Auto Portability - Recent Developments
Find the most-recent auto portability media coverage and developments.
Department of Labor Issues Auto Portability Advisory Opinion
The Department of Labor (DOL) has issued Advisory Opinion 2018-01A on RCH Auto Portability, which can be accessed on the DOL’s website at this link. The DOL’s Advisory Opinion states that defined contribution plan sponsors who accept automatic rollover contributions under auto portability will not be a fiduciary with respect to those contributions. This fiduciary “safe harbor” represents an important step to facilitate auto portability’s widespread adoption by plan sponsors, as well as their recordkeepers.
PRESS RELEASE - Robert L. Johnson Welcomes Department of Labor’s Advisory Opinion on Auto Portability
Robert L. Johnson, Founder and Chairman of The RLJ Companies and majority owner of Retirement Clearinghouse, applauds the U.S. Department of Labor for providing guidance to retirement plan sponsors, clearing the path to widespread adoption of auto portability and enabling millions of Americans to effortlessly preserve their hard-earned retirement savings as they change jobs.
Financial Advisor IQ: DOL Proposes Auto-Portability for 401(k) Plans
Financial Advisor IQ reporter Alex Padalka reports on the Department of Labor (DOL) request for comments on a proposal aiming to reduce leakage from 401(k) plans when employees change jobs -- a program developed by Retirement Clearinghouse (RCH) known as auto-portability. The proposal would give RCH a five-year exemption from certain restrictions, allowing the automatic transfer of 401(k) balances to a new employer plan. The comment period, notes Padalka, ends Dec. 24th.
ThinkAdvisor: DOL Plan Would Help Workers Consolidate 401(k) Accounts
ThinkAdvisor's Melanie Waddell reports on the DOL's proposed ERISA exemption for Retirement Clearinghouse's auto portability program, which is intended to make retirement account balances easier to move from job to job.
Ignites: DOL Proposes 401(k) 'Auto-Portability' Plan
Ignites reporter Joe Morris covers the U.S. Labor Department's announce of the proposed exemption of Retirement Clearinghouse (RCH) from ERISA rules, effectively permitting automatic transfers (roll-ins) of smaller 401(k) balances when participant leave jobs or are terminated -- a program known as auto-portability. The proposal, says Morris, "would task Charlotte-based Retirement Clearinghouse with running an auto-portability program, using RCH's electronic-records- matching technology."
Bloomberg Law: Retirement Clearinghouse Could Get Fee Waived on Savings Transfers
Bloomberg Law's Madison Alder covers the Department of Labor's Nov. 6th proposed exemption for Retirement Clearinghouse to make it easier for auto portability, which Alder describes as "the transfer small sums of savings in individual retirement accounts to new ones when employees change jobs."
Law360: EBSA Floats Simplifying 401(k) Transition Upon Job Change
Law360's Emily Brill reports on the U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) introduction of a proposal in support of RCH's auto portability program -- a proposal which Brill describes as "intended too allow workers to seamlessly transfer their retirement from one 401(k) plan to another when they change jobs."
PlanAdviser: DOL Asks for Input on Retirement Plan Auto-Portability
PlanAdviser's Rebecca Moore details the DOL’s 11/7/18 notice of a proposed exemption from restrictions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to RCH for use of its auto-portability solution. The DOL, says Moore, has “tentatively determined that the proposed exemption is protective of affected plan participants” and notes initial results of the use auto-portability at a plan sponsor, as well as previous support from Congressional legislators, including U.S. Senator Tim Scott, R-S.C.