Reports: DOL Rule Out Wednesday

By John Hilton

The Department of Labor fiduciary rule will be published Wednesday morning, according to several reports.

Politico and the Wall Street Journal cite sources “familiar with the matter” pegging the release at 11:30 a.m. at the Center for American Progress, a nonpartisan think tank in Washington, D.C.

The DOL proposed new fiduciary rules in April to govern advice provided regarding qualified retirement employer-sponsored plans and individual retirement accounts. As it stands, advisors and brokers are required to adhere to a suitability standard.

Consumer groups and the Obama administration say that standard is too lax and lends itself to the sale of expensive and often inferior investment products.

“We are optimistic that the rule will deal thoughtfully with concerns about its workability – regarding timing and implementation of the contract, for example, and ability for advisers to market their services – without compromising its core investor protections,” said Barbara Roper, director of investor protection for the Consumer Federation of America.

“For us, if the rule closes loopholes in the definition, covers rollovers, imposes a best interest standard that requires real mitigation of conflicts, it will be a huge win for consumers.”

The financial services industry maintains that the rule will lead advisors to abandon smaller accounts, leaving small savers without access to crucial retirement advice. Advisors say the rule duplicates existing regulation and creates an onerous and costly disclosure burden.

A spokesman for the DOL could not be reached for comment.

InsuranceNewsNet Senior Editor John Hilton has covered business and other beats in more than 20 years of daily journalism. John may be reached at john.hilton@innfeedback.com.

InsuranceNewsNet Senior Editor John Hilton has covered business and other beats in more than 20 years of daily journalism. John may be reached at john.hilton@innfeedback.com. Follow him on Twitter @INNJohnH.