If you look at headlines in the retirement industry trade press, rarely does a week go by when you don’t see an article lamenting the low retirement savings numbers. How do we change this?
Tag "Richard Bavetz"
Ironically, while some see lowering the savings limit as politically palatable because it impacts only a small segment of the population, that same fact reduces the effect of such a policy shift.
As long as the fiduciary ball remains in the Executive Branch’s court, it’s easy to predict what will happen. That doesn’t mean, however, that we won’t see some surprises coming from the Legislative Branch.
Here the intent is to make it possible for a plan/IRA to apply the QDIA safe harbor to involuntary rollovers. But how will this impact plan participants?
It’s tempting to turn your attention to your company, some academic theory, or even—hush!—“best practices.” The truth is, as a fiduciary, you only have one job.
This has been the most challenging of best practices. It has evolved over the years from “you can’t do that” to “you need to do that.” What does it take to make it better? Has the technology environment changed in such a way as to address long-standing obstacles.
Not only do pooled plans reduced the administrative burden, but they can also reduce the fiduciary liability for 401k plan sponsors. If you’re not constantly looking over your shoulder, you can spend more time with your nose to the grindstone.
Some costs can’t be negotiated. These relatively fixed costs are the same no matter the size of the plan. Bigger plans can absorb these costs over a larger asset base, meaning the per participant cost is lower.
The central role of the recordkeeper can create reverberations with other providers should the plan sponsor attempt to change recordkeepers. Any hiccup in the employees’ ability to manage their retirement assets can cause problems for plan sponsors.
Any focus on younger employees in terms of saving for retirement may all be for naught. For these often lower-paid workers, the higher contribution caps for 401k plans may not any practical benefit.
