"The form and instructions have been updated to be completed on Pay.gov as of July 1, 2023. The form and the instructions have undergone major revisions in the format and information required." [Draft May 1, 2023; rev. date Jun. 2023]   MORE >>

May 1, 2023. "The form and instructions have been updated so that Form 5316 can be completed on Pay.gov as of June 1, 2023."   MORE >>

"SECURE 2.0 [includes] a fundraiser provision that allows plan participants to elect to have any fully vested employer contributions funded to a defined contribution plan made as Roth for tax purposes.... The effective date for this new and ambitious provision was surprisingly the date of SECURE 2.0's enactment.... [N]otwithstanding the immediate effective date of this provision, it is impractical and inadvisable to consider initiating Roth employer contributions at this time."   MORE >>

"Plans that do not already offer Roth should contact their recordkeeper now and request Roth to be added to the plan effective January 1, 2024, if the plan wants to allow those earning more than $145,000 to make catch-up contributions. Some recordkeepers require months of advance notice for any amendment and/or limit the number of amendment requests they can accommodate based on available staff at the recordkeeper."   MORE >>

"[ FAB 2023-01 ] states that special financial assistance is not included in a plan's funded percentage or the actuarial value of the plan's assets. Accordingly, a plan is not required to take special financial assistance amounts into account when disclosing the plan's funded percentage or the actuarial value of plan assets."   MORE >>

"[A]dministrators of plans that already prepared or distributed the 2022 notice year AFN should consider the guidance in evaluating whether the AFN disclosures relating to SFA are consistent with a reasonable, good-faith interpretation of the AFN rules. If not, [ FAB 2023-01 ] instructs the administrator to take appropriate corrective action but does not describe what DOL would consider appropriate action."   MORE >>

"In this article [the authors] discuss de-risking/settlement in the broader context of DB finance, considering why 2023 might be a good year for settlement (either via a lump sum window or annuitization/pension risk transfer), the relative utility of settlement vs. an ongoing LDI (liability driven investment) strategy, and the relative utility (in 2023) of a lump sum window vs. annuitization/risk transfer."   MORE >>

"The aggregate funded ratio for U.S. corporate pension plans increased by an estimated 0.4 percentage points in April and ended the month at 99.4% ... The monthly change in funded ratio resulted from a 0.5% rise in asset value, while the liability value remained unchanged. The aggregate funded ratio is estimated to have increased by 1.9% and 1.4% year-to-date and over the trailing twelve months, respectively."   MORE >>

"In a statement  ... Cardin, a supporter and sponsor of major retirement plan legislation in his time in the Senate, said, 'I have run my last election and will not be on the ballot in 2024, but there is still much work to be done,' before listing his priorities before leaving office."   MORE >>

"[T]he Western States Office and Professional Employees Pension Plan ... based in Portland, Oregon, covers 7,230 participants in the service industry. On October 1, 2018, [the plan] implemented a benefit suspension under [MPRA] ... PBGC's approval of the SFA application enables the plan to restore benefits suspended ... and to make payments to retirees to cover prior benefit suspensions."   MORE >>

"Victims of severe storms, tornadoes and flooding in Florida from April 12 to April 14, 2023, now have until August 15, 2023, to file various individual and business tax returns and make tax payments ... [I]ndividuals and households ... that reside or have a business in Broward County qualify for tax relief."   MORE >>

"[1] 401(k) and 403(b) fee cases continue.... [2] No good deed goes unpunished: 1947 pension trust creates $38 million ERISA liability.... [3] Oops! Board action alone did not terminate severance plan.... [4] DOL weighs in on supplemental life insurance: evidence of insurability.... [5] Beneficiary/slayer denied retirement plan benefits."   MORE >>

"[A] healthy 65-year-old male retiree with [a Medicare Advantage plus Part D] plan will spend $134,000 for healthcare in his remaining lifetime (equating to $90,000 of savings in today's dollars), down from $137,000 in 2022. A 65-year-old female retiree with the same coverage will spend approximately $155,000 on healthcare expenses over the course of her lifetime ($100,000 in savings today), down from $158,000 in 2022."   MORE >>

"[T]he increase in defense costs linked to the rise of jury trials in this context isn't just a question of the relative cost of conducting a jury trial relative to the cost of bench trials. Instead, it is driven by the fact that the possibility of jury trials is likely to increase the number of trials and the amount sought in settlement of these types of cases.... However, from a merits perspective, it is not entirely clear that jury trials in this context are by definition a bad thing."   MORE >>

"(the 'SEC') has now designated June 11, 2023 as the date by which it will approve or disapprove the clawback-related listing standards proposed by New York Stock Exchange ('NYSE') and Nasdaq pursuant to the SEC's Rule 10D-1.... This model policy will assist issuers when adopting a new clawback policy or revising an existing policy to comply with the rules."   MORE >>

"[1] Set goals.... [2] Know what type of equity award(s) you have.... [3] Understand the core tax treatment.... [4] Identify the vesting schedule of stock options, restricted stock, and RSUs.... [5] Learn how your ESPP works.... [6] Study what will happen if you lose your job.... [7] Keep a stock comp checklist."   MORE >>

"Companies that sponsor equity compensation plans often include provisions related to future equity awards for service providers in non-plan related documents such as offer letters, employment agreements, and agreements with other service providers ... Usually, the references to these future grants are intended to memorialize the service provider's compensation and are not intended to affect the actual grant. However, whether or not the grant is intended to be made in the non-plan related document may not matter if the recipient relies on the promises made in the document."   MORE >>