DOL appears ready to go ahead with ERISA fiduciary requirement over objections of appraisal community

This just in from the ESOP Association :

In a recent news article, Assistant Solicitor of DOL Ted Hauser said, “The Labor Department is set (emphasis added) with its position on valuation firms…” Thus, ESOP voices are not at this time having significant impact on altering the basic position proposed by DOL that all appraisers of private company ESOP stock be ERISA fiduciaries.

The Association is urging its members to become educated (and vocal) on the DOL’s new definition of who is an ERISA fiduciary. Details on the issue and how and where to respond are here.