10/06/14 - Washington Update Conference Call


Monday, October 6, 2014 (11am - 12pm US/Eastern)


Call Time: 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM (EDT)

This is a member-only call.

Congress has adjourned until after the mid-term elections, but it faces a busy lame-duck session when the chambers return on November 12. It is possible that lawmakers could act on bipartisan legislation to provide relief from ongoing nondiscrimination testing for frozen defined benefit plans, as well as legislation that would rationalize how an employer’s ERISA section 4062(e) liability works.

On the health front, ERIC recently met with representatives from the Treasury Department regarding our issues with the Cadillac tax and the pressing need for guidance from the department. ERIC also will meet with HHS later this week to discuss a number of challenges that member companies are facing when trying to comply with that department’s regulations. Meanwhile, the DOL, HHS, and Treasury late last week issued final regulations to amend certain rules regarding what is considered an “excepted benefit” under ERISA and for purposes of compliance with the Affordable Care Act.

Perhaps the biggest news of the month – if not the year – was the issuance by the Treasury Department of the long-awaited final rules on hybrid plans that address the market rate of return issue. Treasury and IRS also released proposed regulations relating to the transition rules for these final regulations.

Join us on Monday, October 6 to hear from ERIC’s Health and Retirement policy experts for an update on these and other legislative, regulatory, and legal developments.

To register for the call, click on the "Register Now" link at the top of this page (you will need your username and password to register).

If you are a prospective member and would like to participate in the call, please contact ERIC at 202-789-1400 or e-mail: memberservices@eric.org.

The slides for this call will be posted to this site on the morning of the call.

Related Files:

Washington Update Slides - October 2014