In Practice August 2, 2022

Meet Dave Barry, Professional Humorist and Pulitzer Prize Winner

Among his accomplishments, Barry won the Pulitzer Prize for commentary, although he misplaced it for several years, which is why his wife now keeps it in a secure location that he does not know about.

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If you haven’t heard already, the 2022 PLANADVISER National Conference is fast approaching, being held in person this year for the first time since 2019—and in a new location. We will be taking over the beautiful Westin Kierland Resort in Scottsdale for three days of learning, networking and innovating. 

The conference agenda is packed with timely presentations and informative debates—and with fun events like the welcome party and the PANC Fun Run. We are particularly excited to be presenting our special guest speaker, Dave Barry, professional humorist.  

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Among his accomplishments, Barry won the Pulitzer Prize for commentary, although he misplaced it for several years, which is why his wife now keeps it in a secure location that he does not know about. Barry is also a New York Times best-selling author and has published more than 30 insightful and humorous books, even being called “one of the funniest writers alive” by journalist Carl Hiaasen.

You can read more about Barry’s life and work on his website, and you can find the link to the conference registration page here.

We hope you will join us for what promises to be an unparalleled learning and network event for America’s premier retirement plan advisers.

Compliance August 1, 2022

Keeping Up with the Securing a Strong Retirement Act

Because different provisions are included in the House and Senate versions of the ambitious retirement reform legislation, a reconciliation process is likely in store.

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As the Securing a Strong Retirement Act winds its way through the federal legislative process, Groom Law Group has published a helpful resource that details exactly what provisions are included in the different versions of the bill that are currently circulating in the House and Senate.

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Specifically, Groom’s summary covers the provisions in the Securing a Strong Retirement Act, as passed by the House of Representatives in March, along with the provisions in the Enhancing American Retirement Now Act, as approved by the Senate Finance Committee in June, and the Retirement Improvement and Savings Enhancement to Supplement Healthy Investments for the Nest Egg Act, as approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee around the same time.

As they have emphasized in recent discussions with PLANADVISER, the Groom attorneys note that staff on both sides of the Capitol are now working to negotiate a unified, bicameral version of retirement legislation. Groom’s collective viewpoint is that final legislation could be included in a “must-pass” spending bill later this year, likely after the November general elections.

Taken as a whole, the legislative package aims to broadly improve the U.S. defined contribution retirement plan system. For example, it proposes creating new plan features and new levels of access to high-quality retirement plans. Other features of the legislation package would provide support to workers with student loans by allowing employers to match their loan repayments with retirement account contributions. There are also provisions aimed at simplifying the fiduciary process involved in the provision of guaranteed lifetime income options within DC plans.

At this juncture, the full House has passed its version of the legislation by a nearly unanimous bipartisan vote, but the Senate is continuing to work on its two parallel pieces of legislation. All is yet to be cobbled together, and so the retirement planning industry remains in a wait-and-see posture.

The Groom attorneys say many of the provisions in the legislative package enjoy substantial bipartisan appeal. More challenging is the fact that some parts of the bill will “cost revenue,” meaning they are not budget-neutral and may require new tax revenues, which always makes legislation more difficult to pass in a closely divided Congress.

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