Department of Treasury November 15, 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document contains amendments to regulations relating to certain cash or deferred arrangements under section 401(k) and matching contributions and employee contributions under section 401(m). These regulations provide guidance on permitted mid-year reductions or suspensions of safe harbor nonelective contributions in certain circumstances for amendments adopted after May 18, 2009. These regulations also revise the requirements for permitted mid-year reductions or suspensions of safe harbor matching contributions for plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2015. The regulations affect administrators of, employers maintaining, participants in, and beneficiaries of certain defined contribution plans that satisfy the nondiscrimination tests of section 401(k) and section 401(m) using one of the design-based safe harbors.

This document contains proposed regulations that would clarify that amounts paid to an Indian tribe member as remuneration for services performed in a fishing rights-related activity may be treated as compensation for purposes of applying the limits on qualified plan benefits and contributions. These regulations would affect sponsors of, and participants in, employee benefit plans of Indian tribal governments.

The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). Currently, the IRS is soliciting comments concerning Notice 2004-59, plan amendments following election of alternative deficit reduction contribution.