The Daily Brief for Benefits Professionals
BenefitsWire
Retirement Plans
September 15, 2026
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13 items · ~3 min read
In this issue
Regulatory Action and Guidance (1) · Retirement Plans (7) · Litigation (1) · General Benefits (4)
Regulatory Action and Guidance
1 item“IRS has updated its listing of required modifications (LRMs) for defined benefit (DB) plans, including cash balance plans.” MORE >>
Source: Mercer
Retirement Plans
7 items“Borrowers in their 40s had a median 401(k) balance about 45% lower than peers without student debt, according to a new report.” MORE >>
Source: PLANSPONSOR
“CIT provider teams with fintech giant to add private market options for DC plans, diversifying participant choices Great Gray Trust Company announced Monday that it will be working with iCapital to offer private market solutions for DC plan sponsors and investors.” MORE >>
Source: Mercer
“A KERS or CERS retiree receiving $2,900 a month has lost nearly $98,000 since Kentucky stopped granting pension COLAs in 2011, measured against Social Security’s COLAs. That estimate captures only the frozen pension check. It does not include the additional loss from reduced retiree-health subsidies, increased premiums, deductibles, copayments, Medicare-related changes, and other benefit shifting during the same period. Kentucky’s teachers continued receiving a 1.5% pension COLA, but that adjustment substantially lagged Social Security inflation protection.” MORE >>
Source: The Commonsense 401(k) Project
“For the first time in more than 25 years, many public sector pension plans that are not already fully funded are approaching that milestone. Consequently, now may be the right time to develop strategies for surplus management. Decisions made before reaching full funding, which is also known as achieving a surplus, will shape the plan’s long-term stability. As funding improves, a plan’s risk profile changes. A surplus-management strategy is a guide to decision-making and managing risks as they evolve.” MORE >>
Source: Segal
“Milliman projects that the maximum 401(k), 403(b) and 457 individual deferral limit will rise by $1,000, from $24,500 in 2026 to $25,500 in 2027. But the updated report cautions that if the CPI increase in September 2026 is less than 0.04%, the maximum deferral limit may only increase by $500 to $25,000 instead of $25,500, and the regular catch-up contribution limit for people ages 50 and older may remain at $8,000 instead of increasing to $8,500.” MORE >>
Source: 401(k) Specialist
“Plan sponsors can take a ‘measured risk’ approach to evolving their investment menus, according to one panelist.” MORE >>
Source: PLANSPONSOR
“Industry leaders, in a Pontera webinar, agrued against recordkeepers restricting participant-chosen advisers online 401(k) account access.” MORE >>
Source: vorys.com
Litigation
1 item“SCOTUS held that the Employee Retirement income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA), does not require multiemployer pension plans to select the actuarial assumptions underlying a withdrawal liability calculation on or before the measurement date. ... The Eleventh Circuit held that the credit for a partial withdrawal should be applied against the total withdrawal liability before applying the 20-year payment cap. This ordering rule meant that the employer effectively did not get any credit for the partial withdrawal liability payments that they had made for several years and that the employer was required to pay the full withdrawal liability payments for 20 years.” MORE >>
Source: Vorys
General Benefits
4 items“Experts from Groom Law Group and CAPTRUST answer questions concerning retirement plan administration and regulations.” MORE >>
Source: PLANSPONSOR
“AI may improve data processing, pattern recognition, and operational efficiency. While AI might assist in diversifying, rebalancing, etc., those practices remain necessary because the future remains unknown, even to AI. Suppose an AI knew the future. Investors would not need diversified portfolios. They would not need rebalancing rules. They would not need Monte Carlo simulations or scenario planning.” MORE >>
Source: NCPERS
“by Christopher Carosa, CTFA | Sep 15, 2026 | Basic Members, Education, Plan Sponsors | 0 comments Viewing this content requires a Basic (Free) Membership or better. You are not currently logged in.” MORE >>
Source: Fiduciary News
“Newport’s Plan Trends Survey Report demonstrates NQDC offerings are critical to onboarding and retaining executive talent, and offsetting high-income tax concerns Even at the top, retirement security is a key day-to-day concern, and executives are no exception to those worries.” MORE >>
Source: 401(k) Specialist