In response to President Trump's memorandum dated February 3, 2017 (see previous coverage), in which the President directed the Department of Labor ("DOL") to examine the Fiduciary Rule for potentially adverse effects, the DOL proposed a 60-day delay of the applicability date of the final rule. The DOL explained that it may be unable to complete an assessment of the Fiduciary Rule by the current applicability date for the final rule. The DOL expressed its concern that, in the event the DOL was unable to complete its examination before that applicability date, the marketplace would be disrupted unnecessarily if the rule became applicable, only to be rescinded or revised after the DOL had completed its examination. Upon completion of the DOL's examination, the DOL may (i) decide to allow the fiduciary rule and the PTEs to become applicable, (ii) issue a further extension of the applicability date, (iii) propose to withdraw the final rule or (iv) propose amendments with regards to the rule and/or the PTEs.
Comments on the proposed 60-day extension must be submitted no later than 15 days after the publication of the proposal in the Federal Register. Comments on the questions raised in the President's memorandum, and on the examination it directs the DOL to conduct, must be submitted no later than 45 days after the date of the memorandum's publication in the Federal Register.
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