Good news — the Senate has confirmed Daniel Aronowitz as Assistant Secretary of Labor, giving him the reins at the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA). After a protracted seven-month wait, the confirmation vote (51–47) places the fiduciary world squarely in a moment of potential reset.
What He Pledged — And What to Watch
Aronowitz’s agenda, as he laid it out during the confirmation hearings and in public statements, suggests an aggressive pivot in EBSA’s posture. Some of his key objectives:
· Enforcement reform. He has vowed to end open-ended investigations and streamline fiduciary enforcement, making it more predictable and less litigation-driven.
· Regulatory clarity. He wants clearer rules so plan sponsors can act with confidence — minimizing regulatory ambiguity and chilling effects.
· Pro-ESOP tilt. Aronowitz has openly criticized what he sees as DOL’s anti-ESOP bias. He pledged to “end the war on ESOPs” and resist overzealous attacks on valuation professionals.
· Restoring fiduciary discretion. He frames one core principle as shifting decisions back to fiduciaries (not bureaucrats or plaintiffs’ lawyers), consistent with his view of how ERISA was intended
Why This Matters for You (As an Advisor, Sponsor, or Fiduciary)
· The regulatory environment is about to shift. Compliance strategies based on the “status quo” may be obsolete — sooner than later.
· Cases long stuck in limbo under aggressive enforcement periods may see fresh life, or new scrutiny under different priorities.
· Those managing ESOPs, or dealing with fiduciary liability and valuation risk, should especially keep their eyes on proposed DOL rulemaking.
· Documentation, process, and defensibility will remain vital — even more so when the ground rules may be redrawn.
This confirmation isn’t just a personnel change. It signals the possibility of a new guard at EBSA — one with a distinctly different philosophy than what we’ve seen in recent years. How much of this vision becomes reality depends on statute, courts, and the political environment. But for now, we have a new leader with ambitious goals. Stay tuned — things may move quickly.
