Legislative updates

In an atmosphere more partisan than earlier coronavirus relief efforts, the Democratic caucus of the House of Representatives has released a bill to fund another round of assistance as the nation attempts to cope with the health and economic effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This legislation, as yet unnumbered, is being referred to as the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act.

Following passage by an overwhelming margin in the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday, President Trump today signed into law the Paycheck Protection and Healthcare Enhancement Act, infusing $320 billion in additional funding into the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

Following passage by the U.S. Senate on Tuesday, the House of Representatives today overwhelmingly passed the Paycheck Protection and Healthcare Enhancement Act by a vote of 388 to 5, infusing a reported $320 billion in additional funding into the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). President Trump has indicated that he will sign the legislation into law.

The U.S. Senate on Tuesday overwhelmingly passed the Paycheck Protection and Healthcare Enhancement Act, legislation that would provide $320 billion in additional funding to the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). This lending program is intended to help small employers retain employees on their payrolls during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and resulting economic emergency. The legislation would also provide funding for hospitals dealing with the immediate effects of the pandemic, and, specifically, for enhanced COVID-19 testing.

With virtually every part of the U.S. economy facing unexpected financial challenges from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Congress has passed the largest relief package in U.S. history. Signed into law on March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is designed to assist the millions of Americans affected by the outbreak. The legislation has multiple provisions that affect retirement and health savings arrangements.

The House of Representatives today passed—by an expedited procedure—the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which was passed by the Senate late on Wednesday, March 25. This afternoon, President Trump signed the legislation into law.

On Wednesday night, March 25, shortly before midnight, Eastern Time, the U.S. Senate cleared lingering objections of both Democrat and Republican members and unanimously passed H.R. 748, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security, or CARES Act. The legislation has many elements intended to aid businesses and workers, and assist the U.S. health care system in working through the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. It also contains multiple provisions that would affect retirement savings arrangements, health savings accounts (HSAs), Archer medical savings accounts (MSAs), health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs), and flexible spending arrangements (FSAs).

The most extensive changes to retirement saving in more than a decade became law when President Trump signed the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020 (FCAA) on December 20, 2019. While the main purpose of the FCAA was to fund the federal government for the next fiscal year, Congress also added significant retirement provisions to the FCAA by including the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act in the broader bill.

The new year promises to provide plentiful opportunities for financial advisors to gain business and to demonstrate expertise to existing clients. As you likely know, the SECURE Act was signed into law on December 20, 2019. Many of the Act’s provisions took effect on January 1, 2020. Most of them offer real benefits to your clients; other provisions may not be as helpful, but you still need to understand them to provide the best service possible. This Retirement Spotlight focuses on a half-dozen SECURE Act provisions that will make the most significant impact on your retirement plan practice.

For the past three years, Congress has attempted to pass major retirement reform legislation. It has finally succeeded with the year-end passage of two spending packages meant to avert a government shutdown. One of the packages, the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 (FCAA), includes multiple bills—including the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, which contains several major retirement-related provisions. These provisions are nearly identical to those included in an earlier version of the SECURE Act that was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in May 2019. At the time of this publication, the President had not yet signed these bills into law. But it is widely anticipated that he will.