Chairman Neal Eyes Broad-based Retirement Security Reforms

The chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee has released a new legislative framework for the 117th Congress that includes an ambitious retirement policy agenda.

In what has long been a priority for him, Committee chairman Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA) is calling for implementation of auto-IRAs and auto-401(k)s as part of the framework. He also calls for making the Saver’s Credit refundable and building on changes from the SECURE Act.

“Congress must do more to help American families, especially minority families, have a secure and dignified retirement,” the framework states. “Social Security provides the foundation of retirement security, and its benefits must be strengthened and improved, particularly for low-wage workers.

“Beyond Social Security, families of color are far less likely to have retirement savings and access to employer-based retirement plans,” Neal adds. “Policies to remedy these inequities will help increase their savings for retirement.”

Prepared by the Committee’s Democratic staff with an eye towards reducing health and economic inequities in the United States, the report—“A Bold Vision for a Legislative Path Toward Health and Economic Equity”—lays out the policy priorities that will steer the Committee’s work in the new Congress. Retirement security is enumerated as part of the framework’s economic equity pillar.