January 29th, 2020
On January 15, 2020, consistent with its policy of annual adjustment, the DOL published its final rule adjusting ERISA’s civil monetary penalties for 2020. ERISA protects the interests of employee benefit plan participants and their beneficiaries. The adjustments are non-discretionary (and therefore not subject to a notice and comment period) and based on the consumer price index from October of 2019. There are five penalty increases of particular importance to employers.
- Maximum penalty for failure to timely file Form 5500
- Maximum penalty for failure to furnish a summary of benefits and coverage (SBC)
- Failure to comply with the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) and failure to provide required Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) notices
- Failure to provide information to the DOL upon request
- Failure to file form M-1 (for Multiple Employer Welfare Associations or MEWAs)
To avoid the imposition of penalties, employers should ensure ERISA compliance for all of their benefit plans and stay updated on ERISA’s requirements. For more information on all aspects of ERISA compliance, including the complete listing of changed penalties, please consult Innovative Benefit Planning.
