PLANADVISER - March/April 2018 - 15

stock-and agrees not to change this for a period of three
years from the date the settlement agreement is executed.
* SunTrust, at its expense, will provide fiduciary training
to the committee responsible for the plan on an annual
basis for at least five years from the date the settlement
agreement is executed.
IRS Issues Guidance on 403(b) Plan RMDs
In a memorandum to Employee Plans Examinations (EP)
employees, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued
guidance about handling 403(b) plan efforts to issue required
minimum distributions (RMDs) to missing participants.
Similar to one issued last year, the current memo states
that EP examiners shall not challenge a 403(b) contract for
violating RMD standards-viz., failing to begin or make
a distribution to a participant or beneficiary to whom a
payment is due-if the plan has taken the following steps:
* Searched plan and related plan, plan sponsor and
publicly available records or directories for alternative
contact information;
* Used a commercial locator service; a credit reporting
agency; or a proprietary internet search tool for locating
individuals; and
* Attempted contact via U.S. Postal Service (USPS) certified
mail to the last known mailing address and through
appropriate means for any address or contact information,
including email addresses and telephone numbers.
If a 403(b) plan has not completed the steps above, EP
examiners may challenge it.
SEC Proposes Changes to Liquidity Disclosure
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed
a change to public liquidity risk disclosure requirements for
certain open-end investment management companies.
The agency had issued a pending requirement that funds
publicly provide the aggregate liquidity classification profile
of their portfolios on Form N-PORT on a quarterly basis.
Now, the SEC is suggesting that funds discuss the operation
and effectiveness of their liquidity risk management
program in their annual report.
The SEC adopted the open-end fund liquidity rule in
October 2016 to help funds meet their statutory obligation-and
investors' expectations-regarding redemption
of shares. Since then, SEC staff have reached out to
investment management firms to identify any issues with
compliance.
Besides the proposal to move the disclosures to funds'
annual reports, the SEC previously adopted a rule that
extends by six months the compliance date for the classification
and classification-related elements of Rule 22e-4
and related reporting requirements. In conjunction with
this extension, the SEC issued new guidance to help funds
comply with the liquidity rule's classification requirements.
SEC Chairman Jay Clayton says of the new proposal that
it " is another step toward completing the implementation of
the 2016 final rule in a manner that protects investors while
minimizing unnecessary costs on funds. "
Court Finds Pension Trustee Guilty of Embezzlement
After an investigation by the Department of Labor (DOL)
Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), the
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California,
Oakland Division, has ordered a former pension benefit plan
trustee to pay $234,271 in restitution and serve one year of
probation for violating federal criminal statues pertaining
to plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security
Act (ERISA).
The trustee has also been barred from serving as a fiduciary
or service provider to an employee benefit plan for 13
years.
EBSA discovered that Lisa Marie Rossi, the operating
manager and trustee to E-D Coat Inc.'s profit-sharing plan,
removed $66,049 from the plan's accounts. After being
charged with one count of theft, Rossi pled guilty.
PBGC Proposes Amendments to Terminated DB Plans
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) proposes
to amend its regulations on guaranteed benefits and asset
allocation. The amendments would incorporate statutory
changes to the rules for participants with certain ownership
interests in a plan sponsor.
The amendments in the proposed rule would apply to
single-employer defined benefit (DB) plan terminations
under Section 4041(c) of the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act (ERISA)-notices of intent to terminate are
provided under Section 4041(a)(2) after December 31, 2005;
and under Section 4042 of ERISA-notices of determination
are provided under that section, also after December
31, 2005.
The agency says the proposed rule is necessary to
conform the regulations of the PBGC to current law and
practice. It proposes to incorporate statutory changes
affecting guaranteed benefits and asset allocation when a
plan has one or more participants with certain ownership
interests in the plan sponsor.
The proposed rule would amend PBGC's benefit payment
regulation by replacing the guarantee limitations applicable
to substantial owners with a new one applicable to majority
owners.
HSA Limit for Family Coverage Reduced
In Internal Revenue Bulletin 2018-10, the Internal Revenue
Service (IRS) describes changes to the limit on health
savings accounts (HSAs) as prescribed by the Tax Cuts and
Jobs Act of 2017.
For an individual with self-only coverage, nothing has
changed since the IRS announced limits last year.
For calendar year 2018, the annual limitation on deductions
under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 223(b)(2)(B)
for an individual with family coverage under a high-deductible
health plan (HDHP) is $6,850, down from $6,900.
A high-deductible health plan is defined under Section
223(c)(2)(A) as a health plan with an annual deductible
no less than $2,700 for family coverage, and an annual
maximum of $13,300 for out-of-pocket expenses. -PA
planadviser.com march-april 2018 | 15
http://www.planadviser.com
PLANADVISER - March/April 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of PLANADVISER - March/April 2018
