The House Committee on Education and the Workforce passed legislation on Wednesday that would repeal the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule.
The Committee, chaired by Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-NC, approved the Affordable Retirement Advice for Savers Act (H.R. 2823), by a 22-17 vote.
The legislation that passed the Committee was introduced by Rep. Phil Roe, R-Tenn., and would require advisors to serve their clients' best interests and institutes disclosure requirements.
President Donald Trump's regulatory 2018 spring agenda includes a Labor Department rule based on feedback from comments currently being taken as part of Labor's request for information (RFI) on whether to delay the rule's second compliance date, which kicks in on Jan. 1., as well as feedback on 18 questions on ways to revamp the rule.
(Related: What's Next for the DOL Fiduciary Rule?)
In commenting on the Trump Labor Department's Spring Regulatory Roadmap, Christine Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project, stated that Trump's plan is "to cut pay for working people, endanger their health and safety in workplaces across numerous industries, and take away vital safeguards that enable consumers to make informed investments to build and protect their retirement savings."
Initiatives on the president's agenda, Owens said, "include proposals to reopen the overtime, beryllium, injury and illness tracking, and conflict of interest (or fiduciary) rules, gutting protections for workers and retirement savers who need every dollar they can get and count on OSHA to make sure their jobs are safe and healthy."
The Affordable Retirement Advice for Savers now moves to the House floor.
"A rule requiring sound retirement advice achieves nothing if it means many people will no longer have access to retirement advice at all," Roe said after the bill's passage of out committee. "By raising the bar for the retirement services industry and strengthening protections for savers, H.R. 2823 will help prepare lower- and middle-class Americans for retirement. I will continue to support legislation that will stop government overreach and return decision-making power to the men and women who get up and go to work every day to create a better life for them and their families."
Foxx added that "we all agree that financial advisors should act in good faith. We can achieve that goal without making it harder for people to build a secure retirement. This legislation proves it."
