Retirement Plans Archives - Page 23 of 70

ERIC Challenges Oregon Reporting Requirements for Retirement Plans

by McDermott Will & Emery and Andrew Liazos | Oct 13, 2017 | Benefit Controversies, Employee Benefits, Employment, Retirement Plans

On October 12, 2017, McDermott Will & Emery filed a lawsuit on behalf of The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC) challenging new reporting requirements under Oregon law as applicable to retirement plans subject to ERISA. Below is a press release from ERIC and Q&As regarding this litigation.

OregonSaves is the state of Oregon’s state-run retirement program that automatically enrolls employees of employers into individual retirement arrangements (IRAs). Unless an employee opts out of OregonSaves, a portion of each paycheck is added to an IRA account in the employee’s name. Oregon is the first state to establish an auto-enrollment IRA program.

An employer that offers a qualified plan is not required to participate in OregonSaves, but only if it has a valid and current certificate of exemption. Obtaining this exemption depends upon reporting to the state of Oregon regarding an employer’s qualified plan. For employers with 100 or more employees in Oregon, this filing is due by November 15, 2017. The ERIC lawsuit alleges that ERISA’s express preemption provision preempts this reporting requirement.

This is the latest action by a state to impose reporting requirements on ERISA covered plans. Previously the state of Vermont (and other states) sought to require ERISA medical benefit plans to report their claims experience for purposes of compiling a so-called All Payor Claims Database (APCD). In the 2016 case of Gobeille v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, the US Supreme Court held that ERISA preempted Vermont’s APCD reporting requirement.

ERIC supports state auto-enrollment programs intended to increase access to retirement savings plans if such programs do not infringe on employers that already provide ERISA-governed retirement plans. Tracking and complying with additional reporting burdens imposed by state-run retirement plans on a state by state basis would be unduly burdensome for employers.

View the full ERIC Q&A here.

There has been some prominent coverage on this case, including Industry group sues over Oregon retirement plan, Employers sue to block OregonSaves requirements, ERIC files lawsuit against Oregon Retirement Savings Board, ERISA Industry Committee sues to stop OregonSaves reporting demands and Oregon’s retirement-savings plan faces legal challenge. The team will continue to monitor and provide regular updates.

Are Your Employee Communications Up to Snuff? — ERISA Disclosure Practices

by McDermott Will & Emery and Allison Wilkerson | Oct 12, 2017 | Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

Mary Samsa and Allison Wilkerson discussed that the majority of ERISA disclosures are in fact employee communications – many of which are viewed as “routine” by employers. As such, plan sponsors are continually balancing the best way in which to relay complex benefit plan information in a manner to best be understood by employees but equally satisfy the applicable regimented disclosure requirements. Some key takeaways from their presentation included not only the compliance and content requirements, but methods for delivering communications to employees, traps for the unwary (i.e., inconsistent information communicated, the advantage of having these communications reviewed by legal counsel, and oversight of third parties who assist in preparing communications) and some common sense approaches for routine reviews of communications and continuing education to participants so that periodic communications are not always monumental tasks.

View the full presentation.

McDermott Announces Determination Letter Replacement Program, Addressing the Gap in Retirement Plan Compliance

by Brian Tiemann, Diane Morgenthaler, Jeffrey Holdvogt, Jacob Mattinson, Joseph K. Urwitz, Kay Kemp, Lisa Loesel, Maggie McTigue , Mary K. Samsa, Sarah L. Engle, Allison Wilkerson, Alan D. Nesburg, PC, Andrew Liazos, McDermott Will & Emery and Todd Solomon | Oct 10, 2017 | Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Retirement Plans

Since the announcement by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that sponsors of individually designed retirement plans may no longer receive a periodic determination letter, plan sponsors have faced uncertainty about how to demonstrate compliance for their retirement plans. Our McDermott Retirement Plan Compliance Program, a new opinion letter and operational review program for individually designed 401(a) and 403(b) retirement plans, will allow plan sponsors to document their plans’ compliance with tax code requirements in response to the curtailment of the IRS’ determination letter program.

View From McDermott: Hurricane Survival Guide for Employee Benefit Plans and Employers

by Diane Morgenthaler | Oct 5, 2017 | Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Employment, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

According to U.S. News & World Report, estimates for the cost of Hurricane Harvey’s damage have come in as high as $190 billion, and damage estimates for Hurricane Irma are still rolling in but range up to $100 billion. To assist taxpayers affected by these devastating storms, the Internal Revenue Service, Department of Labor, and Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation have granted multiple forms of relief to taxpayers impacted by Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, and other disasters enumerated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Extension of Nondiscrimination Relief to Certain Closed Defined Benefit Plans

by Diane Morgenthaler and Kay Kemp | Oct 3, 2017 | Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Retirement Plans

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently extended the temporary nondiscrimination relief for closed defined benefit plans. This extended relief is intended to enable closed pension plans (defined as pension plans that have been closed to new participants but continue to provide ongoing benefit accruals for certain participants) to more easily satisfy certain nondiscrimination testing requirements. In most cases where the relief applies, the closed defined benefit plan is aggregated with a defined contribution plan to satisfy the nondiscrimination testing requirements, and the relief assists the aggregated plan in passing nondiscrimination requirements that apply to accrued benefits and to certain rights and features relating to those benefits.

The original nondiscrimination testing relief for closed pension plans was provided several years ago in an earlier IRS Notice. This relief was already extended on two prior occasions, and the recent IRS Notice further extends the relief until the end of plan years that begin before 2019, as long as the conditions of the original IRS Notice continue to be satisfied. In 2018, the IRS also intends to issue final regulations under Section 401(a)(4) of the tax code that address the nondiscrimination requirements for closed pension plans. Until then, the IRS indicated that plan sponsors can still rely on the proposed 2016 IRS regulations under Section 401(a)(4) for plan years that begin before 2019.

“Back to School” Round-Up of Key UK Employment Law Developments in 2017 to Date

by Anthony A. Bongiorno, Katie Clark and Paul McGrath | Sep 27, 2017 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans, Labor, Retirement Plans

In this “back to school” round-up, we take the opportunity to catch up on the most important UK employment law events and developments in 2017 to date.

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Staying Out of Trouble: How to Avoid IRS and DOL Audits

by Jeffrey Holdvogt and Maggie McTigue | Sep 14, 2017 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of Labor (DOL) conduct different types of benefit plan audits, such as retirement plans and health and welfare plans, and for various reasons. In a presentation, Jeffrey Holdvogt and Maggie McTigue discuss IRS and DOL audit triggers, the process for each and what to do if your plan is audited. They also discuss the top audit issues and actionable steps companies can take to avoid audits and compliance issues.

Hurricane Harvey Relief for Employee Benefit Plans

by Allison Wilkerson and Diane Morgenthaler | Sep 7, 2017 | Employee Benefits, Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), Employment, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Health and Welfare Plans, Labor, Retirement Plans

The Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Labor relaxed some deadlines for eligible employee benefit plans and expanded the availability of withdrawals and loans for eligible defined contribution plan participants in the disaster area. However, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation announced that some of its required filings will not be extended automatically.

Adding Value to Your Organization: Benefits Best Practices to Avoid Common Mistakes

by McDermott Will & Emery and Jacob Mattinson | Jul 20, 2017 | Employee Benefits, Executive Compensation, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

In a recent webinar, Jake Mattinson and Sarah Raaii discussed the practices that benefits professionals can adopt to add value to their organizations and avoid common mistakes. Jake and Sarah discussed recommended practices for ERISA benefit claims and inquiries, how to review plan compensation definitions and payroll codes, best practices for corrections using the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP), and the importance of document retention. The webinar is part of the larger Benefits Emerging Leaders Working Group, a group that meets to discuss key benefit issues and trends and provides networking opportunities aimed at connecting tomorrow’s benefit leaders with a broad network of professionals.

View the full presentation.

M&A Webinar Series Part II: The Due Diligence Process

by Andrew Liazos | Jul 13, 2017 | Employee Benefits, Executive Compensation, Health and Welfare Plans, Retirement Plans

There are many different types of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions, making it very important to understand the overall deal structure and process. Andrew C. Liazos presented “Mergers and Acquisitions Webinar Series Part 2: The Due Diligence Process” for the CLE Program as part of the ABA Joint Committee on Employee Benefits and the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel. He discussed the overall architecture of a deal, including the parties involved, what drives the deal structure, where to get data, price negotiations and more. The presentation focused on specific M&A areas including pension, other retirement and executive benefits.

View the full presentation.

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