The Daily Brief for Benefits Professionals
BenefitsWire
Retirement Plans
June 15, 2026
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18 items · ~4 min read
In this issue
Expert Analysis (10) · Regulatory Action and Guidance (2) · ERISA Litigation (5) · Retirement Plan Administration (1)
Expert Analysis
10 items“Under the new rule, the postmark date reflects when a mail piece is first processed — not when it was dropped off at the post office or handed to a mail carrier. The postmark date raises compliance concerns for plan sponsors and recordkeepers responsible for timely providing benefits and tax notices to plan participants and beneficiaries.” MORE >>
Source: Troutman Pepper Locke
“The WHD confirmed that an employee may hold both an exempt position and a nonexempt position with the same employer without losing the exemption for the primary role, provided that the salary basis is maintained ... However, when calculating overtime for hours worked beyond 40 in a workweek, the employer must include all remuneration—both the salary and the hourly wages—in the regular rate calculation.” MORE >>
Source: Pierson Ferdinand
“Even where federal enforcement has softened, states are often stepping in and pushing litigation forward,” Norton Rose Fulbright’s U.S. head of litigation and disputes said.” MORE >>
Source: HR Dive
“Press Coverage June 15, 2026 Ashley L. Taylor, Jr. Ashley L. Taylor, Jr., a partner in Troutman Pepper Locke’s Regulatory Investigations, Strategy + Enforcement Practice Group, was interviewed in the June 15, 2026, AdExchanger article, “Virginia Is Not For Precise Geolocation Data Lovers.” MORE >>
Source: Troutman Pepper Locke
“Each week while Congress is in session, our Policy team delivers a key update to highlight a topical benefits, health, or retirement news item from the Hill, such as a newly introduced bill, a summary of a committee hearing, or another hot-button matter.” MORE >>
Source: Groom Law Group
“In 2022, Foley’s Government Enforcement Defense & Investigations Team first produced a set of interactive international compliance and risk-mitigation heat maps designed to provide an at-a-glance resource for identifying countries around the world that pose potential issues for multinational companies that conduct business in, trade with, or source materials from them.” MORE >>
Source: Foley & Lardner
“Podcast The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) doesn’t operate like a typical HR policy or leave law – and treating it that way can create risk.” MORE >>
Source: Littler
“The conversation around alternative assets in 401(k) plans is gaining momentum, driven by regulatory developments, product innovation, and a growing willingness among plan sponsors to consider broader investment options.” MORE >>
Source: Bricker Graydon
“The retirement industry understands something very important: once insurance products get into the Qualified Default Investment Alternative (QDIA), they become extraordinarily sticky. Participants rarely move money out of default target-date funds. That makes target-date funds the perfect Trojan horse for embedding annuity structures into retirement plans.” MORE >>
Source: The Commonsense 401(k) Project
“66 Franklin Street, Suite 300 Oakland, CA 94607 In Adams v. Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, No. 24-668-SDD-RLB, 2026 WL 1662073 (M.D. La. June 9, 2026), the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana, per Chief District Judge Shelly D.” MORE >>
Source: Roberts Disability Law
Regulatory Action and Guidance
2 items“The OBBBA significantly expanded Section 4960's definition of "covered employee" to potentially cover all of an ATEO's employees – not just the top five highest-compensated. Until the proposed regulations are issued, the Notice provides interim guidance on the expansion of Section 4960's definition of "covered employee" under the OBBBA.” MORE >>
Source: Groom Law Group
“The court found the Notice to be a major policy shift that implicated serious reliance interests and lacked a reasoned explanation: Treasury and the IRS did not adequately justify eliminating the Five Percent Safe Harbor for wind and most solar while retaining it for small solar, did not meaningfully engage with extensive comments highlighting reliance interests and technology-neutrality concerns, and did not explain why targeted anti-abuse tools would be insuffi” MORE >>
Source: Troutman Pepper Locke
ERISA Litigation
5 items“66 Franklin Street, Suite 300 Oakland, CA 94607 In Unum Life Insurance Co. of America v. Crane, No. 5:24-CV-00230-MAS, 2026 WL 1706791 (E.D. Ky. June 12, 2026), United States Magistrate Judge Matthew A.” MORE >>
Source: Roberts Disability Law
“66 Franklin Street, Suite 300 Oakland, CA 94607 In King v. Unum Life Insurance Company of America, No. H-25-1850, 2026 WL 1494238 (S.D. Tex.” MORE >>
Source: Roberts Disability Law
“The Appeals Court held that ERISA is ambiguous as to how employees must be counted for purposes of determining whether "substantially all" covered employees perform work in the building and construction industry. As the statute does not prescribe a method, the Appeals Court compared the Fund's monthly headcount and GE's cumulative headcount approaches. It concluded that, based on the facts of the case, GE's cumulative approach was "less arbitrary and more faithful to the statute and the congressional intent behind it" than the Fund's monthly method.” MORE >>
Source: Roberts Disability Law
“Quick Hits On May 7, 2026, the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, in Ham v. Novartis International AG, reversed a trial court’s order dismissing with prejudice five CEPA counts against a pharmaceutical company and remanded for further proceedings.” MORE >>
Source: Ogletree Deakins
“The Supreme Court said ERISA's requirement that withdrawal liability be calculated "as of" the measurement date does not mean actuarial assumptions must be fixed as of the measurement date. The Supreme Court explained that the measurement date fixes the facts about the fund—such as assets and participant data—but actuarial assumptions are not facts.” MORE >>
Source: Littler
Retirement Plan Administration
1 item“Thanks to last month's robust 2.22% investment return, more than quadruple Milliman's expected rate of 0.53%, the market value of Milliman 100 plan assets grew $22 billion during May. The projected benefit obligation for Milliman 100 plans increased by $4 billion over the month, resulting from a decrease of 4 basis points in the monthly discount rate.” MORE >>
Source: PLANSPONSOR
Also of Note
- Groom’s Excellence Recognized in the Legal 500 – US Nationwide 2026 Guide — “In the Legal 500 – US Nationwide 2026 Guide, Groom is again recognized for its national leadership in benefits, executive compensation, retirement, healthcare, and ERISA litigation.” (Groom Law Group)
- Seventh Circuit Affirms Central States’ Authority to Expel a Single Bargaining Unit and Holds Withdrawal-Date Counterclaim Must Be Arbitrated — “66 Franklin Street, Suite 300 Oakland, CA 94607 In Penske Truck Leasing, L.P. v. Central States, Southeast & Southwest Areas Pension Plan, No.” (Roberts Disability Law)
- DOL Endorses “Bonus Pool” Approach to Calculating Percentage Bonuses — “In Opinion Letter FLSA2026-6, the U.S.” (Littler)
- The SEC Quietly Killed Stable Value Mutual Funds in 2004 — And That Tells You Everything About Private Equity, Fixed Annuities, and Prohibited Transactions in 401(k)s — “The problem was structural. Stable value depended on: That distinction matters enormously.” (The Commonsense 401(k) Project)
- Employer Groups Urge 8th Circuit to Review ERISA Case Class Certification — “The district court granted certification of the class challenging ERISA tobacco surcharges, but the industry groups' brief argues the court did so without meaningfully analyzing key individualized defenses, including whether plaintiffs had qualifying medical conditions or timely claims.” (PLANSPONSOR)
- Columbia’s Private Credit Ratings Paper May Be the Most Important Annuity Risk Paper of 2026 — “These assets are often treated as high-quality investment-grade assets for regulatory capital purposes.” (The Commonsense 401(k) Project)
- New workers are missing out on 401(k) savings, and employers can help — “According to Vanguard's 2025 How America Saves report, participation rates were lowest in 2024 among employees younger than 25, with 54% contributing to their employer-sponsored retirement plan.” (Employee Benefit News)
- Monthly Roundup (May 2026) — “We’ve rounded up our latest resources into one place so that you don’t have to! In case you missed any of our updates from last month, read on.” (Groom Law Group)
- PLANADVISER Webinar: Elements of an Effective Recordkeeping Partnership — “Adviser-recordkeeper relationships have long been dynamic, and presently, many advisers have a growing need from recordkeepers for greater client service capabilities.” (PLANADVISER)
- The Clock Is Ticking for Congress to Act on Social Security. What Happens Next? — “The 2026 report, published this week, finds the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund, which pays retirement and survivor benefits, is projected to be depleted in the fourth quarter of 2032, one quarter earlier than forecast last year.” (PLANSPONSOR)
- Cherry-Picking Exec Pleads Guilty to Obstruction — “Leech, who pleaded guilty to an obstruction charge, could now face up to one year in prison, avoiding the more than 20 years he faced under the charges that would have been argued at his trial, which was scheduled to start on June 15.” (PLANADVISER)
- Designing Executive Loan Programs in the Context of Incentive Equity: Key Considerations and Practices — “If an executive loan program is structured improperly, the loan can be deemed disguised compensation by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and subject to taxation as income, resulting in a heavy tax burden for the executive.” (Morgan Lewis (ML BeneBits))