Benefits Law Advisor

Insights on benefits counseling and litigation issues impacting employers nationwide

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Ashley Bryan Abel

Latest from Benefits Law Advisor

Benefits Law Advisor

PBGC Issues Interim Rule On Multiemployer Pension Bailout; Impact On Employers Unclear

By Paul A. Friedman, Robert R. Perry & David M. Pixley

July 12, 2021

On July 9, 2021, the PBGC issued its interim final rule (the “Rule”) on the process for eligible troubled Multiemployer Pension Plans (“MEPPs”) to apply for and obtain Special Financial Assistance (“SFA”) under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARPA”). The Rule was posted on PBGC’s website and became effective as guidance on July 9, 2021. The PBGC expects the SFA to directly (via the restoration of previously reduced benefits) and indirectly (by providing…

Benefits Law Advisor

Butch Lewis Brings No Good News for Contributing Employers

By Paul A. Friedman

June 23, 2021

In the clamor that surrounded the current administration’s adoption of the American Rescue Act of 2021 (ARPA), quietly tucked in as Subtitle H is the Butch Lewis Emergency Pension Plan Relief Act of 2021 (Butch Lewis). Butch Lewis has been unsuccessfully bouncing around Congress since 2019. While Butch Lewis is long on rhetoric, at this juncture it is lacking in details or controls. Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation (PBGC) regulations will be issued sometime in July.…

Benefits Law Advisor

Musings of Retirement Plan Fiduciaries on Cybersecurity: Episode One

By Joseph J. Lazzarotti & Paul A. Friedman

June 15, 2021

By now, plan fiduciaries and their service providers likely have heard about the DOL’s cybersecurity guidance. The Department of Labor’s stepping into cybersecurity in this way – a posting of best practices on the agency’s website – has left plan fiduciaries with some questions. Here are a few: “When is this effective?” “Does this apply to me?” “Could I be liable if a service provider has a data breach?” “We are halfway through the…

Benefits Law Advisor

Multiemployer Pension Plan Reform/Bailout May Be Greater Than Expected; Guidance Still Forthcoming

By Robert R. Perry & David M. Pixley

June 7, 2021

The Emergency Pension Plan Relief Act of 2021 (EPPRA), enacted as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), contained unprecedented financial relief for the most troubled multiemployer pension plans (MEPPs). The MEPPs community is eagerly awaiting guidance from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) on the requirements for MEPPs to apply for the special financial assistance under the ARPA. New Section 4262(c) of ERISA provides that the PBGC will issue this guidance…

Benefits Law Advisor

Incentives: From Water Bottles to “Not so Substantial”

By Joseph J. Lazzarotti & Patricia Anderson Pryor

June 1, 2021

For years (and we do mean years), the EEOC has waffled about whether incentives were permissible in connection with a medical inquiry under a voluntary wellness program. Friday, the EEOC issued its most recent pronouncement on the topic, this time related to incentives for COVID-19 vaccinations. The ADA prohibits employers from requiring medical examinations or making “disability-related inquiries” except in very limited circumstances. One such exception is in the case of a voluntary wellness program. …

Benefits Law Advisor

IRS Provides Clarity on ARPA COBRA Subsidy Impact on State “Mini-COBRA” Plans

By Joy M. Napier-Joyce & Brian M. Johnston

May 23, 2021

In our most recent summary of IRS Notice 2021-31, we noted the Internal Revenue Service provided much-needed clarity to looming compliance challenges as employers, insurers, and others race to implement the applicable COBRA premium subsidy provisions of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). While there are many other important clarifications made by the Notice, the substance of this alert focuses mainly on issues related to employers subject to state health continuation coverage…

Benefits Law Advisor

Washington Steps Up Insurance Protections for Gender Affirming Treatments

By Craig A. Day & Sherry L. Talton

May 23, 2021

As some states make headlines for so-called “anti-trans” laws, the Washington state legislature rejected a bill designed to limit youth participation in sports based on their gender as assigned on a birth certificate and passed the new Gender Affirming Treatment Act. This Act prohibits health insurers from denying or limiting coverage for gender affirming treatment when that care is prescribed to an individual based on a protected gender expression or identity, is medically necessary, and…

Benefits Law Advisor

IRS Answers to Your American Rescue Plan Act COBRA Subsidy Questions

By Joy M. Napier-Joyce, Suzanne G. Odom & Melissa Ostrower

May 20, 2021

In much-anticipated guidance, the Internal Revenue Service has offered its insight on the implementation of the COBRA temporary premium subsidy provisions of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) in Notice 2021-31. Spanning more than 40 pages, the IRS-answered frequently asked questions (FAQs) finally resolve many issues relating to temporary premium assistance for COBRA continuation coverage left unanswered in the Department of Labor’s publication of model notices, election forms, and FAQs. The practical…

Benefits Law Advisor

New Mandatory Retirement Plan Requirement for Certain New York City Employers

By Melissa Ostrower, Robert R. Perry & Richard I. Greenberg

May 17, 2021

On May 11, 2021, the City Council of New York enacted a local law to establish a retirement savings program for certain employees of private entities. What are the Details? The new law creates a mandatory auto-enrollment payroll deduction individual retirement account (“IRA”) program for employees of private sector employers in New York City which (i) do not offer a retirement plan and (ii) employ five or more employees. The program provides for a default…

Benefits Law Advisor

Fiduciary Investment Advice: Implications Of Department Of Labor Prohibited Transaction Exception 2020-02

By M. Travis DeHaven

May 16, 2021

Employers who sponsor and maintain retirement plans on behalf of their employees and who engage investment advisors to provide investment-related advice to participants may take comfort in knowing there is a new prohibited transaction exemption under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) and the Internal Revenue Code (the “Exemption”) designed to protect plan participants. Department of Labor (“DOL”) PTE 2020-02, Improving Investment Advice for Workers & Retirees, became effective…

Benefits Law Advisor

Insights on benefits counseling and litigation issues impacting employers nationwide

Blog Authors

PBGC Issues Interim Rule On Multiemployer Pension Bailout; Impact On Employers Unclear

Butch Lewis Brings No Good News for Contributing Employers

Musings of Retirement Plan Fiduciaries on Cybersecurity: Episode One

Multiemployer Pension Plan Reform/Bailout May Be Greater Than Expected; Guidance Still Forthcoming

Incentives: From Water Bottles to “Not so Substantial”

IRS Provides Clarity on ARPA COBRA Subsidy Impact on State “Mini-COBRA” Plans

Washington Steps Up Insurance Protections for Gender Affirming Treatments

IRS Answers to Your American Rescue Plan Act COBRA Subsidy Questions

New Mandatory Retirement Plan Requirement for Certain New York City Employers

Fiduciary Investment Advice: Implications Of Department Of Labor Prohibited Transaction Exception 2020-02

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