Last week, the Big “I” testified at a Department of Labor (DOL) hearing designed to assist the DOL’s efforts in updating federal overtime regulations.

Last year, in a major legal victory for Big “I” members, the Big “I,” the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, more than 55 other business groups, and 21 state governments secured a legal ruling to halt implementation of an Obama Administration overtime rule. The overly complex rule would have required employers to pay overtime to many employees who were not previously legally entitled to receive it. The Big “I” was the only insurance trade association to join the lawsuit.

While the lawsuit means that the Obama-era regulation will not take effect, the Trump Administration is moving forward with a new proposal to update overtime requirements. The DOL is expected to release a revised draft rule as early as March 2019. The Big “I” anticipates that the forthcoming rule will be more limited in scope than the previous proposal, and will likely focus on updating some outdated requirements instead of wholesale changes to federal overtime regulations. The proposal will be open for public comment and the Big “I” will continue to work with the DOL and Congress as the rulemaking process moves forward.

Meanwhile, the DOL is also acting on several other issues that impact insurance agents and brokers. Specifically, the DOL issued a proposal earlier this week that seeks to make it easier for small businesses to join together to offer Multiple Employer Plans. The proposal follows an August executive order on retirement from President Trump.

Late next year, the DOL also plans to issue a fiduciary rule, which could impact annuities, health savings accounts, and other retirement-related insurance and financial products commonly offered by insurance agents. A fiduciary rule was issued in 2016 by the Obama Administration, but was ultimately halted by litigation earlier this year. Not unlike the overtime regulations, the Trump Administration has now decided to move forward with proposing a revised fiduciary rule. The Securities and Exchange Commission is also working on a best-interest standard that may impact certain insurance products.

Jennifer Webb is Big “I” federal government affairs counsel.