Employee Benefit News

For the first time, the Department of Labor (DOL) has issued guidance addressing cybersecurity for plan sponsors, plan fiduciaries, recordkeepers, and plan participants of ERISA covered plans.

As you have probably heard, student loan debt is a big issue. According to federal statistics, 69 percent of college students in the Class of 2019 took out student loans, and they graduated with an average debt of $29,900 per student. Additionally, approximately 14 percent of these students’ parents took out loans to assist their children attend college. Overall, there is more than $1.71 trillion in student loan debt in the United States, and this is spread out over approximately 44.7 million borrowers. So, what are some methods an employer can use to assist its employees and attract new employees related to student loan debt? This article will discuss two options that the IRS allows employers to use to assist with and encourage the repayment of student loan debt.

On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed into law a comprehensive stimulus package titled the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) that includes assistance in the form of a 100 percent COBRA premium subsidy to “assistance eligible individuals” for a period of up to six months. Although ARPA went into effect on April 1, 2021, employer implementation of the new law has been delayed pending the release of the model notices by the Department of Labor (DOL). However, on April 7, 2021, the DOL issued the model notices to be used by employers to satisfy the notice obligations imposed by ARPA along with a set of FAQ’s that provide some clarifying guidance. Now that the model notices have been released, employers should begin taking steps toward satisfying its obligations under ARPA.

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) was signed by President Biden on March 11, 2021. The ARPA follows previous laws applicable to the minimum funding contribution requirements for defined benefit plans, and this article discusses the impacts of the ARPA on Single Employer Plans (as opposed to Multi-Employer Plans).

Employers who sponsor group health, dental and/or vision plans should be aware that the Department of Labor (DOL) just issued EBSA Disaster Relief Notice 2021-01 which provides specific guidance and recommendations to employers in connection with Outbreak Period relief previously issued by the DOL and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in joint guidance issued last year in EBSA Disaster Relief Notice 2020-01 (Joint Notice).

The IRS has provided additional guidance regarding the coronavirus-related distributions, the modification to plan loans made to individuals impacted by COVID-19, and the 2020 waiver of the required minimum distributions. This article will provide an update to such article as provided in the recently released additional guidance from the IRS in Notices 2020-50 and 2020-51.

The Department of Labor (DOL) recently approved a safe harbor method for retirement plan administrators to use electronic media, as a default, to furnish information to participants and beneficiaries of plans subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). This new safe harbor method (New Electronic Disclosure Method) has very specific requirements that plan administrators must follow in order to provide participants and beneficiaries with electronic ERISA disclosures. The New Electronic Disclosure Method is in addition to the prior electronic disclosure option established by the DOL in 2002, but it generally allows electronic disclosure to more individuals.

Continuing with ongoing efforts to provide relief during this COVID-19 National Emergency, the Internal Revenue Service, Department of Labor, Treasury Department and EBSA (the “Agencies”) have issued new joint guidance extending certain timeframes under ERISA and the Internal Revenue Code that apply to group health, disability and other welfare plans, and retirement plans as well as the participants/beneficiaries of those plans during this National Emergency.

As a follow-up to the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), the CARES Act both clarifies and expands on the COVID-19 related coverage requirements applicable to group health plans (including grandfathered health plans) and health insurance issuers. The CARES Act includes key provisions impacting certain welfare and fringe benefits including HSA’s and educational assistance programs.

The CARES Act provides a special distribution option for specific individuals. This coronavirus-related distribution is exempt from the prohibition on premature distributions (i.e., prior to age 59 ½ or termination of employment), and thus is exempt from the 10 percent excise tax on such distributions. The distribution is limited to $100,000 from the plans of the sponsoring employer and any member of its controlled group. This coronavirus-related distribution is available to IRAs and plans described in Internal Revenue Code (Code) sections 401(a), 401(k), 403(a), 403(b), and 457(b).

The COVID-19 pandemic is causing significant disruptions to normal everyday life, and part of this normal everyday life is retirement planning. This alert is intended to provide guidance to retirement plans in this very unusual time we find ourselves related to retirement plans. The first section is related to defined contribution plans, and the second section is related to defined benefit plans.

On Wednesday, March 18, 2020 President Donald Trump signed into law House Bill 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, (FFCRA) which implements extensive efforts to combat the spread of COVID-19, commonly referred to as coronavirus as well as the economic impact of the virus. This new law includes requirements affecting the coverage under employer sponsored group health plans and health insurance issuers in the group and individual market. Specifically, the provisions affecting health plans focus on mandated coverage of COVID-19 testing.

As you may have heard, Congress recently passed — and the President signed into law — the SECURE Act, which is landmark legislation that affects the rules for creating and maintaining employer-sponsored retirement plans. SECURE stands for the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act. The SECURE Act is generally effective on January 1, 2020.

Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP is pleased to announce that 26 attorneys are recognized as “Leaders in Their Field” in eight practice areas in the 2019 Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business.

Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP will host its annual Tax Update Seminar in Little Rock on Tuesday, Nov. 6 from 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. at the UA Little Rock Bowen School of Law. This one-day comprehensive program highlights the most important and up-to-date information on tax law.

Jeremiah D. Wood spoke to BKD’s leaders at its 2018 Leadership Conference that was held July 11-13 in Indianapolis, IN.

Attorney Alexandra Ifrah talks to Arkansas Business about the benefits of automatic enrollment of employees in 401(k) plans. The strategy, which is a trend nationwide, can help companies in several ways.

April 1, 2018 marked the start date for employee benefit plans to comply with a final regulation under ERISA for claims related to disability benefits or disability determinations when the employee benefit plan makes its own determination as to whether a participant is disabled.

Attorney Jeremiah Wood spoke earlier today at the ASCPA 2018 Employee Benefits Conference in Little Rock.