New DOL Rules Mean More Disclosures Available to Plan Sponsors in 401k Plans - But What to Do With the Information?

ATLANTA, July 19 /PRNewswire/ -- The Department of Labor has released final rules regarding ERISA section 408b2. These long-awaited - and now final - rules affect the arrangements between retirement plans and services providers as of July 16, 2010. 401k ProAdvisor, a division of Kring Financial Management, is providing new fiduciary services to assist 401k Plans in evaluating the new information.

Retirement plans and plan fiduciaries will now have new due diligence tools in the form of service provider disclosures. These disclosures will help plan sponsors determine if compensation paid to service providers is reasonable, and to determine the extent of hidden compensation and conflicts of interest.

Compensation is defined to include "both direct and indirect and applies to the service provider, its affiliates or subcontractors." The Department of Labor's newest bulletin on the subject explains that "because certain services and costs are so significant and present such conflicts of interest, information concerning those services and costs must be disclosed without regards to whether services are furnished as part of a bundle or package." Additionally, service providers must disclose if they are acting in the capacity of a fiduciary to the plan.

"As a fiduciary, the plan sponsor is duty-bound to understand, review and monitor the information that will now be required to be disclosed," says William Kring, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER(TM) designee and chief compliance officer of Kring Financial Management. Unfortunately, for plan sponsors, evaluating this new information against a standard that compensation be "reasonable" will be difficult.

In instances where the plan sponsor needs outside assistance, ERISA requires that prudent experts are hired. In this role, Kring Financial Management, acting as a fiduciary consultant, offers its 408b2 RulesKIT (TM). The kit and consulting services will take the burden off plan sponsors to evaluate the disclosure information that will be forthcoming. Further, Kring Financial Management will identify fiduciary breaches, conflicts, and highlight areas that need additional fiduciary follow-up based on the disclosures provide from various service providers. If necessary, Kring Financial can negotiate fees across service providers to meet the test of reasonable compensation.

"This is a good day for plan sponsors," says Kring, an ACCREDITED INVESTMENT FIDUCIARY (TM) professional. "With these new rules and proper fiduciary assistance, retirement plans can improve their offerings for the ultimate benefit of plan participants." For more information on the 408b2 RulesKIT or fiduciary consulting services, call 770-333-0113 or visit Kring Financial Management or 401k ProAdvisor.

This press release was issued through eReleases(R).  For more information, visit eReleases Press Release Distribution at http://www.ereleases.com.

SOURCE Kring Financial Management