Monday, January 1, 2007

DOL Proposed Regulations/DOL News – 2007 Index

DOL Proposed Regulations

The purpose of DOL proposed regulations is "to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules."

DOL Proposed Regulation – Civil Penalties Under ERISA Section 502(c)(4) (Dec 19, 2007)
This proposed rule is for assessing civil penalties against plan administrators who fail to disclose certain documents to participants, beneficiaries and others as required by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, as amended by the Pension Protection Act (PPA).
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL Proposed Regulation - Reasonable Contract or Arrangement Under Section 408(b)(2)--Fee Disclosure (Dec 13, 2007)
This proposed rule will enhance disclosure to fiduciaries of 401(k) and other employee benefit plans to assist them in determining the reasonableness of compensation paid to plan service providers and conflicts of interest that may affect a service provider's performance under a service contract or arrangement.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release] [Fact Sheet] DOL Notice [HTML] DOL Notice [PDF]

DOL Proposed Regulation - Multi-Employer Pension Plan Information Made Available on Request (Sep 14, 2007)
This proposed rule provides guidance giving participants in multiemployer pension plans, their union representatives and contributing employers the right to request and receive copies of certain actuarial, financial and other funding-related documents from their plans. The new disclosure rules implement provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA).
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release] [Comments]

DOL Proposed Regulation - Selection of Annuity Providers for Individual Account Plans (Sep 12, 2007)
This proposed rule provides guidance, in the form of a safe harbor, for the selection of annuity providers by fiduciaries for benefit distributions from individual account plans, such as 401(k) plans.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL Proposed Regulation - Amendments to Civil Penalties Under ERISA Section 502(c)(7) (Aug 10, 2007)
This proposed rule is a companion to the direct final rule the civil penalty regulation to reflect recent amendments by the Pension Protection Act of 2006.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL Proposed Regulation - Fee and Expense Disclosures to Participants in Individual Account Plans (Apr 25, 2007)
This is a "request for information" (RFI) to assist the department in improving information provided to an estimated 41 million participants about administrative and investment fees and expenses charged to 401(k)-type plans.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]
EBSA Testimony Before House Committee on Education & Labor

DOL News

The purpose of DOL News is to provide links to DOL related news that is not in the format of a DOL final regulation, DOL proposed regulation, or a DOL field assistance bulletin.

DOL Offers Online DFVCP Penalty Calculator
LINKS:
[HTML] [News Release]

DOL Releases Advance Copies of 2007 Form 5500
LINKS:
[HTML] [News Release]

DOL Launches Interactive Web Tool to Help Employers Comply with Retirement Laws
LINKS:
[HTML] [News Release]

DOL Final Regulations – 2007 Index

DOL Final Regulation - Annual Reporting and Disclosure (Nov 16, 2007)
This final rule, along with a notice of adoption of revisions, contains revisions to the Form 5500 Annual Return/Report for plan year 2009, including a deferral for one year of the move to the wholly electronic filing system.
LINKS: [HTML] [PDF] [News Release] [Fact Sheet] DOL Notice [HTML] DOL Notice [PDF]

DOL Final Regulation - Default Investment Alternatives Under Participant-Directed Individual Account Plans (Oct 24, 2007)
This regulation implements PPA provisions providing relief to plan fiduciaries who invest the assets of participants who do not provide investment direction (such as automatically enrolled workers) in "qualified default investment alternatives" or QDIAs. The QDIAs described in the rule will encourage the investment of employee assets in investment vehicles appropriate for long-term retirement savings.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release] [Fact Sheet]

DOL Final Regulation - Amendment to Interpretive Bulletin 95-1 (Sep 12, 2007)
This interim final rule amends Interpretative Bulletin 95-1 to limit the application of the bulletin to the selection of annuity providers for benefit distributions from defined benefit plans. This amendment will affect plan sponsors and fiduciaries of individual account plans, and the participants and beneficiaries covered by such plans.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL Final Regulation - Amendments to Civil Penalties Under ERISA Section 502(c)(7) (Aug 10, 2007)
This is a direct final rule amending the civil penalty regulation to authorize the Secretary of Labor to assess civil penalties not to exceed $100 per day for each violation of section 101(m) of ERISA, which requires plan administrators of individual account plans to notify participants and beneficiaries of their right to sell the company stock in their accounts and reinvest the proceeds into other investments available under the plan. The notice must also inform the recipients of the importance of diversifying the investments in their accounts.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL Final Regulation - Time and Order of Issuance of Domestic Relations Orders (DROs) (Mar 7, 2007)
This is an interim final rule that provides guidance to plan administrators, service providers, participants, and alternate payees on the qualified domestic relations order (QDRO) requirements under ERISA.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL Final Regulation - Amendments to Safe Harbor for Distributions From Terminated Individual Account Plans and Termination of Abandoned Individual Account Plans To Require Inherited Individual Retirement Plans for Missing Nonspouse Beneficiaries (Feb 15, 2007)
This is an interim final rule amending regulations under ERISA that provide guidance and a fiduciary safe harbor for the distribution of benefits on behalf of participants or beneficiaries in terminated and abandoned individual account plans.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL Final Regulation - Statutory Exemption for Cross-Trading of Securities (Feb 12, 2007)
This is an interim final rule regarding the new statutory exemption on cross-trading in the Pension Protection Act (PPA).
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL Final Regulation - Electronic Filing of Annual Reports (Jul 21, 2006)
This is a final rule establishing an electronic filing requirement for certain annual reports required to be filed with the Department of Labor by plan administrators and other entities.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

Rules and Regulations

2008

2007



DOL Field Assistance Bulletins – 2007 Index

DOL Field Assistance Bulletins – 2007 Index

DOL FAB 2007-03 Periodic Pension Benefit Statements for Non-Participant Directed Individual Account Plans
This guidance supersedes the guidance provided in FAB 2006-03 as it relates to the dates for furnishing pension benefit statements to participants and beneficiaries of individual account plans that do not permit participants and beneficiaries to direct the investment of assets in their individual accounts.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL FAB 2007-02 ERISA Coverage Of IRC § 403(b) Tax-Sheltered Annuity Programs (Jul 24, 2007)
Guidance related to 403(b) tax-sheltered annuity programs and the Department of Labor's safe harbor regulation.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL FAB 2007-01 Statutory Exemption For Investment Advice (Feb 2, 2007)
Guidance relating to the investment advice provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]

DOL FAB 2006-03 Periodic Pension Benefit Statements - PPA (Dec 20, 2006)
Interim guidance relating to individual benefit statements and notices of freedom to divest employer securities pursuant to the Pension Protection Act of 2006.
LINKS:
[HTML] [PDF] [News Release]