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ASPPA & CIkR Request Fee Disclosure Extension

admin | December 20, 2011 | 0 Comments

DOL Delay Requires Practitioners to Request Extension to Meet Compliance

ARLINGTON, VA, (December 20, 2011) – The following is a statement from Craig P. Hoffman, General Counsel and Director of Regulatory Affairs of The American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA) and the Council of Independent Recordkeepers (CIkR) responding to the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) ongoing delay in the issuance of the 408(b)(2) final regulation.

“ASPPA and CIkR maintain their support of the DOL’s efforts to improve fee disclosure for individual account plans. Unfortunately the application of both the interim 408(b)(2) and 404(a) regulations is only three months away and the DOL has not issued the final guidance needed to create systems to comply with the regulations.

Given the delay in finalizing the regulation, significant uncertainty remains about what will ultimately be required. One example is whether the 408(b)(2) regulation will require a summary disclosure statement and if so, what will be the parameters for compliance. It’s crucial that sufficient time be provided to build the infrastructure necessary to support the new disclosure regime which requires considerable systems work. Our members have told us engineers are already in the process of rewriting software code and programs to accommodate the new disclosure requirements, but additional time will be needed after the regulation is issued because only then will the final system design specifications be known.

ASPPA and CIkR recommend an extension of the applicability date for the 408(b)(2) and 404(a) regulations to ensure an orderly transition period. We believe the extension of the transitional rule under the 404(a) regulation is insufficient relief given the delay in finalizing the 408(b)(2) regulation as well as the ongoing review of electronic disclosure standards under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). For these reasons, we ask that the effective date for these regulations be no earlier than one year after the 408(b)(2) regulation is published in final form.

We have provided extensive comments to the DOL at every step of the fee disclosure process. As we near the ‘finish line,’ it is crucial that DOL give providers enough time to make the required system changes to implement the final rules.”

For more detail on ASPPA and CIkR’s recommendations to the DOL read our comment letter or watch our regulatory update.

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About ASPPA: The American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA) is a national organization of more than 7,500 retirement plan and benefits professionals that serves as the educator, voice, and advocate for the employer-based retirement system. ASPPA members are administrators, actuaries, advisors, attorneys, accountants, and other financial services professionals who provide consulting and administrative services for qualified retirement plans.

About CIkR: The Council of Independent 401(k) Recordkeepers (CIkR) is a national organization of 401(k) plan service providers. CIkR members are unique in that they are primarily in the business of providing retirement plan services as compared to financial services companies who primarily are in the business of selling investments. Collectively the members of CIkR provide services for over 68,000 retirement plans covering 2.8 million participants and holding in excess of $120 billion in assets.