Close Close
Popular Financial Topics Discover relevant content from across the suite of ALM legal publications From the Industry More content from ThinkAdvisor and select sponsors Investment Advisor Issue Gallery Read digital editions of Investment Advisor Magazine Tax Facts Get clear, current, and reliable answers to pressing tax questions
Luminaries Awards
ThinkAdvisor

Regulation and Compliance > Federal Regulation > IRS

Feds Publish Model Diversification Notice

X
Your article was successfully shared with the contacts you provided.

The Internal Revenue Service has issued guidance for defined contribution retirement plans that will be subject to the new Pension Protection Act investment diversification rules.

Section 401(a)(35) of the Internal Revenue Code, a new code section created by the PPA, will require retirement plans that offer publicly traded employer securities to offer plan participants a choice of at least 3 other investment options.

The other investment options all have to be materially different from one another, IRS officials write in IRS Notice 2006-107.

The new law does not apply to Employee Stock Ownership Plans that are funded entirely by the employer, but it does apply to ESOPs funded partly by employee contributions, officials write.

In addition, the IRS will treat non-public employer securities in a plan as if they were publicly traded if any employer corporation or any member of a corporation’s “controlled group” has issued publicly traded securities, officials write.

The IRS notice includes a model “Notice of Your Rights Concerning Employer Securities” for plan members eligible for Section 401(a)35 diversification.

Affected plan sponsors must send the notices to plan participants starting in 2007.

“If you invest more than 20% of your retirement savings in any one company or industry, your savings may not be properly diversified,” according to one section of the model notice. “Although diversification is not a guarantee against loss, it is an effective strategy to help you manage investment risk.”

A copy of the IRS notice is on the Web at Document Link


NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.