On March 30, 2026, the Department of Labor (DOL) released a proposed rule that aims to clarify fiduciary duties under ERISA when offering investment options in participant-directed individual account plans, including 401(k)-type plans with exposure to alternative assets. This is in response to President Donald Trump’s August 2025 executive order, Executive Order 14330, Democratizing Access to Alternative Assets for 401(k) Investors.1
Under the proposal, the DOL affirms that a “prudent fiduciary has maximum discretion” to select investment options aligned with plan purposes, emphasizing that ERISA neither requires nor restricts any specific asset class.
A significant new feature is the introduction of a “safe harbor” for fiduciaries who follow a prudent, process-driven approach when selecting investment options. By adhering to the procedural framework in the rule, fiduciaries would be presumed to satisfy the duty of prudence under ERISA.
The proposed safe harbor identifies a “non-exhaustive list” of six core factors that fiduciaries must objectively, thoroughly, and analytically consider when evaluating an investment option for inclusion on a plan menu: performance, fees, liquidity, valuation, benchmarking, and investment complexity.
The DOL’s commentary provides practical examples and factual scenarios illustrating how fiduciaries might apply these factors, particularly when evaluating alternative or less traditional investment exposures.
The DOL anticipates that this rule could open the door to broader use of alternative assets in defined contribution plans, often through target-date fund structures.
Comments will be accepted for 60 days following publication in the Federal Register.
1 See Expanding Opportunities in Alternative Assets for Defined Contribution Plans | CBIZ, August 15, 2025.
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