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Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory US
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ERISA Compliance Associate
Slevin & Hart, P.C.
in DC, NY

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IRS Private Letter Ruling Sparks Interest in 401(k) Plan Student Loan Repayment Benefit

"There are some challenges ... to administering a [student loan repayment (SLR)] program.... [1] [H]ow will the employer monitor whether the employee is making the loan payments? [2] What types of loan payments will qualify -- for example, there may be instances in which a parent initiated the loan but the child (who is the employee) is actually making the payments. [3] If the payroll system is calculating the employer contribution and the employee should receive either a match or a nonelective, depending on whether or not loan payments are being made, how will the payroll system be programmed to know which contribution applies?" Retirement Management Services, LLC

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Court Certifies Class of Emory University Retirement Plan Participants

"On Thursday, September 13, U.S. District Judge Charles A. Parnell, Jr. granted up to 45,000 Emory employees and retirees certification in their ERISA suit against Emory University. The certified class will include all participants and beneficiaries in the Emory University Retirement Plan and the Emory Healthcare Inc. Retirement Savings and Matching Plan from August 2010 until the date of judgment." [Henderson v. Emory Univ., No. 16-2920 (N.D. Ga. Sept. 13, 2018 order on motion to certify class )]
Schlichter Bogard & Denton

Fiduciary Conduct and Your Reputation: What's Trust Worth as an Investment Steward? (PDF)

25 pages. "[A] great reputation can and should be your organization's most valuable asset.... [T]he recognized attribute every investment steward must establish is to be a trustworthy caretaker of other people's money.... [T]here are specific factors, grounded in fiduciary principles, that can be managed to build a great reputation" Fi360, via CEFEX

California Case on Misclassification of Employees May Lead to Fiduciary Breach Claims

"The misclassification of employees could be labeled as a failure to meet these fiduciary obligations. In the end, classifying a worker as an independent contractor may appear to be a cost-saving measure; however, in the long run the expenses associated with misclassification can dwarf any potential savings due to the payment of penalties and retroactive benefits." Butterfield Schechter LLP

Your Age at Retirement: The Most Important Number for Planning

"If there's one factor that can make or break your retirement plans, it's the age at which you begin that coveted lifestage.... [R]etiring at age 56 requires saving 27% of income a year, compared with 16% for retiring at 67.... [S]omeone who is 35 [and] has quite a bit already saved -- in line with at least one retirement benchmark, which suggests having a retirement balance equal to your annual salary saved by 35 ... still needs to save 38% of income to retire at age 56. That's nearly twice what would be required if she planned to retire at the typical age of 67." Forbes

Roth IRA Investors' Activity, 2007-2016 (PDF)

96 pages. "Consistent Roth IRA investors showed little reaction to the steep declines in stock values between October 2007 and March 2009, a recession (December 2007 to June 2009), and rising unemployment rates, though contribution activity did decline a bit in the wake of the financial crisis.... From 2007 to 2016, Roth IRA investors' allocation to equity holdings ... edged down.... Although account balances fell considerably following the stock market decline in 2008, the average Roth IRA balance for consistent Roth IRA investors aged 27 to 69 in 2016 was higher at year-end 2009 than at year-end 2007." Investment Company Institute [ICI]

Traditional IRA Investors' Activity, 2007-2016 (PDF)

88 pages. "[T]raditional IRA investors with accounts from year-end 2007 through year-end 2016 showed little reaction to the financial events. Contribution and rollover activity declined only a bit in the wake of the financial crisis.... Although account balances fell considerably following the stock market decline in 2008, the average traditional IRA balance for traditional IRA investors in all age groups with account balances in all years between 2007 and 2016 was higher at year-end 2016 than at year-end 2007." Investment Company Institute [ICI]

Modernizing Social Security: Widow Benefits

"Social Security widow benefits have been declining -- relative to the couple's benefit -- due to the rising labor force activity of women. In response, policy experts have proposed increasing the widow benefit, particularly for those with low to moderate incomes. To cover the cost, they would reduce the spousal benefit, essentially shifting money from when both spouses are alive to when only one member is alive. This policy appears to offer a well-targeted and fiscally responsible way to further reduce poverty for widows." Center for Retirement Research at Boston College

New IRS Guidance on Section 162(m)'s Deduction Limitation for Executive Comp

"[T]he IRS requested comment on how to apply the definition of 'publicly held corporation' to foreign private issuers; whether an employee who was a covered employee of a predecessor of the employer constitutes a covered employee; how Section 162(m) applies to companies immediately after they go public through an initial public offering (or similar transaction); and how to determine the three most highly compensated officers for a taxable year that does not end on the same date as the last completed fiscal year." Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP

IRS Issues Guidance on Changes to Section 162(m)

"The Notice has generated confusion about the impact of 'negative discretion' on the grandfather rule. It is not unusual for a performance incentive plan to state that awards will be paid to participants upon the occurrence of stated corporate performance metrics, subject to the company's discretion to reduce such amounts. [The authors'] view is generally that negative discretion should not prevent the grandfather from applying unless the discretion is so broad as to render the promise illusory and the purported contract unenforceable. The question comes down to state contract law (or federal common law, in the case of nonqualified pension plans like SERPs)." Morgan Lewis

Deposit Deadline for Employee Deferrals in Plans with Fewer Than 100 Participants

The 7-day "safe harbor" under 2510.3-122(a)(2) is for plans with fewer than 100 participants at the beginning of the year. The 80?120 rule does NOT apply (which is for 5500 purposes only), right? I just saw it used for the 7-day safe harbor deposit rule for a plan with over 100 participants at the beginning of the plan year, so I want to make sure I'm not nuts. BenefitsLink Message Boards

Recover Embezzled Funds from Embezzler's 401(k)?

My 10+ year bookkeeper embezzled funds from our corporation. While she was forging checks and sending them to her own credit card and bank accounts and taking expensive trips and living high off of stolen money, she had 10% of her salary withheld, and we matched it 50%. Thus all $235,000 in her 401k represents money she embezzled. Her entire net worth, aside from what may be hidden in some hole, is less than what she embezzled. Can I claw it back? BenefitsLink Message Boards

IRS Tax Assessment Because No Form 5498 Filed

This has happened to us 3 times in the last 4 months: Client rolled money from an IRA into a 401k plan. IRA sends out a 1099-R with a Code G. IRS sends my client a letter that he owes $X,000 in taxes (which of course causes client to freak out), saying it has received no corresponding Form 5498 that confirms the rollover. But of course a 401k plan is not required to file a Form 5498 when it receives a rollover. Can anyone else see the flaw in the system? Has anyone brought this to the attention of the IRS? We literally have a template letter that we use now to respond. This is ridiculous. BenefitsLink Message Boards

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Press Releases

Wagner Law Group Welcomes Attorneys Candace L. Quinn and Michael Burwick Wagner Law Group P.C.

OneDigital Health and Benefits Southern California Office Expands Consulting Team OneDigital Health and Benefits

Federal Court Orders Maryland Business Owner to Pay $354,175 in Restitution, Serve Prison Term for Theft from Employee Benefit Plan Employee Benefits Security Administration [EBSA], U.S. Department of Labor

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Most Popular Items in the Previous Issue

House Republicans' Tax Reform 2.0 Contains Significant Retirement Policy Proposals October Three Consulting

How to Figure Out What You Can Safely Withdraw in Retirement Financial Finesse

Managing a Year-of-Death RMD in an Inherited IRA Morningstar Advisor