogt and Jacob Mattinson | Nov 2, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

Recently the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Social Security Administration announced the cost-of-living adjustments to the applicable dollar limits on various employer-sponsored retirement and welfare plans and the Social Security wage base for 2019. The table below compares the applicable dollar limits for certain employee benefit programs and the Social Security wage base for 2018 and 2019.*

UPDATE: On Thursday, November 11, 2018, the Internal Revenue Service announced that, for calendar year 2019, the annual maximum salary reduction limit for contributions to a health flexible spending account was increased by $50 to $2,700.

RETIREMENT PLAN LIMITS 2018 2019 Annual compensation limit $275,000 $280,000 401(k), 403(b) & 457(b) before-tax contributions $18,500 $19,000 Catch-up contributions (if age 50 or older) $6,000 $6,000 Highly compensated employee threshold $120,000 $125,000 Key employee officer compensation threshold $175,000 $180,000 Defined benefit plan annual benefit and accrual limit $220,000 $225,000 Defined contribution plan annual contribution limit $55,000 $56,000 Employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) limit for determining the lengthening of the general five-year distribution period $220,000 $225,000 ESOP limit for determining the maximum account balance subject to the general five-year distribution period $1,105,000 $1,130,000 HEALTH AND WELFARE PLAN LIMITS Health Flexible Spending Accounts Maximum salary reduction limit $2,650 $2,700 High Deductible Health Plans (HDHP) and Health Savings Accounts (HSA) HDHP – Maximum annual out-of-pocket limit (excluding premiums): Self-only coverage $6,650 $6,750 Family coverage $13,300 $13,500 HDHP – Minimum annual deductible: Self-only coverage $1,350 $1,350 Family coverage $2,700 $2,700 HSA – Annual contribution limit: Self-only coverage $3,450 $3,500 Family coverage $6,900 $7,000 Catch-up contributions (age 55 or older) $1,000 $1,000 SOCIAL SECURITY WAGE BASE Social Security Maximum Taxable Earnings (dollars) $128,400 $132,900

Plan sponsors should update payroll and plan administration systems for the 2019 cost-of-living adjustments and should incorporate the new limits in relevant participant communications, like open enrollment materials and summary plan descriptions.

For further information about applying the new employee benefit plan limits for 2019, contact your regular McDermott lawyer.

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*The dollar limits are generally applied on a calendar year basis; however, certain dollar limits are applied on a plan-year, tax-year, or limitation-year basis.

Fridays With Benefits Webinar | Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot? Our Retrospective on 2018 Benefits Issues

by Lisa Loesel and McDermott Will & Emery | Oct 30, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans

Join us Friday, November 2 for our monthly Fridays with Benefits webinar. With 2019 right around the corner, now is the time to dust off your year-end checklist and take stock of changes we have seen in 2018, and how they project to impact planning for the new year. Join us for an interactive discussion designed to draw attention to the key employee benefits issues you should tackle before New Year’s Eve. Our lively 45-minute discussion will include a tax reform update, an overview of retirement plan disaster relief, responding to new disability regulations from the DOL, and how to implement final regulations on QNECs and QMACs.

Friday, November 2, 2018
10:00 – 10:45 am PDT
11:00 – 11:45 am MDT
12:00 – 12:45 pm CDT
1:00 – 1:45 pm EDT

Register now.

Get Your Game On – How To Handle IRS and DOL Audits

by Allison Wilkerson and McDermott Will & Emery | Oct 25, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

During the Tax in the City event held in Dallas, Erin Turley and Allison Wilkerson gave an overview of benefit plan audits and the IRS examination process. They discussed various areas of focus, including, required minimum distributions, investment issues, benefit calculations and appropriate tax reporting. They provided attendees with best practices before an audit, as well as helpful resources from the IRS and DOL.

View the full presentation.

IRS Corrections Go Digital in 2019

by Joseph K. Urwitz, Lisa Loesel and Maggie McTigue | Oct 23, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans

Late last month, the IRS released the latest version of its Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System, the IRS’s program for correcting retirement plan errors. The newest version of the correction program—effective beginning in 2019—includes mostly minor changes and clarifications. Most importantly, however, it requires electronic filing of Voluntary Correction Program submissions beginning April 1, 2019.

Access the full article.

Internal Revenue Service Outlines Critical Cybersecurity Safeguards to Protect Sensitive Data

by Alan D. Nesburg, PC and Stephen Pavlick | Oct 16, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Privacy and Data Security, Retirement Plans

The Internal Revenue Service and the Security Summit partners recently issued a news release outlining the “Security Six,” a list of essential steps to protect stored employee information on networks and computers. Employee benefits professionals, including those who administer welfare and retirement plans for employees and beneficiaries, should review and implement the “Security Six” in order to protect sensitive data from cyberattacks.

Access the full article.

We would also like to thank law clerk Charnae Supplee for contributing to this article.

Hidden Costs in Benefit Contracts: What You Don’t Know May Cost You

by McDermott Will & Emery | Oct 9, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

During our Tax in the City roundtable event in Dallas, Erin Turley and Judith Wethall presented on the hidden costs in benefit contracts. They provided attendees with a checklist of what to look out for in contracts, including services, protection and pricing terms. When negotiating contracts, Erin and Judith recommended establishing a list of needs and objectives, as well as seeking referrals from other similarly situated employers.

View the full presentation.

Socially Responsible Investing – No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

by Brian Tiemann and Lisa Loesel | Oct 2, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans

Socially responsible investing often sounds like an intriguing idea, but investing plan assets in a socially responsible manner is a notoriously tricky proposition. Earlier this year, the US Department of Labor issued additional guidance clarifying existing DOL guidance applicable to socially responsible investment of plan assets. However, the clarifications included in FAB 2018-01 may further limit the scenarios in which socially responsible investing could be considered prudent under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA).

Access the full article.

Webinar | Employer Options for Student Loan Benefits

by McDermott Will & Emery | Sep 28, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Retirement Plans

Join us Friday, October 5 for our monthly Fridays with Benefits webinar on employer options for student loan benefits. Student loan debt is an increasingly significant concern for employees and student loan benefits are becoming an increasingly significant way for employers to attract and retain key talent.

Join members of the McDermott Benefits Team for a discussion on employer options and strategies for employee student loan benefits that your company won’t want to miss! We will address refinancing options, direct financial assistance, and developments in retirement plan designs for benefits tied to student loan repayments.

Friday, October 5, 2018
10:00 – 10:45 am PDT
11:00 – 11:45 am MDT
12:00 – 12:45 pm CDT
1:00 – 1:45 pm EDT

Register now.

Circuit Split Remains Unresolved After ERISA Case Settles

by J. Christian Nemeth and Krista McDonald | Sep 27, 2018 | Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Retirement Plans

On September 20, 2018, the US Supreme Court dismissed—pursuant to settlement—an ERISA lawsuit that could have resolved the circuit split over who holds the burden of proof in ERISA breach of fiduciary duty cases. In Pioneer Centres Hold. v. Alerus Fin., Case No. 17-677 (2018), the Pioneer Centres Holding Company Employee Stock Ownership Plan and Trust (the “Plan” or “ESOP”) and its trustees sued Alerus Financial, N.A. (Alerus) for breach of fiduciary duty in connection with the failure of a proposed employee stock purchase. In affirming summary judgment in Alerus’s favor, the Tenth Circuit determined that the Plan carried the burden to prove causation rather than shifting the burden to Alerus to disprove causation once the Plan established a prima facie case. In so holding, the Tenth Circuit agreed with the Sixth, Ninth and Eleventh circuits that beneficiaries, not fiduciaries, must prove causation between the company’s conduct and the plan’s losses due to a fiduciary breach. The Second, Fourth, Fifth and Eighth circuits disagreed, holding that the burden of proof shifts to the fiduciaries to establish the absence of loss causation once the beneficiaries makes a prima facie case by establishing breach of fiduciary duty and loss. Details of the parties’ settlement were not disclosed.

The settlement and dismissal of this case is disappointing for ERISA litigators because the anticipated resolution regarding burden shifting for loss causation will likely not be resolved in the near future. The outstanding burden shifting inquiry is not limited to the ESOP context. These issues have also been considered in other ERISA cases, such as the 401(k) context. See, e.g., Womack v. Orchids Paper Prod. Co. 401(K) Sav. Plan, 769 F. Supp. 2d 1322, 1334–35 (N.D. Okla. 2011) (acknowledging the burden shifting circuit split in the 401(k) context). Moreover, the lack of resolution will necessarily encourage plaintiffs to continue forum shopping tactics. Thus, the industry may see an increase in ERISA cases filed in the Second, Fourth, Fifth and Eighth circuits, which shift the burden to fiduciaries to establish the absence of loss causation once the plaintiffs make a prima facie case.

Court of Appeals Affirms “Paternalistic” Breach of Fiduciary Duties

by Elizabeth M. Rowe and J. Christian Nemeth | Sep 13, 2018 | Benefit Controversies, Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans

The US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently affirmed a Minnesota district court’s dismissal of a claim against Wells Fargo & Company (Wells Fargo) under ERISA. A former employee had alleged Wells Fargo breached fiduciary duties by retaining Wells Fargo’s own investment funds as a 401(k) option, and defaulting to those funds when plan participants failed to elect another option.

In holding that the former employee failed to state a claim, the court in Meiners v. Wells Fargo & Co. reasoned that the plaintiff failed to plead facts showing the Wells Fargo investment funds were an imprudent choice. Specifically, the court found that the plaintiff’s allegations that an allegedly comparable fund performed better was not sufficient, especially given the other fund’s differing investment strategy. The court’s prior decision in Braden v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. established that plaintiffs could show that “a prudent fiduciary in like circumstances” would have selected a different fund by providing a basis for comparison–in other words, a benchmark. However, the Eighth Circuit declined the plaintiff’s invitation to extend the rationale of Braden by allowing a plaintiff to demonstrate imprudence with a benchmark that only possesses some similarities to the fund at issue.

The Eighth Circuit’s decision is in line with other courts’ rejection of ERISA claims based on the plaintiffs’ subjective views of which funds are the best overall investment. A US district court judge for the Northern District of Illinois recently labeled such breach of fiduciary duty claims “paternalistic” while dismissing a class action against Northwestern University.

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