Rep. Kind to Reintroduce Retirement Savings Act

By Elizabeth Festa

News February 05, 2019 at 07:46 PM

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Rep. Ron Kind, D-Wis., plans to reintroduce legislation Wednesday intended to increase retirement savings for American workers through the employer-based system, according to industry sources. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., is expected to co-sponsor the legislation.

The bill, a reintroduction of last year's Retirement Enhancement and Savings Act, or RESA, H.R. 5282, introduced by Kind and Kelly, first advanced in 2016.

In the Senate, last year's companion bill, S. 2526, was referred to the Senate Finance Committee. However, provisions of the legislation were included in the Family Savings Act of 2018, also introduced by Kelly, which passed the House last year.

The House Ways and Means Committee is poised to conduct a hearing Wednesday morning on improving retirement security for workers. Both Kind and Kelly are members of the committee.

MassMutual CEO Roger Crandall and Diane Oakley, executive director of the National Institute on Retirement Security, are slated to testify.

In general, the bill would modify requirements for tax-favored retirement savings accounts, and employer-provided retirement plans to encourage savings. It would also increase the tax credit for small employer pension plan startup costs and give small employers who start 401(k) automatic enrollment plans a tax credit.

The retirement planning industry is expected to come out in full support of the legislation. Last year, the Insured Retirement Institute, AARP, the American Council of Life Insurers, the Bipartisan Policy Center and the Church Alliance all supported the bill.

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