News

The Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), has issued several information and guidance items to provide administrative and operational relief to ERISA-governed retirement and health benefit plans as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Among the guidance items is a final rule jointly issued with the Department of the Treasury and the IRS.

Following passage by an overwhelming margin in the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday, President Trump today signed into law the Paycheck Protection and Healthcare Enhancement Act, infusing $320 billion in additional funding into the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), the agency that insures benefits in certain single-employer defined benefit pension plans, has posted an announcement describing deadline relief being provided as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Scheduled to be published in the Federal Register is an interim final rule issued by the federal Small Business Administration (SBA), guidance that includes frequently-asked-questions (FAQs) on Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loans available to small businesses to help them maintain their workforce during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. 

Much-awaited Department of Labor (DOL) final regulations on electronic delivery of retirement plan disclosures have made their way to the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB), generally the final stop on their way to official issue. (Only if the OMB finds objections to guidance is it returned to the issuing agency for revision.)

On April 10, 2020, the IRS issued Notice 2020-23. This guidance—citing IRS Revenue Procedure 2018-58—identified a number of time-sensitive tax-related actions whose completion can be delayed to July 15, 2020, as a result of disruptions caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

It’s safe to say that the environment in which we’re living and coping today is unlike any most of us have seen in our lifetimes. Worry for our own health and that of our loved ones, challenges to the operation of virtually every type of business, social distancing, travel restrictions, and startling global financial market volatility sometimes feel beyond our ability to process.

On behalf of all of us at FuturePlan, we extend our wishes for a full recovery to those directly affected by COVID-19, and our deepest sympathies to those who have lost loved ones. Our heartfelt thanks go out to the medical professionals, first responders, and essential workers who are saving lives and sustaining our communities.

At Ascensus, we consider the safety and wellbeing of our clients and associates to be paramount. Our service and leadership teams have been closely monitoring the global spread of COVID-19 and have been making proactive adjustments to our operations in order to ensure the continued service and expertise you count on.

New Coronavirus Law Provides Retirement Plan Healthcare Relief

With virtually every part of the U.S. economy facing unexpected financial challenges from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Congress has passed the largest relief package in U.S. history. Signed into law on March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is designed to assist the millions of Americans affected by the outbreak. The legislation has multiple provisions that affect retirement and health savings