Proposed Legislation Would Ban Mandatory Arbitration and Discretionary Clauses
The Mental Health Matters Act would, among other things, ban forced arbitration clauses, class action waivers, discretionary clauses, and representation...
Tag: Legislation
New Bill Seeks to Encourage 401(k) Investment in Alternative Assets
The Retirement Savings Modernization Act aims to clarify ERISA to incentivize retirement investment in assets such as real estate, private...
Interim Funding Bill Heads to President’s Desk
The House passes a continuing resolution to keep the government open and provide specific funding for aid to Ukraine and...
The State of Social Security: Mixed Perspectives
Experts say the uneven economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in some ways minimized its likely long-term effects on Social...
Advocates Applaud New Elder Justice Bill
The Elder Justice Reauthorization and Modernization Act of 2021 dedicates funding to programs to address vulnerable seniors’ needs, and its advocates say the financial services industry has a...
Pandemic Proved Value of ‘S-ESOP’ Employee Ownership
Workers at employee-owned S corporations, who invest in and own their employers via ‘S employee stock ownership plans,’ report being...
Compliance News
Legislative and Judicial Actions
GAO is asked to review TDFs; complementary ‘SECURE 2.0’ legislation is introduced; 2022 HSA contribution limits are inflation-adjusted; and more
House Ways and Means Committee Talks Retirement Reforms
A panel of expert witnesses from across the financial services domain discussed shortcomings and opportunities for improvement in the U.S. retirement savings system; they urged House members to...
Dire Testimony from Stakeholders on State of Multiemployer Pensions
Speaking to the Joint Select Committee on the Solvency of Multiemployer Pension Plans, one retired Teamster, whose wife is dying from pancreatic cancer, said he could easily end...
Addressing Plan Leakage with Sidecar Accounts
Bipartisan legislation has been introduced in the Senate to address retirement plan leakage; among the opportunities being discussed by industry stakeholders is the use of “sidecar” emergency savings...
Social Security Uncertainty Must Inspire Concerted Action
Commenting on new Social Security deficit projection figures published this week, Rob Fishbein, corporate counsel at Prudential Financial, says it’s not time to hit the panic button yet—but...
Lawsuit Seeks to Halt Rollout of California Secure Choice Savings
The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association wants a federal district court to halt the program, based on ERISA preemption and the possibility that home-owning Californians could be called on...
WTW Warns of Potential Credit Portfolio Impacts Based on Tax Reform
Adjustments made to the corporate tax rate, repatriation of offshore cash and interest rate deductibility all are likely to have immediate effects on the credit markets—and by extension,...
Two ESOP Bills Progress in Congress
Both aim to promote employee ownership and have bipartisan support.
Wagner Law Group Dissects Possible Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Loophole
Since the 20% deduction of qualified business income means that a self-employed individual will be taxed at a lower rate than an employee performing substantially the same work...
Details from the Retirement Plan Simplification and Enhancement Act
Alongside numerous proposed changes, employees who work for three consecutive years with at least 500 hours of service each year would have to be made eligible to participate...
GOP-Crafted Tax Cuts Appear Increasingly Certain
Congressional Republicans have successfully pushed a unified version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act through the House once, and they may now have to do it again.
Mercer Experts Put Odds In Favor of Republican Tax Reform Success
The text of a combined bill drawing together the House and Senate proposals is slowly emerging ahead of critical up-or-down floor votes scheduled for early next week.
Tax Bill Passed By Senate Backs Off 457(b), 403(b) Plan Changes
It appears some last-minute amendments have largely removed controversial provisions from the Senate’s version of tax reform legislation that would have had a big impact on governmental 457...