Employee Benefits Security Administration January 23, 2024 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of the Treasury (Treasury Department), the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) of the U.S. Department of Labor (Labor Department), and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) are publishing this Request for Information to develop a public record for purposes of the directive in the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0). Specifically, this Request for Information addresses section 319 of SECURE 2.0, requiring that these agencies review the existing reporting and disclosure requirements for certain retirement plans under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code (Code) that are applicable to each agency. Following this review, the agencies are to report to Congress, no later than December 29, 2025, concerning the effectiveness of the reporting and disclosure requirements. The report will include recommendations on consolidating, simplifying, standardizing, and improving such requirements with the dual goals of reducing compliance burdens and ensuring plan participants' and beneficiaries' timely receipt and better understanding of the information they need to monitor their plans, prepare for retirement, and get the benefits they have earned. The report will also consider how participants and beneficiaries are providing preferred contact information, the methods by which plan sponsors and plans are furnishing disclosures, and the rate at which participants and beneficiaries are receiving, accessing, understanding, and retaining disclosures. Consistent with the directive in section 319 of SECURE 2.0, this Request for Information focuses generally on the overall effectiveness of the reporting and disclosure frameworks in ERISA and the Code. Responses to this Request for Information will inform the agencies in preparation of the required report to Congress and in any future action taken by the agencies to enhance the effectiveness of existing requirements.