Ted Godbout

Treasury Priority Guidance Plan Focuses on TCJA Implementation

By Ted Godbout 11/12/2018

The 2018-2019 Treasury Priority Guidance Plan includes more than 60 regulatory projects relating to implementation of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that the agency intends to address in the coming year. Overall, the plan contains 239 guidance projects that will be the focus of efforts through June 30... READ MORE

DOL Seeks Input on Auto Portability

By Ted Godbout 11/8/2018

The Department of Labor (DOL) wants to know what you think about auto-portability. In a Nov. 7 request for comments, the DOL noted that employees leaving their current place of employment with small account balances in the company’s 401(k) plan often either take a distribution of their retirement... READ MORE

Midterm Fallout: The Impact on Retirement Issues

By Ted Godbout 11/7/2018

UPDATED NOV. 8, 2018 As expected, the Democrats took control of the House of Representatives in the congressional midterm elections, portending a major shift in focus for retirement policy issues. Currently the party affiliation in the House stands at 219 Democrats and 193 Republicans. In the... READ MORE

What Happened to Open MEPs?

By Ted Godbout 10/30/2018

At first blush, many in the industry assumed that the Department of Labor’s proposed rules expanding access to multiple employer retirement plans would include allowing for open MEPs by unrelated employers. The idea hasn’t gone away, but it’s not included in the current DOL proposal. Issued in... READ MORE

Retirement Security: What’s Changed Since the Recession?

By Ted Godbout 10/29/2018

While workers are now more secure in their retirement preparations than before the Great Recession, they still face a number of shortcomings, says a new report. The Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies report, “A Retirement Security Retrospective: 2007 Versus 2017” illustrates the resilience... READ MORE

Financial Wellness of Long-term HSA Investors Shows Promise

By Ted Godbout 10/26/2018

While some studies show that health savings accounts continue to struggle to gain traction, a new analysis finds encouraging signs for future financial wellness for individuals the longer they have and contribute to an HSA. The Employee Benefit Research Institute’s updated analysis, “Health... READ MORE

DOL Proposes Expanded Access to MEPs

By Ted Godbout 10/22/2018

The Department of Labor has released proposed rules that would expand access to multiple employer retirement plans for small employers and self-employed workers, while also maintaining fiduciary oversight. Modeled after the Association Health Plans (AHPs) concept, the proposed rules issued Oct. 22... READ MORE

DOL, SEC Set Targets for Fiduciary, Advice Rulemaking

By Ted Godbout 10/19/2018

The federal government’s updated unified regulatory agenda has shed light on the status of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s and Department of Labor’s efforts on investment advice and the now-vacated fiduciary rule. The SEC’s updated regulatory agenda confirms that the agency has set a... READ MORE

Social Security Announces 2.8% Benefit Increase for 2019

By Ted Godbout 10/15/2018

Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for more than 67 million Americans will increase 2.8% in 2019, the Social Security Administration announced Oct. 11. The 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits payable to beneficiaries in January. For SSI... READ MORE

Why Employees Still View HSAs as Spending, Not Savings, Accounts

By Ted Godbout 10/15/2018

Health savings accounts (HSAs) are a high-value option with triple tax benefits that help employees prepare for health care costs in retirement, but many employees continue to miss out on the benefits, according to a new study. Willis Towers Watson’s 2018 Health Accounts Employee Attitudes Survey... READ MORE

What Determines ‘Retirement Happiness’?

By Ted Godbout 10/12/2018

Many countries consistently receive high rankings for their retirement systems, but does that mean they also have the happiest participants? A new report delves deeper into the drivers of happiness in the context of retirement and finds that that’s not necessarily the case. State Street Global... READ MORE

How Do Americans Perceive Their Financial Health?

By Ted Godbout 10/11/2018

Nearly one-third of Americans do not have an accurate handle on the state of their own finances, thinking they are either better or worse off than they actually are, according to a new study. Prudential’s first ever Financial Wellness Census, which surveyed more than 3,000 U.S. adults, explores... READ MORE

Retirement Security: What’s Changed Since the Recession?

By Ted Godbout 10/11/2018

Are Financial Wellness Programs Entering the Mainstream?

By Ted Godbout 10/11/2018

As employers increasingly determine that financial wellness programs can help improve employee productivity and reduce financial stress, it would seem that such programs are no longer in their pilot program days. The findings of NEPC’s Defined Contribution Financial Wellness Survey reveal that... READ MORE

ARA Urges Congress to Extend More Relief to Hurricane Victims

By Ted Godbout 10/5/2018

The American Retirement Association is urging Congress to approve legislation providing victims of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria access to their 401(k) and similar plan savings without incurring IRS penalties and taxes. The ARA has been making the case that legislation should mirror the... READ MORE

IRS Lays Out Employee Plan Program Priorities for 2019

By Ted Godbout 10/5/2018

A program letter from the heads of the IRS Tax Exempt & Government Entities (TE/GE) division provides an update on the compliance, data, process and casework strategies the division plans to focus on in the coming year. Not surprisingly, implementing the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) will... READ MORE

Retirement Component of Tax Reform 2.0 Moves to Senate

By Ted Godbout 9/28/2018

The House of Representatives approved legislation Sept. 27 that seeks to make it easier for businesses to offer retirement plans and for individuals to save for retirement. The Family Savings Act (H.R. 6757) now moves to the Senate, which may take up similar legislation in a lame duck session... READ MORE

Lifetime Income Safe Harbor Now in Tax Reform 2.0 Mix

By Ted Godbout 9/27/2018

With the House of Representatives poised to take up the second round of tax reform, a couple of changes have been made to the retirement section of the legislation.On Sept. 25, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) offered a “manager’s amendment” to the Family Savings Act (H.R... READ MORE

Have CITs in 401(k) Plans Reached a Tipping Point?

By Ted Godbout 9/25/2018

Collective investment trusts (CITs) have long been heralded as “the next big thing” in the DC industry, but a new report suggests that, in recent years, the market has turned a corner. The third quarter 2018 issue of The Cerulli Edge—U.S. Retirement Edition finds that CIT adoption is finally... READ MORE

Most Participants Are Invested in Equities, But Not Company Stock

By Ted Godbout 9/25/2018

More 401(k) plan participants held equities at year-end 2016 than before the financial crisis, but participants continue to shy away from investing in their own companies’ stock, preferring more diversified investments, new data shows.According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and... READ MORE

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