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HSA vs 401(k)

HSA vs 401(k)

If your company has decided to offer a high deductible health plan, don’t worry, you are not alone. Recent studies show that an increasing number of employers have elected to offer high deductible health plans (HDHP) either to completely replace or be offered in conjunction with a more traditional Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) plan or Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) plan. When sponsoring an HDHP, employers typically offer their employees the ability to contribute to a H...
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Who is an Employee?

Who is an Employee?

Maintaining a retirement plan for your employees is no easy task. At various points during the year, employers and HR departments field participant questions, help with enrollments, deliver notices and statements, and participate in the distribution process. However, an additional responsibility, and one of the most important, is the collection of data that is used for compliance testing and government reporting. Though all of these duties are important, one task drastically affects the ou...
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Under the New Tax Law

Under the New Tax Law

After many rounds of negotiations, Congress passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on December 20th, 2017.  Though retirement plan limit reductions were included in many iterations of the bill, the ultimate effect on qualified plans was relatively minimal.  There are two items of note that were included in the new law affecting loan repayments and IRA conversions. 401(k) Loan Payback Period gets extended!Many defined contribution plans include provisions for a participant to take a ...
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Navigating Distributions

Navigating Distributions

The first quarter of the calendar year typically sees an uptick in the number of retirement plan distributions and participant loans. This year may be even busier than most, given the relief announced by the IRS for victims of the recent hurricanes and wildfires. Whatever the reason, participant distributions present a complex set of rules for Plan Sponsors to navigate. Participants can receive distributions from retirement plans for a myriad of reasons. While some are requested by the par...
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iWork: The Next-Gen Workforce

iWork: The Next-Gen Workforce

Millennials. You may have noticed them around the office. You might think of them as the lazy, flighty, entitled generation born between the early 80's and 00's that say "totes" when they agree with you. Like any group of misplaced stereotypes, not all is as it appears when it comes to the younger contingent and, since they are taking over as the largest sector of the workforce, you may want to take a second look at them as adults, assets, and major contributors to your company's retir...
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End of the Year Checklist

End of the Year Checklist

As the year-end approaches, our to-do lists can be lengthy. There are holidays to prepare for, employee performance reviews to complete, and, oh, wait, there is also the year-end data collection package from your TPA! We have once again reached that magical time of the year when you get to submit information regarding your retirement plan so your compliance services can be completed. While your TPA firm does the heavy lifting, the information you submit is the basis for accurate compliance testi...
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Houston, We Have a Problem…

Houston, We Have a Problem…

Times can get tough for people. With the onset of Hurricane Harvey having decimated parts of the Gulf Coast and Hurricane Irma following its destructive lead, we are reminded that at any point we may find ourselves in hardship. Companies make layoffs, natural disasters occur, emergencies… well, emerge. With nowhere else to turn, some will look to their 401k for their own disaster relief. A withdrawal in the form of a "hardship distribution" is one of the tools that participants ...
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Fiduciary Rule Round Up

Fiduciary Rule Round Up

There has been much upheaval in the retirement world as of late and it centers around the new fiduciary rule. The New Fiduciary Rule means that many investment professionals that weren't previously considered fiduciaries will now have to take on that role. So, why is that such a bad thing? Well, it's not per se, but the implications of how this may change the way the investors and their companies function may leave them frustrated and tentative towards some future business. But before we get too...
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Retirement Plan Maintenance

Retirement Plan Maintenance

Whether it’s your car, your air conditioning or your own health, virtually everything you depend on in life needs a periodic assessment. What’s working, what needs repair? A company’s retirement plan is no different. And the evaluation is no less complex than the one your primary care physician might use.This month’s newsletter is designed to introduce you to the elements that make up a well-functioning retirement plan. And as you’ll discover here, the cheapest plan...
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Participant Loans: Benefit or Detriment?

For many years, plan sponsors have wrestled with the decision to offer loans to their plan participants. Some consider them to be a benefit and even promote them as a legal way to use tax free money while participating in the plan. According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute, 87% of plan participants can take a loan against their retirement account. Of those employees with access to take a loan, about one-fifth borrow against the retirement account. Come retirement, what are the eff...
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