SECURE Act

The IRS stated in its August 6, 2021 edition of the Employee Plans newsletter that employers that adopt retirement plans during the 2021 tax year, but before their 2020 tax filing deadline (including extensions) and elect to treat the plan as effective as of the last day of the 2020 tax year, as permitted by the SECURE Act, are not required to file a Form 5500 series for the 2020 tax year.

Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representative Lauren Underwood (D-IL) have introduced the Women’s Retirement Protection Act of 2021 in their respective chambers. The legislation is intended to address what some have identified as a gap between the retirement preparedness of women compared to their male counterparts—a gap seemingly exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Key provisions of the legislation are as follows.

The Department of Labor (DOL) has provided FAQs addressing questions about the timing of implementation of pension benefit statement lifetime income illustrations under the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act. The SECURE Act requires plan sponsors of ERISA-covered plans to disclose annually a projection of a lifetime income stream that could be generated by a participant’s total accrued benefit. Implementation is to be effective for benefit statements provided more than 12 months after the DOL issued guidance.

The IRS has issued a revised 2020 Publication 590-B, Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs), intended to clarify the application of required minimum distribution (RMD) rules under the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE Act).

Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), and Ben Cardin (D-MD), have introduced the Retirement Security and Savings Act of 2021, legislation that was last introduced in 2019. This bill, like the Securing a Strong Retirement Act introduced in the House of Representatives earlier this month, is intended to build on the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE) of 2019. With more than 50 provisions, this bill contains a broad set of retirement reforms under the following categories, highlights of which are enumerated below.

Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA), along with co-sponsors Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and James Lankford (R-OK), have re-introduced the Improving Access to Retirement Savings Act. The bill was originally introduced late in the last session of Congress and contains the following provisions.

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) and Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX) have introduced the Securing a Strong Retirement Act (SSRA) of 2021, legislation that was first introduced in October 2020. It builds upon the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE) Act of 2019. The House Ways and Means Committee held a markup hearing Wednesday, May 5, and unanimously voted to advance this legislation to the full House of Representatives to vote on the measure.

The 2020 tax year version of IRS Publication 590-B, Distributions From Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs),reflects the following noteworthy updates pursuant to the passage of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE), Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES), and Consolidated Appropriations Acts.

Legislation proposed by the House Ways and Means Committee to provide COVID-19 pandemic relief and economic stimulus includes several items that would affect retirement and health benefits. Among them are the following.

Despite political partisanship that has marked much of the 116th Congress in 2019 and 2020, there have been some notable exceptions with bipartisan outcomes. The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2019 proved that cooperation is a possibility. That legislation, enacted in December 2019, made significant enhancements to tax-advantaged savings arrangements.