Background The Department of Labor published in the Federal Register on June 30, 2016, an interim final rule to adjust for inflation the civil monetary penalties enforceable by the Department of Labor. The information below from the DOL describes the adjustments made to the civil monetary penalties enforced by the Employee Benefits Security Administration (“EBSA”)
Determination Program On June 29, 2016, Revenue Procedure 2016-37, generally effective January 1, 2017, was released changing the: Determination Letter Program for tax-qualified individually designed plans (IDPs); and Requirements for when plan amendments must be adopted under IRC Section 401(b) While Revenue Procedure 2016-37 covers many changes and plan sponsors should carefully review the revenue
The Department of Labor (“DOL”) on April 6, 2016 issued its final rules to address fiduciary standards. The U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration’s fact sheet of the new rule follows: Summary Since 1974, when Congress enacted the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Department of Labor (‘DOL’ or ‘Department’) has worked
On a recent AICPA Employee Benefit Plan Audit Quality Center webcast, the Chief Accountant of the Department of Labor expressed the DOL’s concerns over cybersecurity. Specifically, the DOL believes that electronic plan records, whether they are maintained in-house and/or maintained by the financial services industry, are vulnerable to cyber-attacks. The DOL believes that Plan
For calendar year plans, the maximum extension due date for Form 5500 series (Annual Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan) is back to 2 1/2 months or October 15th. An employer that maintains a pension, annuity, stock bonus, profit-sharing or other funded deferred compensation plan (or the plan administrator of the plan) is required to file
The U.S. Labor Department has issued new guidance regarding economically targeted investments (ETIs) made by retirement plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. ETIs are investments that are selected for the benefits they create in addition to the investment return to the employee benefit plan investor. “Investing in the best interests of a retirement plan
The Internal Revenue Service on October 21, 2015 announced cost of living adjustments affecting dollar limitations for pension plans and other retirement-related items for tax year 2016. In general, the pension plan limitations will not change for 2016 because the increase in the cost-of-living index did not meet the statutory thresholds that trigger their adjustment.