Description: Defined benefit plans have been disappearing from the private sector retirement program landscape. 401k Plans that have taken their place are not designed to provide retiree lifetime income. Individuals seldom work for a single employer and thus have many retirement accounts spread about. This commentary discusses an alternative approach to providing retirement income a voluntary basis in a vehicle that is decoupled from employers.

Description: This article provides a basic introduction to the taxation of qualified annuities held in qualified retirement plans and IRAs. The article has been updated for the SECURE Act and the SECURE 2.0 Act. The article describes the basic types of employer-based plans, provides of overview of the taxation of contributions and benefits when annuities are held in connection with plans and IRAs, explains the required minimum distribution rules, and offers a brief introduction to recent legislation impacting qualified annuities.