Media Coverage

This Earth Day, recycle 401(k) savings to avoid IRA landfill

On April 22, we will celebrate the 54th annual Earth Day, which gives us the opportunity to celebrate our planet’s natural surroundings and contemplate how we can help preserve them. The advent, and ongoing expansion of recycling programs has enabled our society to reduce our waste—and although there is still quite a long way to go, we have evolved significantly from the post-World War II throwaway culture. Writing in Employee Benefit News, RCH President & CEO Spencer Williams uses the occasion of Earth Day to extend the recycling concept to our nation's 401(k) system, where auto portability can facilitate the emergence of a more sustainable paradigm, increasing retirement security for millions of Americans.

Corporate Adviser Podcast: Pot for Life around the world

In a podcast featured on UK-based Corporate-Adviser.com, host John Lappin discusses various international solutions for “small pots” (i.e., small balance accounts) that could be applied in the UK. Lappin turns to two AON consultants, who provide a country-by-country rundown on international best practices, with the U.S. and auto portability receiving mention around the 7:30 mark in the podcast. The show's guests also mention a “retirement clearinghouse” that operates the auto portability solution, which they characterize as being innovative, but still in the early phases of implementation.

Retirement Industry Weighs in on Auto Portability Regulations

As the comment period expires for the U.S. Department of Labor's proposed regulations on auto portability, the retirement industry has weighed in, as reflected in the following media articles:

• PlanAdviser: Chamber of Commerce, ERIC Ask DOL for Modifications to Auto-Portability Proposal
• PLANSPONSOR: Stakeholders Ask for Fewer Regulatory Mandates for Automatic Portability
• NAPA Net: ARA Submits Letter to DOL on Auto-Portability Proposed Regs and PTE (also featured in ASPPA Net)
• BenefitsPRO: ERISA group urges DOL to simplify its new 401(k) 'automatic portability' rule
• JD Supra: How DOL’s Proposed Automatic Portability Regulations Will Affect Defined Contribution Plans
• Business Insurance: ERISA Industry Committee calls for simplification of auto-portability rule

Changes for Small-Balance Savers

In the March-April 2024 edition of PLANSPONSOR Magazine, Remy Samuels covers developments surrounding small-balance accounts, including the 12/29/23 increase of the mandatory distribution threshold from $5,000 to $7,000, the recent announcement by the Portability Services Network (PSN) of live operations, and the release by Retirement Clearinghouse (RCH) of an updated version of its Auto Portability Simulation (APS). Samuels briefs her readers on all of these developments, and offers a summary of key results from RCH's new APS model.

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Why You Should Clean Up Those Old 401(k)s

Morningstar's Mark Miller examines the issue of 'old' or abandoned 401(k) accounts and concludes that "adopting good 401(k) hygiene" is key to success as workers change jobs, and consolidation is an effective approach that delivers broad benefits. When it comes to 401(k) automation, Miller turns to RCH EVP Neal Ringquist, who gives Miller a primer on auto portability, as delivered by the Portability Services Network (PSN). Miller quotes Ringquist on the benefits of auto portability -- particularly to under-saved demographic segments -- as well as the impact of consolidation in helping participants more effectively manage their retirement savings.

What to Do With Your 401(k) When You Leave Your Job

In a guest piece for Kiplinger's Personal Finance, RCH & PSN president and CEO Spencer Williams advises readers on the best course of action for keeping track of, and preserving retirement savings following a job change. First and foremost, Williams counsels participants to avoid cashing out, a behavior which happens all too frequently and "can make a big dent in an American’s retirement prospects." Instead of cashing out, Williams advises readers to mobilize their retirement savings "and consolidat[e] them in the active accounts in their new employers’ plans." Finally, Williams notes the promising developments within the Portability Services Network (PSN), which went live on 11/1/23, and which automates plan-to-plan consolidation for balances under $7,000.

401(k) Plans: Additional Federal Actions Would Help Participants Track and Consolidate Their Retirement Savings

On 2/20/24, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a paper entitled: 401(k) Plans: Additional Federal Actions Would Help Participants Track and Consolidate Their Retirement Savings. The paper's organizing principle is the difficulty that many Americans have in keeping track of their retirement savings, and posits that better information on terminated accounts (via a "dashboard" style interface), paired with the ability to easily consolidate all balances via a government-operated consolidation mechanism could deliver benefits to retirement savers. Curiously, the GAO report avoids mentioning the problem of cashout leakage, but does make references to auto portability and the efforts of the Portability Services Network (PSN) for balances under $7,000. The GAO's report was subsequently covered by InvestmentNews and Pensions & Investments.

A More Enlightened Approach to Uncashed Distribution Checks

No retirement plan sponsor likes the idea of dealing with uncashed distribution checks, nor do they wish to draw unwanted regulatory attention or to become embroiled in costly litigation. Unfortunately, many plan sponsors place themselves in precisely that spot, becoming unnecessarily over-burdened with unresolved uncashed checks, while inviting unwanted regulatory scrutiny and/or legal challenges by having flawed uncashed check policies. In his 2/19/24 opinion piece in 401k Specialist Magazine, RCH's Tom Hawkins lays out a "more-enlightened" approach to the problem of uncashed distribution checks, seeking to minimize their numbers, while simultaneously steering clear of the “red flags” that could land them in hot water.