The Daily Brief for Benefits Professionals
BenefitsWire
Retirement Plans
October 15, 2026
— § —
13 items · ~5 min read
Top of the Brief
Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request on Guidance Under Section 529A: Qualified ABLE Programs.The IRS is seeking public comment on information collection requirements related to guidance for Qualified ABLE Programs under Section 529A, as mandated by the Paperwork Reduction Act.
In this issue
Regulatory Action and Guidance (1) · Retirement Plans (3) · Litigation (6) · General Benefits (3)
Regulatory Action and Guidance
1 itemThe IRS is seeking public comment on information collection requirements related to guidance for Qualified ABLE Programs under Section 529A, as mandated by the Paperwork Reduction Act. MORE >>
Source: IRS
Retirement Plans
3 items“As insurers continue rolling out new income-focused solutions for defined contribution plans, recent research from Cerulli Associates and the Guardian Life Insurance Co. of America suggests participant adoption may depend as much on advice, education and recordkeeping support as on the products themselves.” MORE >>
Source: PLANADVISER
“According to the 2026 Milliman Corporate Pension Funding Study, the average funded ratio for fiscal year-end 2025 was just under 104%, with a funded status surplus at $48.1 billion, making it especially timely to consider whether reopening a DB plan could better support workforce and retirement goals. For plan sponsors with a surplus and a prefunding balance, the key strategic question is whether a DB plan can be reopened to allow 401(k) employer contributions to be partially reduced or eliminated while existing surplus helps cover future DB benefit accruals.” MORE >>
Source: Milliman
[General Benefits]
Choosing the right partner: How employers and Taft-Hartley plans can evaluate point solution vendors“Employer-sponsored health plans are routinely approached by point solution vendors promising to reduce cost, improve quality, and create a better member experience. The range of offerings is broad: digital musculoskeletal programs, diabetes prevention and management, women’s health and family-building, steerage to centers of excellence, specialty-care navigation, and broader navigation platforms that aim to serve as a front door to the healthcare system. Some vendors offer a narrow, condition-focused service while others combine navigation, virtual care, provider contracting, and/or referral management into a more integrated model. For plan sponsors, the important questions follow: It is wor” MORE >>
Source: Milliman
Litigation
6 items“In Bolton v. Inland Fresh Seafood Corp. of America, Inc., No. 24-10084, — F.4th —-, 2026 WL 3056461 (11th Cir. Oct. 13, 2026), sitting en banc, the Eleventh Circuit overruled Mason v. Continental Group, Inc., 763 F.2d 1219 (11th Cir. 1985), and its progeny to the extent they hold that ERISA itself requires exhaustion of administrative remedies before a plaintiff may bring a statutory claim, including a claim for breach of fiduciary duty. Writing for the court, Judge Jordan reversed the district court’s dismissal, which had rested on Mason v. Continental Group, Inc., and remanded to the panel.” MORE >>
Source: Roberts Disability Law
“On October 13, 2026, the en banc Eleventh Circuit held in Bolton v. Inland Fresh Seafood Corporation of America that ERISA does not require plaintiffs to exhaust a plan’s internal claims procedures before suing in federal court for breach of fiduciary duty or other statutory violations. The ruling overturns four decades of precedent that had made the Eleventh Circuit the only circuit to require exhaustion of statutory ERISA claims. For plan sponsors and fiduciaries sued in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, the decision removes a common early-dismissal defense and aligns the Eleventh Circuit with most other circuits.” MORE >>
Source: Proskauer
“The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a long-standing precedent requiring retirement plan participants to exhaust a plan’s internal claims procedures before filing ERISA fiduciary breach lawsuits. In a court opinion issued Tuesday, the 11th Circuit brought ERISA litigation in Alabama, Florida and Georgia in line with the standards applied in most other federal circuits.” MORE >>
Source: PLANADVISER
“On October 1, 2026, Democrats on House Education and Workforce Committee, including that committee’s ranking member, Bobby Scott (D-VA), took the other side of this issue, introducing three separate bills that would effectively overrule court decisions that have limited the sorts of cases participant plaintiffs can bring against ERISA fiduciaries. In this article, we very briefly summarize these new proposals and conclude with discussion of their prospects and implications. No more deference to plan committee’s benefit determinations/plan interpretations: The Employee and Retiree Access to Justice Act would end courts’ current practice of deferring to plan fiduciaries’ decisions “with respec” MORE >>
Source: October Three
“The 4th Circuit’s decision conflicts with other circuits in that administrative service agreements are not required by ERISA to be furnished to participants.” MORE >>
Source: PLANSPONSOR
“Nonetheless, read on to learn about (1) what happens if you are a plan fiduciary, you don’t pay premiums to keep the plan’s insurance coverage in force, and the Department of Labor gets involved (Sonderling v. Sills); (2) preliminary approval of an $850k class action settlement involving alleged mismanagement of the Hess Corporation’s 401(k) plan (Wagner v. Hess); (3) the invalidation of Illinois-law arbitration awards because they were preempted by ERISA (Cigna v. Laboratory Physicians); (4) a case ruling that while ERISA might require investment policy statements to be produced on request, it didn’t matter here because plaintiffs lacked standing to complain about it (Phillips v. CAES); and” MORE >>
Source: yourerisawatch.com
General Benefits
3 items“Under the Department of Labor’s proposed investment regulation, SEC-registered open-end mutual funds offer a straightforward route to the protection addressing plan-level liquidity because of their required liquidity risk management programs. Collective investment trusts require additional investigation and review. Reish also recognizes the danger that reliance on provider representations can become a box-checking exercise. Fred Reish That is excellent practical guidance—and an invitation for plan sponsors to ask harder questions. The protection he discusses is proposed and limited to this liquidity issue. It is not blanket immunity for selecting a mutual fund.” MORE >>
Source: The Commonsense 401(k) Project
“If I had a dollar for every time a plan sponsor asked me a question that was already answered in their plan document, I’d probably have enough money to retire....By: Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.” MORE >>
Source: JD Supra
“For generations, many breweries, wineries, distilleries, and beverage distributors have been built around a founder’s palate, personality, and persistence. That founder-led identity can be a competitive advantage—but it can also complicate succession.” MORE >>
Source: Husch Blackwell LLP