DOL Sends Alternative Investment Rule to OMB

The Department of Labor (DOL) has submitted a proposed rule titled Fiduciary Duties in Selecting Investment Alternative to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. The rulemaking follows an Executive Order Democratizing Access to Alternative Assets for 401(k) Investors issued on August 7, 2025. 

The order directed the DOL to—within 180 days—"seek to clarify DOL’s position on alternative assets and the appropriate fiduciary process associated with offering asset allocation funds containing investments in alternative assets under ERISA….The Secretary shall also propose rules, regulations, or guidance, as the Secretary deems appropriate, that clarify the duties that a fiduciary owes to plan participants under ERISA when deciding whether to make available to plan participants an asset allocation fund that includes investments in alternative assets, which rules, regulations, and guidance may include appropriately calibrated safe harbors."

OMB generally has 90 days to review agency proposals, although review is expected to be completed sooner.