Forgotten 401k Accounts Hit $1.65 Trillion in Assets
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Insight: Studies, Research, and White Papers Forgotten 401k Accounts Hit $1.65 Trillion in Assets Forgotten 401k accounts are growing by the year. Capitalize found forgotten accounts have grown by 20% in the last two years. As of May 2023, there are an estimated 29.2 million forgotten or left-behind 401k accounts in the U.S., representing $1.65 trillion in assets. Source: 401kspecialistmag.com Emergency Savings and Retirement Planning Tightly Linked A new report from the BlackRock Emergency Savings Initiative emphasizes a finding many in the retirement space have been pushing, that emergency savings and retirement readiness are inextricably connected. Source: 401kspecialistmag.com Robust Retirement Tiers Can Help Keep Participants In-Plan Research released by Cerulli Associates last month showed that more than half of plan sponsors (54%) would prefer to keep their retired participants' assets in their plan, rather than see them rolled into an individual retirement account or other plan. That's more than double the 26% who said the same in 2019. But plan sponsors will need to do some work to succeed in that goal. Source: Plansponsor.com Top Retirement Plan Advisers Weigh In on Potential, Pitfalls of SECURE 2.0 PLANADVISER's top retirement adviser pulse survey finds optimism about the legislation, alongside a healthy dose of questions and advice for policymakers. Source: Planadviser.com Prudential Research Finds Gen X Particularly Unprepared for Retirement New research findings reiterate concerns that American adults -- often in their peak earning years -- are not saving enough for retirement and that retirement plan advisement could be helpful at the plan sponsor and participant level. Source: Planadviser.com »» Click here for More Studies, Research, and White Papers Items of Special Interest to Service Providers DOL Has Its Say in Court on ESG Challenge A group of Republican-leaning states that earlier sued the DOL over its recently implemented ESG rule for retirement plans claims that the regulator acted "arbitrarily and capriciously" in making it. But the Department of Labor, which recently addressed the allegations in court filings, counters that it was careful to craft a much-needed rule for plan fiduciaries. Source: Investmentnews.com Incoming DOL Fiduciary Rule Slated for August The retirement industry can expect to see a new fiduciary proposal this August, said the Department of Labor in its just-released Spring Regulatory Agenda. Source: 401kspecialistmag.com 403b Plans Proposed Legislation Would Allow 403b Plans to Invest in Lower-Cost CITs A new bill introduced in Congress would allow 403b plans maintained by tax-exempt organizations to make use of collective investment trust investments, an alternative to mutual funds that may provide significant cost savings for 403b plans and their participants. Source: Mwe.com »» Click here for More 403b Material Court and Legal Are All ESG Investments Imprudent? A Plaintiff Suing American Airlines Says Yes ESG investments are a minefield in the current political environment. A new lawsuit filed against American Airlines and its fiduciaries tries to target all ESG investments as imprudent. Source: Cohenbuckmann.com Legal Complaint Targets Pfizer 401k Plan Committee, Board A former Pfizer Inc. employee is alleging the pharmaceutical company caused harm to retirement plan participants, according to a complaint filed last week in federal court in Michigan seeking class-action status. The class-action proposal seeks to recover retirement plan losses allegedly caused by fiduciary breaches leading to "unreasonable" fees. Source: Plansponsor.com 401k Lawsuit Against Advance Publications Over Blackrock Funds Dismissed A federal judge in New York dismissed a lawsuit against Advance Publications Inc. by a former employee who accused its 401k plan managers of violating ERISA by offering a target-date series from BlackRock. The lawsuit is one of 11 filed against different sponsors, making the same claim that the BlackRock LifePath Index Retirement Funds target-date series should have been removed from investment lineups due to alleged poor performance. Source: Pionline.com »» Click here for more Court and Other Legal Issues Legislative and Washington DC Reintroduced Bill Provides Relief for Annuities in QDIAs The latest version of a bipartisan bill would permit annuities to be the default 401k investment option for workers enrolled in an employer-sponsored 401k plan. Source: 401kspecialistmag.com »» Click here for more on Legislative and Washington Actions Compliance and Regulatory Save Trees, Grow Retirement Plans SECURE 2.0 has changed the game again by now allowing employers to save time and money by eliminating certain notices to be sent to unenrolled employees. In the past sponsors were required to send voluminous documents disclosing their retirement and welfare benefits plans to both enrolled and unenrolled participants, but not anymore. The new law now eliminates the requirement to distribute these IRS and ERISA notices to unenrolled participants. Source: Graydon.law Proposed Regulations Govern Making Participant Elections and Spousal Consents Electronically The IRS issued temporary relief allowing spousal consent to be obtained using remote notary services. This relief was extended three times but expired on December 31, 2022. Responding to numerous requests to make the temporary provisions permanent, the IRS issued proposed regulations. Source: Ascensus.com Five Tips for Documenting Missing Participant Searches If a search for a missing participant is not properly documented, is it a diligent search? To regulatory authorities who may scrutinize a plan sponsor's search efforts, the answer is decidedly no. For a regulator to consider a search to be diligent, it must be well-documented. Here are five tips for plan sponsors to better document their missing participant search efforts. Source: 401kspecialistmag.com SECURE 2.0 which was put into effect December 29, 2022, as a part of a $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill. More than 100 current provisions governing retirement plan regulations are affected by this legislation and it is unlikely your plan or day-to-day administration is affected by most of them. However, there are a number that may have significant impacts on your plan. Here is a table of changes. Source: Benefit-Resources.com »» Click here for more Compliance and Regulatory Material Marketplace News SageView Continues Acquisition Spree With Addition of RBG Founders Employee Fiduciary Launches Small Business 401k Tax Credit Calculator
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