As outlined in our recent article, Executive Order on Increasing Retirement Security in America, President Trump executed this order to make it easier for businesses to join together to offer multiple employer plans, which are referred to as Association Retirement Plans (ARPs) in the order.
It took the DOL less than a month to review and deliver the proposed rule to the Office of Management and Business (OMB) and, in turn, it has taken the OMB less than a month for their review.
The next step of the process is the publication of the proposed rules; which could be a matter of days or weeks. As noted in the National Association of Plan Advisor’s (NAPA) article, OMB Completes Review of Proposed MEP Rules, “The OMB review is the last stage before proposed rules are published and opened for public comment. After the comment period, the final rule would also get OMB review before becoming official. The comment period for Association Health Plans lasted 60 days.”