E&W Blog

In case you missed it, during congressional testimony, Department of Labor (DOL) Acting Secretary Julie Su inadvertently admitted to not giving taxpayers adequate notice for a hearing on the administration’s far-reaching regulatory changes that will impact countless retirement plans, retirees, and savers.

On Wednesday, in testimony before the Appropriations Committee, Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-NC) questioned Acting Secretary Su about the proposed fiduciary rule’s short comment period. (The final fiduciary rule is expected to be announced anytime now.) Rep. Edwards pointed out that the short comment period of 60 days over a holiday season amounted to less than 45 business days. Ms. Su responded “[T]his proposal did include a 60-day comment period. That is standard, not just for the Department of Labor’s rules, but for rules generally.” 

Ms. Su continued “I’m a little confused…we did have hearings also, which were meant to invite more comment and give another forum in which to give comment.”

Ms. Su is certainly confused. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) requires a hearing before any exemption can be finalized. So the hearings Su mentioned were not generous gifts from the DOL gods. These hearings are required by law. Adequate notice is also a requirement. We invite Ms. Su to read the statute that she is attempting to administer in her confusion. 

To provide some clarity for Ms. Su, we’ve laid out the facts:  

• Proposed exemptions were published on November 3, 2023.
  

• The hearing—required by ERISA—was noticed on November 20, right before the Thanksgiving holidays.
  

• The hearing was held on December 12, 2023. 
  

Bottom line, DOL left folks with only 14 business days to prepare for a hearing with profound economic significance and disastrous impact to the retirement community. 

King Joe Biden is not above the law, no matter how much he wishes it wasn’t so. Ms. Su’s rule must be revoked, and DOL must follow the law.