Labor Department seeks 180-day delay of fiduciary rule: Reports

The U.S. Department of Labor is seeking to delay its controversial fiduciary rule for 180 days and open the measure back up for public comment, according to published reports.
Reuters reported Thursday night that the agency has filed paperwork related to the rule with the Office of Management and Budget. In one notice of proposed rulemaking, the DOL seeks to delay the rule’s implementation date for 180 days pursuant to a comment period as short as 15 days. The current implementation date is April 10.
In a second notice, the agency seeks to start another round of public comment on the rule, according to Reuters. The duration of that comment period is unclear.
The fiduciary rule requires financial advisers to act in the best interests of their clients in retirement accounts.

#DOL: Word on the street is that the DOL has sent a proposal to the OMB to delay the applicability date for the #fiduciary rule by 180 days.

— fred reish (@fredreish) February 9, 2017

The DOL’s move comes days after a Dallas federal judge upheld the rule, dealing a setback to financial industry attempts to kill the measure.

It is reported that DOL sent OMB proposal today to delay #FiduciaryRule 180 days w/ 15-day notice/comment period. We’ll keep you posted…

— Jason C. Roberts (@JasonRobertsESQ) February 10, 2017

In an 81-page ruling, Chief Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn of the Northern District of Texas granted summary judgment to the DOL. She shot down each of the major arguments submitted by the plaintiffs, a group of nine financial industry trade groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, the Financial Services Institute, the Financial Services Roundtable and the Insured Retirement Institute.
On Feb. 3, President Donald J. Trump directed the DOL to review the rule to determine whether it harms investors or firms, and encouraged the agency to amend or rescind the measure if it does.
The Labor Department under former President Barack Obama first proposed the rule in September 2010. Amid a flood of criticism from the financial services industry, that proposal was withdrawn a year later. In April 2015 it was reintroduced with significant modifications. It was made final on April 6, 2016.
(Related read: The latest news and resources on the DOL fiduciary rule)