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ADMIN Partners was recently invited to join our friends, Horace Mann, at the 2018 Texas Association of School Business Officials (TASBO) Conference. CEO, Mark Heisler, and Sales Manager, Greg Verna, took the trip to Fort Wort, Texas where they presented an educational workshop for attendees in the style of ADMIN Partner’s recent (b)Informed video series.

Similar to his recent talk at the NCASBO (see more from that here), Mark started the conversation by introducing ADMIN Partners and providing some insight into the services we offer. He went on to present an in-depth synopsis of all the key issues concerning compliance changes in the 403(b) marketplaces, specifically with a focus on the DOL rules pertaining to public education. While public education plans are exempt from ERISA requirements, they are still subject to state fiduciary guidelines. This also led into a discussion on the new legislation from the Federal Government which includes the changes in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 as well as adjustments being made to the rules governing hardships and loans.

Mark also spent some time dedicated to the Texas specific rules regarding retirement planning. He highlighted the new TTRS and touched on topics like the new investment product registration/disclosure standards as well as the requirements for existing investment products that were previously certified by the TRS. The conversation also touched on the increase in states who are passing legislation that make it mandatory for investment companies to provide fee disclose on investment products available within their retirement plan(s).  This is important for public schools regardless of them being statutorily exempt from ERISA as these changes provide fee transparency to retirement plan participants.

Mark wrapped up his talk by touching on the topic of IRS audits and the strategy that ADMIN has built to help Plans avoid the likelihood of a Plan being audited. Here at ADMIN Partners, we pride ourselves in our ability to provide assistance to any client going through an IRS audit; however, we also understand that educating Plan Administrators on the audit process is vital to the success of the Plan. Mark’s discussion covered the importance of Universal Availability and the necessity of the meaningful notice requirement. He also briefed sponsors on ADMIN’s adoption of the new 403(b) prototype plan document and what we are doing to ensure all our clients (new and existing) are converted to the prototype by the 3-31-2020 deadline.

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ADMIN Partners is committed to creating new educational opportunities for interested school officials (or other potential 403(b) clients) all around the country. For additional information about this presentation please refer to www.youradminpartners.com or send an e-mail to [email protected].