The House Ways and Means Committee approved a bipartisan bill (H.R. 2954) Wednesday to expand opportunities for Americans to increase their retirement savings.
The legislation, titled the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2021, builds on the SECURE Act signed into law in 2019 by expanding automatic enrollment in 401(k) plans, raising the age for when people are required to take distributions from retirement accounts from 72 to 75 and allowing employers to make matching contributions to retirement plans when their employees make payments on their student loans. The bill now heads to the full House.
“The retirement crisis in America is real and will only get worse without easier pathways to saving and encouraging workers to start planning for retirement earlier in life,” said Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) and Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX) in a joint statement. “This legislation expands automatic enrollment, simplifies many retirement plan rules, and strengthens small businesses’ ability to offer workplace retirement plans, to make it easier for Americans to plan for their golden years.”
Brady cited a recent Pew Research study indicating that half of U.S. adults reported that the COVID-19 pandemic has made it harder for them to achieve their long-term financial goals.
“That’s why SECURE 2.0 is so important,” Brady said. “This bill will help Americans from all walks of life save for retirement.”
This article was provided to OSAE by ASAE's Power of A and Inroads.