Fiduciary Duty Archives | Market Cheetah

DOL Guidance Focuses on 401(k)-to-IRA Rollover Advice

by Market Cheetah | Apr 19, 2021 | Defined Contribution Plans, Fiduciary Duty, Human Resources, Retirement and Financial Planning

Investment advisors who encourage employees to roll over their 401(k) savings into an individual retirement account (IRA) must adhere to the “best interest” fiduciary standard, and do so from the first conversations about rolling over fund assets, according to new guidance from issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL).

DOL Final Rule Limits Proxy Voting by Retirement Plan Fiduciaries

by Market Cheetah | Dec 15, 2020 | Defined Benefit Plans, Fiduciary Duty, Human Resources

Retirement plan fiduciaries will be barred from casting corporate-shareholder proxy votes in favor of social or political positions that don’t advance the financial interests of retirement plan participants, under a Department of Labor final rule.

Biden Proposals Could Alter Retirement Plan Landscape

by Market Cheetah | Nov 15, 2020 | Defined Benefit Plans, Defined Contribution Plans, Fiduciary Duty, Human Resources

Joe Biden’s administration is expected to differ from President Donald Trump’s approach to promoting retirement security, with a heavier regulatory hand, benefits advisors said. Biden also supports replacing 401(k) contribution tax breaks with flat-tax credits, among other changes.

DOL Final Rule Paves the Way for 2021 Launch of Pooled 401(k) Plans

by Market Cheetah | Nov 15, 2020 | Defined Contribution Plans, Fiduciary Duty, Human Resources

In the coming year, benefits managers may find they’re being pitched to jettison their current 401(k) plan in favor of a pooled employer plan (PEP) shared with other employers. A Department of Labor final rule explaining how 401(k) service providers can register as a pooled plan provider clears the way for PEPs to get underway starting Jan. 1, 2021.

Final Rule Limits 401(k)s from Picking Funds Based on Nonfinancial Factors

by Market Cheetah | Nov 4, 2020 | Defined Benefit Plans, Defined Contribution Plans, Fiduciary Duty, Human Resources

The Department of Labor (DOL) released a final rule requiring fiduciaries to select investments for 401(k) and other plans based on participants’ financial interests, rather than nonfinancial factors such as a fund’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria.

DOL Requires 401(k)s to Give Participants Lifetime Income Estimates

by Market Cheetah | Aug 22, 2020 | Defined Contribution Plans, Fiduciary Duty, Human Resources, Retirement and Financial Planning

The Department of Labor issued an interim final rule that, starting August 2021, will require 401(k) plan sponsors to annually disclose to plan participants estimates on how much income their account balance would produce if used to purchase an annuity. Plan sponsors should work with their record keepers to formulate a plan for compliance.