Retirement Plan Reform Still Mired in Conference

House-Senate conferees have made little progress in reaching a compromise on competing versions of retirement plan bills. Rules for pension plan funding and third-party advice for 401(k) plan participants are the widest areas of disagreement. Both houses broadly agree on provisions that would require diversification options in public company 401(k) plans, KSOPs, and ESOPs with employee deferral features that invest in company stock, and the Senate version would lower the maximum vesting period to six years. Conference leaders still predict an agreement by late spring, but some observes are wondering if the changes will ever be enacted, especially given presidential threats of a veto for current approaches to pension funding.