News

DOL Proposes Regs to Help Job Changers Move 401(k)s Automatically

ThinkAdvisor's John Manganaro reports on breaking news that, on Thursday 1/18/24, "the Employee Benefits Security Administration within the U.S. Department of Labor released proposed regulations....meant to expand the use of automatic retirement account portability tools." Manganaro further reports that the new framework identifies "11 requirements under the statutory exemption that must be satisfied for the automatic portability transaction to be covered by the exemption."

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DOL proposes SECURE 2.0 auto-portability implementation provision

Pension & Investments DC reporter Brian Croce covers the news that the Department of Labor (DOL) has "issued a rule proposal to implement a key SECURE 2.0 provision aimed at reducing plan leakage, by codifying the auto-portability process so that a worker's 401(k) plan can be automatically rolled over to a new employer when changing jobs. Croce links the new regulatory framework to earlier DOL guidance that established an auto portability framework for Retirement Clearinghouse (RCH), which has been subsequently codified by SECURE 2.0. Croce concludes by noting that there will be a "60-day comment period on the proposal."

4 Retirement Initiatives Vital to Closing the Racial Wealth Gap

Writing in 401k Specialist, RCH's Tom Hawkins examines four retirement initiatives that could help in closing America's racial wealth gap. Leading off the article, Hawkins cites U.S. Treasury research identifying a significant racial wealth gap that has remained essentially unchanged over the past 20 years. In the retirement space, Hawkins identifies expanded access, auto portability, emergency savings and the Saver's Match as key initiatives that will make significant contributions to closing the gap, provided that retirement plan sponsors fully embrace and support them.

Department of Labor Releases Proposed regulation on Retirement Plans and Automatic Portability Transactions When Employees Change Jobs

On January 18th, 2024 the Department of Labor's (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) released proposed regulations on automatic portability transactions under the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022. In the press release accompanying the proposed rules, EBSA Assistant Secretary Lisa Gomez remarked: “With the widespread adoption of these accounts, there is a particular need for automatic portability solutions that help ensure participants remain connected to their retirement savings when they change jobs." The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking was posted on the department’s website and will be published in the Federal Register with a 60-day public comment period and instructions on how to submit comments.

No more 401(k) plan ‘leakage’: SECURE 2.0 auto-portability now in effect

BenefitsPRO's Scott Wooldridge looks ahead in 2024, writing that the year "will mark changes to the retirement savings system, in part due to the new SECURE 2.0 law, that will enable more auto-portability of 401(k) retirement accounts." To support that view, Wooldridge identifies the formation of the Portability Services Network (PSN), and quotes Retirement Clearinghouse (RCH) and PSN Chairman Robert L. Johnson, who sees "great interest from employers" in auto portability. Wooldridge also summarizes key findings from RCH's newly-updated Auto Portability Simulation (APS) model, which indicates greater benefits will be associated with auto portability -- and particularly for minorities -- as a new mandatory distribution limit goes into effect in 2024, and as expanded access initiatives gain momentum.

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Will 401k Auto-Portability Became A Cure-All Or A Fiduciary Headache?

Fiduciary News' Chris Carosa examines 401k auto portability, attempting to determine whether the new automatic feature represents a "cure-all" or could become a fiduciary "headache" for risk averse plan sponsors. Carosa turns to an assortment of legal minds, advisors and industry pundits who weigh in on the question. On the positive side, Carosa's sources affirm that "auto-portability does offer plenty of advantages, especially to plan participants" in reducing cashout leakage, preserving small-balance retirement savings and helping plan sponsors to "benefit from auto-enrollment through reduced administration expenses incurred supporting inactive accounts." On the flip side, naysayers cite auto portability's negative consent, the potential for creating a "slippery slope" towards "government overreach" and its supposed inability to accommodate retirees.

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New SECURE 2.0 regulations now in effect in 2024: Is your 401(k) in compliance?

Writing in BenefitsPRO, Jennifer Tanck, Executive Vice President of Pensionmark, informs readers about the key SECURE 2.0 provisions that will affect plan sponsors in 2024. Addressing auto portability, Tanck writes that "[t]he SECURE 2.0 Act now codifies automatic portability" and "permanently approves the negative consent of rollovers of small balances to a terminated employee’s new employer through the Retirement Clearinghouse. The threshold for these rollover amounts has been increased from a maximum of $5,000 to $7,000 for 2024."

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Auto portability is poised to make an even bigger impact in 2024

Writing in Employee Benefit News, RCH President & CEO Spencer Williams looks ahead to the New Year, when a key provision of the SECURE 2.0 Act—increasing the limit on small 401(k) accounts subject to automatic rollovers into safe-harbor IRAs from $5,000 to $7,000—goes into effect. While this development will cause more job-changing participants to be subject to automatic rollover provisions, the advent of auto portability could mean that these participants could ultimately fare much better, as auto portability's adoption accelerates. Williams references new results from RCH's Auto Portability Simulation (APS), which indicate that the new provisions -- when combined with auto portability -- could deliver even greater benefits in terms of reducing cashout leakage and preserving retirement savings, and offers plan sponsors with two New Year's resolutions to proactively respond to the changes.

Previously featured in RCH's Consolidation Corner Blog