U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) together have reintroduced several bills to help boost retirement security for individuals and families.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, more than 40 million people do not have access to any workplace retirement plan. Additionally, nearly half of all U.S. families headed by prime-age workers (aged 32 to 61) do not have a retirement plan.
Young
Sen. Young reintroduced S. 2603, the Commission on Retirement Security Act, which calls for the creation of a federal retirement commission charged with reviewing private retirement benefit programs and submitting a report to Congress on how to improve private retirement security in the United States.
Sen. Young also reintroduced S. 2602, the Retirement Security Flexibility Act, which would expand access to workplace retirement plans by giving employers more flexibility when setting up 401(k) plans for their employees. The bill would also make it easier for savers to auto-enroll into long-term savings plans and more quickly escalate their savings.
“We face a time when many Hoosier families are financially unprepared for retirement,” Sen. Young said. “I’m glad to reintroduce a suite of bills to boost retirement security and help Americans save for the days ahead. These bills include our Retirement Security Flexibility Act to improve access to retirement plans and protect against burdensome regulatory requirements, as well as our Federal Retirement Commission Act to bring together experts to advise Congress on the best solutions for retirement security. It is critical that we ensure Hoosiers have access to robust savings for their future.”
Sen. Booker reintroduced S. 2600, the Refund to Rainy Day Savings Act, which would enable individuals to build emergency savings during tax time by allowing filers to save a portion of their tax refund for “rainy day” or long-term savings; and S. 2601, the Strengthening Financial Security Through Short-Term Savings Accounts Act, which would help workers set up short-term savings accounts to help with financial emergencies.
“With the pandemic forcing many families to dip into their hard-earned savings, including retirement funds, to cover unexpected costs related to challenges like healthcare costs, remote learning, and job loss, it’s essential that we provide workers with the tools they need to build savings,” Sen. Booker said. “These bipartisan bills will help boost savings, getting workers back on a track to financial stability and a financially secure retirement.”
Sen. Young highlighted his work on these bills in last week’s Senate Finance Committee hearing on retirement security. Brian Graff, Chief Executive Officer of the American Retirement Association, testified that auto-enrollment and auto-escalation provisions, like those in the Retirement Security Flexibility Act, can help eliminate racial disparities in retirement savings.