Newsroom

May 23, 2017

Fiduciary rule effective June 9, full compliance Jan. 1

Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed Monday night that his department's fiduciary rule will take effect June 9, with full implementation on Jan. 1, 2018.

"[We] have found no principled legal basis to change the June 9 date while we seek public input," he wrote. "Respect for the rule of law leads us to the conclusion that this date cannot be postponed."

Also on Monday, the Labor Department issued a field assistance bulletin on the fiduciary rule. It states that the department intends to request further information "in the near future seeking additional public input on specific ideas for possible new exemptions or regulatory changes based on recent public comments and market developments."

The Labor Department enforcement policy acknowledges that firms are developing new business models in order to comply with the rule, and its request for information will ask for comment on whether more time is needed beyond Jan. 1, 2018, to implement these new approaches. It will also request public comment on whether an additional delay in this date "would reduce burdens on financial services providers and benefit retirement investors by allowing for a smoother implementation of those market changes."

NAFCU has repeatedly urged that repeal of the department's fiduciary rule be a top priority, or at the very least, that credit unions be exempted from its requirements.