DOL Seeks Comments for Future PEP/MEP Guidance

The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has released a pre-publication version of a request-for-information (RFI) seeking public comments on issues pertinent to pooled employer plans (PEPs) and multiple employer plan (MEPs).

This initiative follows enactment in December 2019 of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, some provisions of which were intended to enhance the ability of multiple entities to join together in a single retirement plan, and—if certain conditions were met—be treated as a single employer, allowing potential administrative efficiencies and cost savings. The SECURE Act established statutory conditions for the establishment of new affiliations to be known as PEPs, which would require the designation of a “pooled plan provider” that would be a fiduciary of the PEP. 

Issues that EBSA anticipates could include the “possible parties, business models, and conflicts of interest that … will be involved in the formation and ongoing operation of PEPs,” according to an EBSA news release. EBSA is also seeking “information on similar issues involving multiple employer plans sponsored by employer groups or associations or professional employer organizations.” 

The comments received could shape potential future EBSA guidance on the operation of these arrangements, including whether EBSA should propose a new prohibited transaction class exemption.

The RFI contains instructions for submitting comments and is scheduled to be published in tomorrow’s Federal Register.