FIDUCIARY MARCH MADNESS

The brackets, the games played, and the predictions, it’s awesome. Heck, we are even allowed to take part in the predictions when we fill out our own brackets. This is when all the pundits get out there and try to predict who will upset the seeds and be the one that throws a wrench into the tournament. Don’t we do the same when we pick our favorite “Cinderella” team to make it all the way to the Final Four?

You can see the similarities between this madness and the fiduciary mayhem that is hitting the retirement plan industry with the forthcoming April 10 Fiduciary Ruling. When it comes to the implementation-then-delay of the DoL Fiduciary rule there are plenty of predictions, from Armageddon to no change, a quick Google search will give you whatever answer you’re looking to support.

I was at the 2017 NAPA 401K Summit this month in Las Vegas, and one of the main topics was indeed the dreaded fiduciary rule and its fate. Opinions abounded (to put it mildly), to quote one of the panelists, “informed wild speculation…” some could seriously argue the informed part. (For more information check out these articles from 401k Specialist and NAPA.)

Basic gist is this — TAG has been writing time and time again that no madness is needed, as the main parts of the fiduciary rule have such momentum that whether or not the delay occurs they will come into the industry for good.  We’ve often said that the retirement industry is vastly complex all on its own, complying with government regulations and managing a plan with all of the daily intricacies. The DoL Fiduciary rule only adds to the mayhem that is already there. While there are very complex rules in this industry, the decisions needing to made by the employer on the right plan for you is rather simple.

Have a service provider who puts a plan in place that reduces 99% of administrative burden, keeps you compliant with the government, protects all parties (sponsor, participant, and advisor), and does all of these value-added services at a competitive price. Pretty simple decision, huh?

At TAG, we think it’s simple as well…no madness needed.

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