PLANADVISER - May/June 2020 - 5

pants. According to EBSA, the administrators
must notify plan participants
about the online disclosures, provide
information on how to access them
and inform participants of their rights
to request paper or opt out completely.
The new rule also includes extra
protections for retirement savers, such
as accessibility and readability standards
for online disclosures and system
checks for invalid electronic addresses.
EBSA says it expects this rule
also may help some employers and
the retirement plan industry in their
economic recovery from the disruption
caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Many retirement plan representatives
and their service providers, for example,
have indicated they are experiencing
increased difficulties and, in some
cases, a present inability to furnish
Employee Retirement Income Security
Act (ERISA) disclosures in paper form.
Enhanced electronic delivery offers an
immediate solution to some of these
problems, EBSA says.
The State of Trump's EBSA
Because it was under Rutledge's tenure
that EBSA proposed the e-disclosure
rule, his leadership could be described
as more dynamic than some predecessors',
says David Levine, a principal
with Groom Law Group focused on
retirement plan regulation and litigation
under ERISA.
" The reality is that President Trump's
agenda is deregulatory; I would not say
necessarily that it is anti-regulatory, "
Levine observes. So, while EBSA and the
DOL under Donald Trump have so far
failed to enact a sweeping new fiduciary
rule, it has been active in other areas.
" We have seen, for example, a
continued focus on the issue of missing
participants, " Levine says. " Under the
leadership of Scalia and Rutledge, the
department is still doing active enforcement
in this area. "
Levine in particular praises the
e-disclosure rule. " I think this is one of
the main successes coming out of the
EBSA in the last few years. Compared
with the strong reactions we have seen
to other DOL rules published recently,
default
electronic document delivery
has enjoyed broad-based support. So,
that's an impressive thing. Also, there's
the fact that, during the Trump administration,
we have seen the internal
reorganization of EBSA. In my view, it is
still to be seen what the impact will be. "
Levine has heard that one goal of
the reorganization, as viewed from
inside EBSA, is to improve consistency
and coordination across regions-
which he and others argue would be a
good thing for regulated entities.
Looking forward, Levine says, the
industry is waiting to see whether the
DOL and EBSA will roll out any new
conflict of interest rules, especially given
the creation of the national Regulation
Best Interest (Reg BI) by the Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC). There
is also additional interest in asking
who will take on Rutledge's job and
what the confirmation process might
look like, given the U.S. Senate's clear
prioritization of judicial appointments.
-John Manganaro
More Legislative
And Judicial Actions
 2021 HSA Inflation Adjustment
The IRS has published Revenue Procedure
(Rev. Proc.) 2020-32. The new
procedure provides the 2021 inflation
adjusted amounts for health savings
accounts (HSAs), as determined under
Section 223 of the Internal Revenue
Code (IRC). For calendar year 2021, the
annual limitation on deductions for
an individual with self-only coverage
under a high-deductible health plan
(HDHP) is $3,600. The annual limitation
for an individual with family
coverage under an HDHP is $7,200. The
new limit for self-only coverage is up
$50 from this year's limit, while the
family limit has increased by $100.
 403(b) Catch-Up Contributions
The IRS says its plans for the current
fiscal year include ensuring 403(b)
plans use proper procedures when
allowing for catch-up contributions.
Whereas, like 401(k) and governmental
457(b) plans, 403(b)s may allow participants
to make catch-up contributions
starting at age 50, they may also
permit them a special 15-year catchup
contribution.
An IRS Issue Snapshot explains
that, under the special 403(b) catch-up,
employees of a qualified organization
may contribute an increased dollar
amount under Internal Revenue Code
(IRC) Section 402(g)(1) if they have met
certain requirements. The Issue Snapshot
follows a program letter from IRS
Tax Exempt and Government Entities
Commissioner Tamera Ripperda,
which explains the agency's priorities
for fiscal year 2020. In the letter, the
IRS says it will examine 403(b) plans
for universal availability, excessive
contributions and proper use of catchup
contributions under IRC Section
414(v); it also will examine 457(b) plans
for excessive contributions and proper
use of the special three-year catch-up
contribution rule. According to the IRS,
this strategy was delayed from fiscal
year 2019 and will begin this fiscal
year.
 Tax Treatment May Be Different
for CARES Act Provisions
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and
Economic Security (CARES) Act created
a new emergency retirement plan
distribution option called the coronavirus-related
distribution, or CRD. A
CRD may be drawn from an employersponsored
retirement plan or from
individual retirement accounts (IRAs)
in any amount up to $100,000. Under
the legislation, the 10% penalty tax
the IRS normally levies on early plan
distributions is waived. Further, the
individual taking a CRD may spread
the reported income over three years
for tax purposes, plus he has three
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