BarbriSFCourseDetails
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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    On-Demand

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

  • work Practice Area

    ERISA

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Wednesday, May 26, 2021

  • schedule Time

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

  • timer Program Length

    90 minutes

Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.

$347.00
CLE
ALL

This CLE course will provide employee benefits counsel, sponsors, and administrators an in-depth analysis of the impact of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) on employee benefit plans. The panel will discuss critical provisions of ARPA for plan sponsors and administrators and the impact on qualified retirement plans, pensions, and group health plans. The panel will also discuss critical next steps for employers in light of ARPA.

Faculty

David C. Olstein
Partner
Hogan Lovells

Mr. Olstein’s practice focuses on the fiduciary responsibility provisions of ERISA and the prohibited transaction excise tax provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. He has an extensive background advising financial institutions, plan sponsors, and investment committees on ERISA matters, including compliance with ERISA’s fiduciary duty and prohibited transaction rules, in connection with the investment of pension plan assets. Mr. Olstein regularly advises fund sponsors on the application of ERISA’s “plan asset” rules as they relate to the establishment and operation of private investment funds. From representing issuers and underwriters in connection with marketing securities to investors, to advising plan sponsors and independent fiduciaries in connection with the selection of annuity providers, he offers substantial experience at the intersection of ERISA and fiduciary responsibility. Mr. Olstein is an active member of the American Bar Association’s Section of Taxation and the New York City Bar Associati

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Israel Goldowitz
Partner
The Wagner Law Group, LLP

Mr. Goldowitz has more than 35 years of experience in employee benefits, most notably with mergers and acquisitions, restructuring, and bankruptcy as they affect pension plans. As the Chief Counsel for the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), he led the legal teams that helped save the pensions of such companies as Chrysler and American Airlines. Working closely with financial analysts, actuaries and outside advisors, Mr. Goldowitz also led the legal teams that negotiated pension protections with such companies as Sears and Gannett, lending to his unique experience in the mitigation of risks to pensions resulting from corporate transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, secured borrowing and downsizing.

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Kathryn Bakich
Senior Vice President, Health Compliance Practice Leader
The Segal Group, Inc

Ms. Bakich is one of the country’s leading experts on employer sponsored health coverage. She specializes in providing research and analysis on federal laws and regulations affecting health coverage, including ERISA, Medicare, HIPAA, COBRA, the Newborns’ and Mothers’ Health Protection Act, the Mental Health Parity Act and the Women’s Health and Cancer Rights Act.

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Description

On Mar. 11, 2021, President Biden signed ARPA. This latest stimulus package contains several employee benefit plan and executive compensation provisions. Employee benefits counsel and fiduciaries must understand the impact of ARPA and implement actions to assist plan sponsors and administrators.

ARPA provides significant health and welfare plan opportunities to individuals who COVID-19 has impacted. It provides for an employer-administered COBRA subsidy opportunity for individuals and increases dependent care flexible spending account limits. Also, ARPA provides federal tax credits to encourage employers to voluntarily offer paid leave of the type required under last year's Families First Coronavirus Response Act, in addition to other key provisions for health and welfare plans.

For pension plans, ARPA contains several provisions designed to provide relief to multiemployer pension plans and their stakeholders. For underfunded plans, it provides financial assistance that is not subject to repayment for plans that are in critical and declining status, have suspended benefits, or are insolvent. ARPA also provides funding relief for employers sponsoring single-employer plans.

Also, Section 162(m) limits the federal tax deduction that a public company may take for compensation paid to a "covered employee" in a tax year to $1 million. ARPA amends the definition of covered employees to include, in addition to the named executive officers, the public company’s next five highest compensated employees.

Listen as our panel discusses critical provisions of ARPA for plan sponsors and administrators and the impact on qualified retirement plans, pensions, group health plans, and executive compensation.

Outline

  1. Health and welfare benefits
  2. Pension plans
  3. Executive compensation and Sec. 162(m)
  4. Challenges and next steps for plan sponsors and administrators

Benefits

The panel will review these and other key issues:

  • What are the key provisions, challenges, and opportunities of the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act?
  • What is the impact on retirement plan administration?
  • What relief has been provided to multiemployer pension plans and single-employer plan sponsors under ARPA?
  • What are the challenges for health and welfare plans?
  • What are the necessary next steps by plan sponsors and administrators?