Worried About Tax Reform

Stacey Bradford, David Levine and David Powell, with Groom Law Group, and Michael A. Webb, vice president, Retirement Plan Services, Cammack Retirement Group, answer:

The Experts don’t know if “worry” is the proper term, but since this is the first major tax code overhaul in more than 30 years, it is indeed something the Experts believe plan sponsors should follow closely! The problem with the “conflicting information” you are receiving relates to the fact that there are two competing bills—a House Bill and a Senate Bill—that must be reconciled into a single bill that can then be approved by both the House and Senate and signed into law, all by Christmas if you believe the current Congressional timeline. Add that to the fact that the Senate bill was changed numerous times, and the Experts can understand why the information you received may not have been consistent.

Now of course, you as a plan sponsor can choose not to pay any attention to the bill activity at all, instead opting to wait until a law is actually passed in order to prepare to take the proper actions regarding retirement plan changes. However, given the fact that it appears at this point that there will be at least some retirement plan changes, along with the fact that some changes may be effective as soon as 2018 (yes that is less than one month from now!), plan sponsors may wish to follow the ongoing developments in this area so that they have an idea as to what actions they may need to prepare to take in what may be a relatively short timeframe. Thus, you should stay tuned to PLANSPONSOR for the absolute latest developments on tax reform legislation!

NOTE: This feature is to provide general information only, does not constitute legal advice, and cannot be used or substituted for legal or tax advice.