Archives: Resources
Retirement Savings Lost and Found Act of 2021
The bipartisan Retirement Savings Lost and Found Act of 2021 (S. 1730), reintroduced by Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Steve Daines (R-MT) on May 20, 2021, will make it possible for countless former employees to find their old employers and claim their retirement benefits. The legislation is aimed at solving a problem that affects many […]
What the Butch Lewis Act Will and Will Not Do
On March 11, 2021, as part of the American Rescue Plan Act, President Biden signed the Butch Lewis Emergency Pension Relief Act into law. The law will preserve and restore the pensions of more than one million retirees and workers in an estimated 200-225 severely underfunded multiemployer pension plans.[i] It is the result of many years […]
State-based retirement plans for the private sector
States around the country are looking into ways of providing retirement savings opportunities for individuals who do not have access to an employer retirement plan. States with a retirement program under consideration or with a program adopted are in bold below. A brief description of the state program is included for each bolded state. […]
Understanding Survivor Benefits in Private Retirement Plans
For married participants in retirement plans, a top concern is making sure that a spouse will receive their retirement benefits if they die. Luckily, most pension plans and many other retirement plans in the United States provide a survivor benefit to widowed spouses of retirement plan participants. In some cases, a survivor benefit can also be left […]
Bafford v. Northrop Grumman Corp
The Pension Rights Center filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circut in Bafford v. Northrop Grumman Corp. on August 10, 2020. Northrup-Grumman’s defined benefit plan, like all such plans, must provide participants with an estimate of their retirement benefits on request. Northrup-Grumman, applying an incorrect benefit formula to a group of […]
The Labor Department’s Notice-and-Access Disclosure Rule: The Basics
The Labor Department has issued a new rule for electronic delivery of plan disclosures to retirement plan participants, called “notice-and-access.”[1] The rule is effective July 27, 2020.[2] The new rule replaces prior guidance on electronic delivery of disclosures to participants, with the exception of a 2002 electronic disclosure rule.[3] The 2002 electronic disclosure rule remains […]
The Labor Department’s new disclosure rule: What could it mean for you?
The Labor Department issued a new rule, effective July 27, 2020, that describes a new form of electronic disclosure for retirement plan information called “notice-and-access.” This new scheme of disclosure will put the burden of finding retirement plan information on to the participants in the plan. Rather than receiving your retirement plan information on paper […]
The Top 10 Worst Things about the Department of Labor’s New “Notice-and-Access” Rule for Retirement Plans
The US Department of Labor has adopted a new rule that will allow retirement plans to use an automatic “notice-and-access” disclosure system that will result in millions of workers and retirees no longer receiving critical information about their retirement plan and benefits. The new rule will effectively upend the commonsense rule now in place.[i] Currently, […]
Disclosures you may receive from your retirement plan
Retirement plan participants receive multiple communications from their plans. Some disclosures are sent automatically, such as each year, every quarter or when joining a plan. Other disclosures are sent when “triggering” events occur, such as termination of employment or divorce. Certain plan documents and reports are available upon request. Beneficiaries, such as spouses, can generally […]
Summary of CARES Act provisions relating to retirement plans
Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act, Public Law 116-136) in response to the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The Act includes several items designed to ease employees’ access to their retirement funds and certain provisions allowing employers to delay contributions to their pension plans. The Act was […]
Pension Rights Center Concerns about Proposed DOL Electronic Disclosure Rule
This Is No Time to Deny Workers and Retirees Vital Information about their Retirement Plans The Department of Labor, the agency charged with protecting people’s rights to retirement benefits, wants to adopt a new rule that would undermine workers’ and retirees’ rights by making it far less likely they get the information they need to plan their retirement and watchdog their pension […]
Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2020
On October 27, 2020 House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) and Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX) introduced the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2020 (H.R. 8696), a bipartisan bill with some important provisions for retirement plan participants. The following summary highlights parts of the bill that are likely to be of special interest to […]
