Regulation

Being a retirement plan fiduciary carries a heavy weight and lots of responsibility. Breaches of such responsibilities can result in both civil and criminal action, though the latter is rare and usually the result of egregious behavior. Fortunately, retirement plan sponsors have a growing menu of options to help them manage their fiduciary obligations and offset some of their legal liabilities.

Under the Department of Health and Human Services’ final rule issued March 5 on the reinsurance fee imposed under the Affordable Care Act, some employers may be exempt in 2015 or 2016. Is your client exempt?

Rising health care costs are driving employers to audit their covered dependents to eliminate working spouses.

The Department of Labor requested public comments this week on a proposal to amend its 408(b)(2) fee disclosure regulations to require service providers to provide plan sponsors with a guide for navigating fee disclosure documents.

Insurance companies will urge U.S. lawmakers today to stop the Federal Reserve from imposing bank-like capital standards on their industry.

A panel including a security specialist and FTC privacy staffer talked Monday at an American Payroll Association meeting about common mistakes employers make with their employees’ personal data and what the right make-up of a privacy team at a company should look like.

Commentary: Game on at the DOL means game on for employers. Are your employers prepared for a DOL audit? Are you prepared to advise them on what an audit involves and the fines for non-compliance?

Whether being subject to an involuntary EBSA Audit, or undertaking a voluntary correction program, there are certain things a plan sponsor should be looking for (and looking out for) if they are going to have the EBSA nosing around their plans. The EBSA recently held an online seminar about things to anticipate in an EBSA investigation and here are some things that are important to remember. …

With the Affordable Care Act looming large, employers turn to benefit outsourcing to keep their plans compliant.

An organization that could impact the work lives of agents and brokers who are licensed in multiple states was supposed to be included in the flood insurance bill that passed the U.S. House Tuesday evening, but the language for it was left out. What happened, and are brokers invested in this idea anyway?