2022 Legislative, Regulatory and Judicial Outlook for Retirement Plans


Summary

Retirement plan sponsors can expect continued evolution of the legislative and regulatory landscape in 2022, shaped by activity in Congress, the Biden administration and federal courts. Before the upcoming midterm elections, Congress appears poised to move forward with broad, bipartisan "SECURE 2.0" legislation, building on the framework of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2019. The Department of Labor (DOL) and IRS will continue working on guidance to implement the SECURE Act, while proceeding with several regulatory projects central to the Biden administration's policy goals. One of these projects involves updating regulations on fiduciary considerations for environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in plan investment decisions. The trajectory of the many excessive-fee claims percolating through the federal courts may change after the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ERISA ruling. This article summarizes expected 2022 legislative, ...