Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) introduced two resolutions, S.J.Res. 32 and S.J.Res. 33, to undo regulations imposed by the Obama Administration that encourage states to place retirement mandates on employers and small business job creators.
The regulations, as proposed, break over 42 years of precedent and allow states to forgo protecting the savings of employees in the private sector and instead encourage states to require businesses to enroll employees in state-run plans.
“These rules are yet another example of the previous administration’s preference for government solutions to every problem and its affinity for over-regulation and bureaucratic red tape,” Hatch said. “These proposed regulations encourage more mandates on job creators and promote locking American workers in risky state-run plans. Rolling the regulations back will give employees and small business owners more flexibility and freedom to choose how to financially invest and build a nest egg for retirement. Moreover, bipartisan, voluntary solutions exist that would address retirement coverage issues for private businesses and their employees that do not rely on government mandates or government run plans.”
To view the resolutions, click here and here.
Background:
The resolutions would nullify the following regulations:
- State-Mandated Retirement Savings Final Rule; issued August 30, 2016, effective October 1, 2016 (81 FR 59464).
- Municipality-Mandated Retirement Savings Final Rule; issued December 16, 2016, effective January 19, 2016 (81 FR 92639).
In 2016, the Senate Finance Committee unanimously approved the Retirement Enhancement and Savings Act of 2016 (RESA), S. 3471, bipartisan legislation that aims to increase voluntary retirement savings.
