Each season, the IRS releases their Retirement News for Employees newsletter edition with the latest industry updates and helpful tips for Employees of employer-sponsored retirement plans. The 2010 Winter edition was released on the IRS Web site under their Retirement Plans Community section and discusses the upcoming tax season requirements and filing regulations. This winter’s issue also reminds employees of filing deadlines for specific retirement plans, deadlines for Employer Contributions, new requirements for Death Benefits, Plan Distribution and Plan Amendment dates as well as an article on tax-return preparations.

While certain plan participants need to take Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) during 2010, that could possibly change in the near future. Some legislators seem to feel that participants need more time for the financial markets to recover and to that end have proposed two pieces of legislation, H.R. 4421 and H.R. 2637, which would extend the suspension of RMDs that took place during 2009 as a result of legislation.

With fewer employers offering defined benefit (i.e., pension) retirement plans, 401(k) plans have become the standard retirement vehicle in recent years. But is there room for improvement? Roger Ferguson seems to think so, according to an article in “USA Today”. Ferguson is the CEO of TIAA-CREF, which specializes in retirement services to those in the educational and nonprofit fields.

According to an article in U.S. News & World Report, baby boomers will have a different retirement situation than those in previous generations. In some ways, the changes are good – such as living longer and staying active, but others such as being a “sandwich generation” and retiring with debt can pose challenges for those who have not saved enough. Here are the examples provided in the article:

In a sign of economic recovery, more companies are restoring the matching contribution to their 401(k) plans, after suspending them last year to save cash-flow and jobs, according to a study reported by Hewitt Associates and reported by the Washington Post.

More involved. Those are the watchwords for many employers when it comes to their 401(k) retirements plans, according to a recent article in “U.S. News and World Report”. During 2010, many companies plan to update the way they deal with their plans in at least six main ways, which include:

Small businesses need to know that the seven-day rule for the depositing of employee contributions, proposed by the Department of Labor (DOL) in 2008, was finalized and made an official regulation as of January 14, 2010.

If you are taking part in the 2010 NADA Convention this weekend in Orlando, Florida, stop by the NADART booth, #1801, while you’re in attendance. Come by and compare your current retirement plan fees to ours and see how the variety of features that we offer, including Target Dated Funds, Roth 401(k) contributions, Automatic Enrollment and our Sub20 Plan for small businesses, can be a cost-effective way to benefit your company and its employees.

In an article referenced by Nadaq.com, small employers who begin sponsoring a retirement plan could receive a $1,000 tax credit for three years, under President Barack Obama's proposed budget.