LATEST UPDATES
Progress has been good, but pressure from the financial services industry to prevent implementation of the rule is ever-present.
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The Department of Labor published the proposed rule in the Federal Register on November 3, 2023. They received over 19,000 comments on the proposed Rule.
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They held two full days of hearings on the proposed rule on December 12 & 13, 2023. You can read the testimony, watch the hearings, and find the transcripts here.
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On January 10, 2024, the House Financial Services Committee held a hearing on the proposed rule.
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On February 15, 2024, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on the proposed rule.
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On February 28, 2024, the Senate HELP Committee held a hearing on the retirement crisis at which the proposed rule was discussed.
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On March 8, 2024, the Department of Labor transmitted the rule to the Office of Management and Budget for regulatory review.
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On April 23, 2024, the Department of Labor published the final rule, which includes a number of changes in response to the comments received, but preserves the intent of the rule -- to ensure that retirement investors will get best interest advice about their retirement investments.
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On May 2, 2024, an insurance industry group filed a lawsuit against the DOL challenging the rule.
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On May 15, 2024, Congressional Review Act resolutions of disapproval were introduced in the Senate and the House in an attempt to overturn the rule.
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S.J.Res.79 - A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Labor relating to "Retirement Security Rule: Definition of an Investment Advice Fiduciary” - https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-joint-resolution/79
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H.J.Res.140 - Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Labor relating to "Amendment to Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2020-02" https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-joint-resolution/140
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H.J.Res.141 - Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Labor relating to "Amendment to Prohibited Transaction Exemption 84-24" https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-joint-resolution/141
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H.J.Res.142 - Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Labor relating to "Retirement Security Rule: Definition of an Investment Advice Fiduciary" https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-joint-resolution/142
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H.J.Res.143 - Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Labor relating to "Amendment to Prohibited Transaction Exemptions 75-1, 77-4, 80-83, 83-1, and 86-128" https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-joint-resolution/143
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On May 2, 2024, the Federation of Americans for Consumer Choice, Inc. and five other plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against the DOL challenging the rule in the Eastern District of Texas.
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On May 24, 2024, nine insurance trade associations filed a lawsuit against the DOL challenging the rule in the Northern District of Texas.
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On July 10, 2024, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce voted H.J. Res 142, one of the CRA resolutions of disapproval, out of Committee - a bipartisan group of 18 members of the Committee opposed the CRA.
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On July 25, 2026, a judge in the Eastern District of Texas granted the Federation of Americans for Consumer Choice, Inc. request for a nationwide preliminary injunction blocking the rule.
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On July 26, 2024, a judge in the Northern District of Texas issued a Preliminary Injunction and Stay of Effective Date.
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On September 20, 2024, the Department of Labor filed notices of appeal in both the Federation of Americans for Consumer Choice and the American Council of Life Insurers, et al. cases.
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With the end of the 118th Congress, CRA efforts to overturn the DOL Retirement Security Rule ended.
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On February 11, 2025, DOL filed a motion to pause the two court cases due to changes in the administration.
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​On February 14, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals granted an abeyance of 60 days in the Federation for Americans for Consumer Choice, Inc.
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On March 19, 2025, House Committee on Education and the Workforce Chair Tim Walberg sent a letter to DOL Secretary Chavez-DeRemer asking that DOL withdraw the Retirement Security Rule.
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On May 21, 2025, the Save Our Retirement and a group of organizations representing financial professionals sent letters to DOL Secretary Chavez-DeRemer urging the Department of Labor to continue to defend the rule in court.
The financial industry is waging an all-out war to ensure that it never has to comply with the full protections of the rule. Several members of Congress have announced they plan to introduce Congressional Review Act resolutions of disapproval in an attempt to prevent the implementation of the rule.
Industry opponents of the Retirement Security rule claim that retirement savers have sufficient protections under existing SEC regulations and model state regulations, despite clear evidence to the contrary. Their trade associations have gone as far as to tell members of Congress they plan to stop providing their constituents with investment advice if they must comply with this proposed rule. This is clear evidence that they are not putting their clients' financial best interests first - a tactic admission they are pushing their clients towards high-fee products that offer them better commissions, but are not necessarily appropriate for these retirement savers.