News

Auto Portability: It’s All About the Participants

Writing in 401k Specialist, RCH's Tom Hawkins reminds readers what auto portability is all about -- improving the retirement security of marginalized defined contribution participants. These participants -- comprised largely of minorities, women, younger and lower-income participants -- not only need auto portability the most, but there's solid evidence that they want it as well. To support his claim, Hawkins cites three highly-regarded surveys that have found a strong participant preference for auto portability and for consolidating small balances within the defined contribution system, and believes that recent developments will "augur well for Americans’ retirement security."

DOL Drops Off Proposed Auto-Portability Exemption at OMB

NAPA Net's Ted Godbout, covering DC's retirement regulatory agency activity, reports forward progress towards the public release of guidance for auto portability, as called for in SECURE 2.0 Act provisions. On December 5th, Godbout reports that the DOL submitted the proposed guidance to the White House Office of Management and Budget for their review. Godbout further observes that "the proposal will now undergo a review at OMB before being released for a public comment period, which shows a target release date of December 2023."

Also featured in ASPPA Net

What’s on Tap for the Next Retirement Plan Policy Bill?

Andrew Remo, the American Retirement Association's (ARA) Director of Federal & State Legislative Affairs, summarizes the ARA's positions on key legislative matters following SECURE 2.0, and contemplates future, "new bipartisan proposals for consideration in the next round of retirement plan policymaking." While Remo addresses multiple legislative initiatives, he identifies Roth IRA rollovers as ARA's top priority. Because workers are currently prohibited from rolling Roth IRA savings into a workplace-based retirement savings plan, Remo believes that legislation removing this limitation could lead to more-effective operation of auto portability, which would facilitate automatic consolidation of these Roth IRA balances into a current-employer's workplace plan, while minimizing duplicative fees.

Also featured in ASPPA Net

401(k) Real Talk Episode 85: November 15, 2023

Fred Barstein, founder and CEO of The Retirement Adviser University, anchors his ongoing Wealth Management RPA Edge / 401(k) Real Talk video series, and discusses the 11/7/23 launch of auto portability services via the Portability Services Network (PSN). In his comments, Barstein notes the greater, longer-term potential of the PSN network to facilitate portability and to promote financial wellness, stating: “the initial launch, facilitated by the Retirement Clearinghouse is a great beginning – not just for the Portability Services Network, but for the entire DC industry.” Barstein’s commentary on PSN begins at the 3:00 mark.

Auto-Portability: A New Way to Keep Retirement Savings Growing

On this episode of Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion podcast, host Brydon DeWitt is joined by Beryl Ball, principal financial advisor at CAPTRUST, who offers insight on auto portability, as offered via the Portability Services Network (PSN). As the pair discuss, auto portability addresses the growing problem of 401(k) and other retirement plan participants who change jobs and lose track of their benefits or lose money by cashing them out early.

Portability Services Network Launches Solution to Reduce Plan Leakage

401k Specialist's Amanda Umpierrez reports on the 11/7/23 announcement from the Portability Services Network (PSN), signaling that the network's auto portability solution is operational and that member recordkeepers will commence rolling out the service to their plan sponsor clients. Umpierrez quotes Retirement Clearinghouse (RCH) and PSN Chairman Robert L. Johnson, who states: "[t]he Portability Services Network is poised to deliver on its core mission to stem the cash-out crisis that harms Black and other under-served and under-saved low-wage workers" including preserving $619 billion in retirement savings for low-wage Black workers and minority communities over the next generation. Johnson also notes the "great interest" expressed thus far by employer plan sponsors.

LTPT and Auto-Portability Regs Coming Soon, Officials Reiterate

Writing in ASPPA Net, John Iekel covers the Nov. 6 session of the Society for SPARK Forum, where officials from the IRS and the DOL weighed in on their near-term regulatory agenda. In a panel that included DOL Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Ali Khawar, the topic of auto portability was addressed. Iekel quotes Khawar as stating that auto portability is “an important part of the puzzle” and that "and that the DOL will be issuing guidance that will provide more clarity on what the statutory text says." Iekel adds that "Khawar’s comments were similar to those articulated Oct. 24 at the ASPPA Annual Conference...by Assistant Secretary of Labor Lisa Gomez."

Retirement's perfect storm is brewing. How automated portability can offer shelter

RCH and PSN President & CEO Spencer Williams, writing in Employee Benefit News, notes that a rising incidence of hardship withdrawals and 401(k) loans – as reported by Bank of America – combined with a pending increase in the account-balance limit for automatic rollovers effective 12/31/23, could create a “perfect storm” for depleting Americans’ retirement savings. “Fortunately,” writes Williams, “sponsors and recordkeepers have access to a solution that can help them clean up their plans without automatically rolling terminated accounts into safe-harbor IRAs.” Auto portability, continues Williams, is a “capability [that] is more essential than ever, with 401(k) plan enrollment continuing to increase” and could serve to defuse the brewing storm of potential cash-outs.

Previously featured in RCH's Consolidation Corner