Labor Secretary R. Alexander Acosta has made halting the fiduciary rule's June 9 compliance date as a top priority, with published reports saying he's looking for a way to freeze the rule that will “stick.”
“Our sense is that he [Acosta] is still looking for a 'solution' that could be implemented in final form before June 9,” Fred Reish, partner in Drinker Biddle & Reath's employee benefits and executive compensation practice group in Los Angeles, said. “He seems to want an answer that cannot be challenged successfully in court. But, we think he is still looking for that answer.”
News is that Acosta told Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., that he “recognized the urgency of the situation” and that he is looking for a way to halt the rule — which has been delayed from April 10 to June 9.
The National Association for Plan Advisors says that according to the communication between Acosta and the senator, “Scott pressed the case against the rule, saying that it wasn't going to hurt Wall Street as much as it will hurt everyday Americans who need access to investment advice.”
Scott and Acosta met to follow up on a letter that Scott and eight other GOP senators sent to Acosta on April 28 urging the DOL, “pursuant to the president's memorandum and in light of the numerous concerns with the final fiduciary rule,” to carry out “the president's directives without delay and finalize a new fiduciary rule review before any part of the rule becomes applicable.”
NAFA “is pleased by news reports that Secretary Acosta is making the fiduciary rule his number one priority and purportedly looking for ways to freeze the rule,” Eric Marhoun, chair of NAFA's DOL steering and litigation committee, who's also executive vice president and general counsel for Fidelity & Guarantee Life in Des Moines, said.
NAFA launched a grassroots campaign on May 8 to appeal directly to the Trump administration as well as to Acosta to stop Labor's fiduciary rule from taking effect on June 9.
Marhoun said the trade group “will continue pushing hard for the White House and Secretary Acosta to honor the president's directive that this rule be studied carefully before any part of it takes effect, and hopes ultimately the rule will be repealed in its entirety consistent with the president's agenda to eliminate wasteful and unnecessary regulations that do far more harm than good.”
The “sense is there needs to be action quickly — within the next week or two,” Marhoun added.
Complete your profile to continue reading and get FREE access to CUTimes.com, part of your ALM digital membership.
Your access to unlimited CUTimes.com content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking credit union news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Shared Accounts podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the commercial real estate and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, GlobeSt.com and ThinkAdvisor.com
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Melanie Waddell
Melanie is senior editor and Washington bureau chief of ThinkAdvisor. Her ThinkAdvisor coverage zeros in on how politics, policy, legislation and regulations affect the investment advisory space. Melanie’s coverage has been cited in various lawmakers’ reports, letters and bills, and in the Labor Department’s fiduciary rule in 2024. In 2019, Melanie received an Honorable Mention, Range of Work by a Single Author award from @Folio. Melanie joined Investment Advisor magazine as New York bureau chief in 2000. She has been a columnist since 2002. She started her career in Washington in 1994, covering financial issues at American Banker. Since 1997, Melanie has been covering investment-related issues, holding senior editorial positions at American Banker publications in both Washington and New York. Briefly, she was content chief for Internet Capital Group’s EFinancialWorld in New York and wrote freelance articles for Institutional Investor. Melanie holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Towson University. She interned at The Baltimore Sun and its suburban edition.
