The Daily Brief for Benefits Professionals
BenefitsWire
Retirement Plans
July 20, 2026
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7 items · ~3 min read
Top of the Brief
Treasury, IRS provide new safe harbor explanations for retirement plan administrators“Notice 2026-13 PDF issued today provides safe harbor explanations that may be used by plan administrators when they provide written explanations to retirement plan participants about eligible rollover distributions, satisfying their requirements under section 402(f). In the notice, the first safe harbor explanation applies to non-Roth accounts and the second safe harbor explanation applies to Roth accounts. The notice also addresses, among other things, changes to the 10% additional tax on early withdrawals from retirement plans, the required minimum distribution rules for surviving spouses, and the increased age for determining required beginning dates for required minimum distributions.”
In this issue
Regulatory Action and Guidance (2) · Litigation (2) · General Benefits (1) · Webinars (1) · Press Releases (1)
Regulatory Action and Guidance
2 items“Notice 2026-13 PDF issued today provides safe harbor explanations that may be used by plan administrators when they provide written explanations to retirement plan participants about eligible rollover distributions, satisfying their requirements under section 402(f). In the notice, the first safe harbor explanation applies to non-Roth accounts and the second safe harbor explanation applies to Roth accounts. The notice also addresses, among other things, changes to the 10% additional tax on early withdrawals from retirement plans, the required minimum distribution rules for surviving spouses, and the increased age for determining required beginning dates for required minimum distributions.” MORE >>
Source: irs.gov
“This proposed rule would provide the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation’s policies for calculating, imposing, and waiving monetary penalties to pension plans for failure to provide certain required notices or other material information timely to PBGC and plan participants.” MORE >>
Source: Federal Register
Litigation
2 items“In Rush v. GreatBanc Trust Co., No. 25-1736, — F.4th —-, 2026 WL 2071139 (7th Cir. July 17, 2026), the Seventh Circuit affirmed a defense judgment entered after a three-week bench trial in a suit brought by a participant in the employee stock ownership plan that wholly owned Segerdahl Corporation, a direct-mail printing company. Plaintiff, a Segerdahl vice president and ESOP shareholder, alleged that GreatBanc Trust Company, the plan’s named trustee, along with the company’s former CEO, its then-current CEO, and three outside directors, breached their fiduciary duties of prudence and loyalty and engaged in a prohibited transaction under ERISA by organizing and approving the 2016 sale of the ” MORE >>
Source: Roberts Disability Law
“From 2008 to 2012, while serving as a Kentucky Retirement Systems trustee, I was not allowed to know the names of the underlying hedge funds inside three hedge fund-of-funds managers. If I could not know what the pension owned, neither could taxpayers, beneficiaries, or outside experts. Fifteen years later, remarkably little has changed.” I asked then and was denied and voted against Blackstone they are still keeping this secret. After reading the transcript of the July 1, 2026 hearing before Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Wingate, I was struck less by what was said than by what was never discussed. For nearly 70 pages, attorneys debate standing, settlements, declaratory judgments, releases,” MORE >>
Source: The Commonsense 401(k) Project
General Benefits
1 item“Americans think they'll need an average of $1.2 million to retire comfortably, yet many expect to retire with less than half that amount, according to a new national survey. Rising costs, credit card debt and competing expenses are making it difficult for workplace retirement plan participants to close the gap, the Schroders' 2026 U.S. Retirement Survey found. Just 30% of survey respondents believe they will reach the $1 million mark before retiring, while 51% expect to have less than $500,000 saved at that point, including 24% who anticipate having less than $250,000. "Rising costs are forcing tough tradeoffs, and saving for retirement is often the first thing that gets deprioritized," said” MORE >>
Source: Employee Benefit News
Webinars
1 item“As we look ahead to open enrollment and the end of the calendar year, there are several “to-do” items for sponsors to consider with respect to their retirement and health plans.” MORE >>
Source: Groom Law Group
Press Releases
1 item[General Benefits]
Strongpoint Partners to Collaborate on PEPs with The Finway Group“All 50 members of The Finway Group will remain in their current roles as part of the acquisition Strongpoint Partners, a retirement services platform serving small- to mid-sized businesses with integrated retirement third-party administration, actuarial, recordkeeping, payroll, and human resource (HR) solutions, announced a new partnership with The Finway Group, based in Des Moines, Iowa.” MORE >>
Source: 401(k) Specialist