DOL
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Key Considerations for Plan Sponsors
- January 18, 2022
- Posted by: Jeff Atwell
- Category: Financial Plan, Resources
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Plan Sponsors should consider the role that employers play, how employers can assist those nearing retirement, and what resources participants have available to them. Working with Advisors to creating ongoing education and communication programs is key to ensuring participants’ success in retirement.
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New and Ongoing Priorities Among Plan Sponsors
- August 8, 2021
- Posted by: Jeff Atwell
- Category: Financial Plan, Resources
The White Paper we discuss shows that the plan sponsor need for assistance has never been greater. Qualified plan professionals can assist plan sponsors in meeting all these needs.
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Department of Labor Investment Advice
- December 9, 2020
- Posted by: Jeff Atwell
- Category: Financial Plan, Resources
Recently, the DOL sent to the OMB the proposed Fiduciary Advice Rule. An understanding of when a firm and its representatives provide investment advice and thus act as fiduciaries is important.
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SECURE Act Increases Access to Retirement Plans with “Pooled Employer Plans”
- May 22, 2020
- Posted by: Jeff Atwell
- Category: Economics, Financial Plan, Resources
PEPs, or Pooled Employer Plans, will provide a very efficient way for a business owner to provide retirement benefits for employees; however, the plan must always remain in the best interest of the participants and beneficiaries covered by the plan. We’re looking at the provisions of the SECURE Act that dictate how PEPs can be used, and factors that need to be considered.
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DOL Investigations of Retirement Plans: 10 Key Areas of Focus
- September 2, 2019
- Posted by: Jeff Atwell
- Category: Financial Plan, Resources
Plan governance is a key element in defining a retirement plan standard of excellence. Our resource outlines 10 key areas the DOL is focused on regarding the governance of a qualified plan. As indicated in the article, only a couple of the key areas of concern deal with the investments in the plan.
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Plan Governance and Document Retention
- June 13, 2019
- Posted by: Jeff Atwell
- Category: Financial Plan, Resources
There are different retention requirements between the ERISA Regulations and the Internal Revenue Code. Plan Sponsors and Fiduciaries need to be very familiar with record retention requirements in order to produce the documentation in the event of an IRS audit or DOL investigation.
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Locating Missing Plan Participants
- April 9, 2019
- Posted by: Jeff Atwell
- Category: Financial Plan, Resources
Not documenting and attempting to follow the guidelines for the distribution of the following notices and disclosures can create an operational and fiduciary breach of duty by the named plan administrator, the plan sponsor.
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Settlor and Administrative Expenses: What’s the Difference?
- February 19, 2019
- Posted by: Jeff Atwell
- Category: Resources
The Department of Labor has recently focused on the payment of settlor expenses from plan assets. The DOL has, for a long time, taken the position that there is a class of discretionary activities which relate to the formation, rather than the management, of plans. These activities are referred to as “settlor functions” and they generally include decisions relating to the establishment, design and termination of the plan. Settlor expenses differ from administrative expenses, and it’s important to understand each.