Retirement Improvement and Savings Enhancement Act of 2021

“523. Retirement Savings Lost and Found

“(a) Establishment

“(1) In general—Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary of Labor, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall establish an online searchable database (to be managed by the Department of Labor in accordance with this section) to be known as the “Retirement Savings Lost and Found”. The Retirement Savings Lost and Found shall—

“(A) allow an individual to search for information that enables the individual to locate the administrator of any plan described in paragraph (2) with respect to which the individual is or was a participant or beneficiary, and provide contact information for the administrator of any such plan;

“(B) allow the Department of Labor to assist such an individual in locating any such plan of the individual; and

“(C) allow the Department of Labor to make any necessary changes to contact information on record for the administrator based on any changes to the plan due to merger or consolidation of the plan with any other plan, division of the plan into two or more plans, bankruptcy, termination, change in name of the plan, change in name or address of the administrator, or other causes.

“(2) Plans described—A plan described in this paragraph is a plan to which the vesting standards of section 203 apply.

“(b) Administration—The Retirement Savings Lost and Found established under subsection (a) shall provide individuals described in subsection (a)(1) only with the ability to search for information that enables the individual to locate the administrator and contact information for the administrator of any plan with respect to which the individual is or was a participant or beneficiary, sufficient to allow the individual to locate the individual’s plan in order to recover any benefit owing to the individual under the plan.

“(c) Safeguarding participant privacy and security—In establishing the Retirement Savings Lost and Found under subsection (a), the Department of Labor shall take all necessary and proper precautions to ensure that individuals’ plan information maintained by the Retirement Savings Lost and Found is protected.

“(d) Definition of administrator—For purposes of this section and section 523, the term “administrator” has the meaning given such term in section 3(16)(A).

“(e) Information collection from plans—Effective with respect to plan years beginning after the second December 31 occurring after the date of the enactment of this subsection, the administrator of a plan to which the vesting standards of section 203 apply shall submit to the Department of Labor, at such time and in such form and manner as is prescribed in regulations—

“(1) the information described in paragraphs (1) through (4) of section 6057(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;

“(2) the information described in subparagraphs (A), (B), (E), and (F) of section 6057(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and

“(3) such other information as the Secretary of Labor may require.

“(f) Information collection from federal agencies—The Secretary of Labor is authorized to access and receive information collected by other Federal agencies that may be necessary to perform work related to the Retirement Savings Lost and Found. Such necessary and appropriate information, which shall be furnished to the Secretary of Labor on request, includes information covered by section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and section 205(r) of the Social Security Act.

“(g) Program integrity audit—On an annual basis for each of the first 5 years beginning one year after the establishment of the database in subsection (a)(1) and every 5 years thereafter, the Inspector General of the Department of Labor shall conduct an audit of the administration of the Retirement Savings Lost and Found.”

“(15) Multiple employer plans

“(A) In general—Except in the case of a church plan, this subsection shall not be treated as failing to apply to an annuity contract solely by reason of such contract being purchased under a plan maintained by more than 1 employer.

“(B) Treatment of employers failing to meet requirements of plan

“(i) In general—In the case of a plan maintained by more than 1 employer, this subsection shall not be treated as failing to apply to an annuity contract held under such plan merely because of one or more employers failing to meet the requirements of this subsection if such plan satisfies rules similar to the rules of section 413(e)(2) with respect to any such employer failure.

“(ii) Additional requirements in case of non-governmental plans—A plan shall not be treated as meeting the requirements of this subparagraph unless the plan meets the requirements of subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 413(e)(1), except in the case of a multiple employer plan maintained solely by any of the following: A State, a political subdivision of a State, or an agency or instrumentality of any one or more of the foregoing.”

“(g) 403(b) multiple employer plans treated as one plan—In the case of annuity contracts to which this section applies and to which section 403(b) applies by reason of the plan under which such contracts are purchased meeting the requirements of paragraph (15) thereof, such plan shall be treated as a single plan for purposes of this section.”

“(f) 403(b) multiple employer plans treated as one plan—In the case of annuity contracts to which this section applies and to which section 403(b) applies by reason of the plan under which such contracts are purchased meeting the requirements of paragraph (15) thereof, such plan shall be treated as a single plan for purposes of this section.”

“(24) the provision of a de minimis financial incentive described in section 401(k)(4)(A) or 403(b)(12)(A).”

“(21) The provision of a de minimis financial incentive described in section 401(k)(4)(A) or section 403(b)(12)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.”

“(aa) Eliminating unnecessary plan requirements related to unenrolled participants

“(1) In general—Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, with respect to any defined contribution plan, no disclosure, notice, or other plan document (other than the notices and documents described in subparagraphs (A) and (B)) shall be required to be furnished under this title to any unenrolled participant if the unenrolled participant receives—

“(A) an annual reminder notice of such participant’s eligibility to participate in such plan and any applicable election deadlines under the plan, and

“(B) any document requested by such participant that the participant would be entitled to receive notwithstanding this subsection.

“(2) Unenrolled participant—For purposes of this subsection, the term “unenrolled participant” means an employee who—

“(A) is eligible to participate in a defined contribution plan,

“(B) has received the summary plan description pursuant to section 104(b) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and any other eligibility notices in connection with such participant’s initial eligibility to participate in such plan,

“(C) is not participating in such plan,

“(D) does not have a balance in the plan, and

“(E) satisfies such other criteria as the Secretary of the Treasury may determine appropriate, as prescribed in guidance issued in consultation with the Secretary of Labor.

“(3) Annual reminder notice—For purposes of this subsection, the term “annual reminder notice” means the notice described in section 111(c) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.”

“(h) Special rules applicable to benefit overpayments

“(1) General rule—In the case of an inadvertent benefit overpayment by any pension plan, the responsible plan fiduciary shall not be considered to have failed to comply with the requirements of this title merely because such fiduciary determines, in the exercise of its fiduciary discretion, not to seek recovery of all or part of such overpayment from—

“(A) any participant or beneficiary,

“(B) any plan sponsor of, or contributing employer to—

“(i) an individual account plan, provided that the amount needed to prevent or restore any impermissible forfeiture from any participant’s or beneficiary’s account arising in connection with the overpayment is, separately from and independently of the overpayment, allocated to such account pursuant to the nonforfeitability requirements of section 203 (for example, out of the plan’s forfeiture account, additional employer contributions, or recoveries from those responsible for the overpayment), or

“(ii) a defined benefit pension plan subject to the funding rules in part 3 of this subtitle B, unless the responsible plan fiduciary determines, in the exercise of its fiduciary discretion, that failure to recover all or part of the overpayment faster than required under such funding rules would materially affect the plan’s ability to pay benefits due to other participants and beneficiaries, or

“(C) any fiduciary of the plan, other than a fiduciary (including a plan sponsor or contributing employer acting in a fiduciary capacity) whose breach of its fiduciary duties resulted in such overpayment, provided that if the plan has established prudent procedures to prevent and minimize overpayment of benefits and the relevant plan fiduciaries have followed such procedures, an inadvertent benefit overpayment will not give rise to a breach of fiduciary duty.

“(2) Reduction in future benefit payments and recovery from responsible party—Paragraph (1) shall not fail to apply with respect to any inadvertent benefit overpayment merely because, after discovering such overpayment, the responsible plan fiduciary—

“(A) reduces future benefit payments to the correct amount provided for under the terms of the plan, or

“(B) seeks recovery from the person or persons responsible for the overpayment.

“(3) Employer funding obligations—Nothing in this subsection shall relieve an employer of any obligation imposed on it to make contributions to a plan to meet the minimum funding standards under part 3 of this subtitle B or to prevent or restore an impermissible forfeiture in accordance with section 203.

“(4) Recoupment from participants and beneficiaries—If the responsible plan fiduciary, in the exercise of its fiduciary discretion, decides to seek recoupment from a participant or beneficiary of all or part of an inadvertent benefit overpayment made by the plan to such participant or beneficiary, it may do so, subject to the following conditions:

“(A) No interest or other additional amounts (such as collection costs or fees) are sought on overpaid amounts for any period before or after the date of correction of such overpayment.

“(B) If the plan seeks to recoup past overpayments of a non-decreasing periodic benefit by reducing future benefit payments—

“(i) the reduction ceases after the plan has recovered the full dollar amount of the overpayment,

“(ii) the amount recouped each calendar year does not exceed 10 percent of the full dollar amount of the overpayment, and

“(iii) future benefit payments are not reduced to below 90 percent of the periodic amount otherwise payable under the terms of the plan.

“(C) If the plan seeks to recoup past overpayments of a benefit other than a non-decreasing periodic benefit, the plan satisfies requirements developed by the Secretary for purposes of this subparagraph.

“(D) Efforts to recoup overpayments are—

“(i) not accompanied by threats of litigation, unless the responsible plan fiduciary reasonably believes it could prevail in a civil action brought in Federal or State court to recoup the overpayments, and

“(ii) not made through a collection agency or similar third party, unless the participant or beneficiary ignores or rejects efforts to recoup the overpayment following either a final judgment in Federal or State court or a settlement between the participant or beneficiary and the plan, in either case authorizing such recoupment.

“(E) Recoupment of past overpayments to a participant is not sought from any beneficiary of the participant, including a spouse, surviving spouse, former spouse, or other beneficiary.

“(F) Recoupment may not be sought if the first overpayment occurred more than 3 years before the participant or beneficiary is first notified in writing of the error.

“(G) A participant or beneficiary from whom recoupment is sought is entitled to contest all or part of the recoupment pursuant to the plan’s claims procedures.

“(H) In determining the amount of recoupment to seek, the responsible plan fiduciary may take into account the hardship that recoupment likely would impose on the participant or beneficiary.

“(5) Effect of culpability—Subparagraphs (A) through (F) of paragraph (4) shall not apply to protect a participant or beneficiary who is culpable. For purposes of this paragraph, a participant or beneficiary is culpable if the individual bears responsibility for the overpayment (such as through misrepresentations or omissions that led to the overpayment), or if the individual knew, or had good reason to know under the circumstances, that the benefit payment or payments were materially in excess of the correct amount. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, an individual is not culpable merely because the individual believed the benefit payment or payments were or might be in excess of the correct amount, if the individual raised that question with an authorized plan representative and was told the payment or payments were not in excess of the correct amount. With respect to a culpable participant or beneficiary, efforts to recoup overpayments shall not be made through threats of litigation, unless a lawyer for the plan could make the representations required under Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure if the litigation were brought in Federal court.”