Secure Choice Act Support Pledge

The state of Rhode Island is facing a retirement crisis.

Over 40% (172,000) of Rhode Island private sector employees do not have access to a retirement savings plan through their employer. Workers are 15 times more likely to save for retirement if they have access to a payroll deduction savings plan through their employers, 20 times more likely if it is automatic. Under Secure Choice, all private sector employees (at employers with 5+ employees who do not offer retirement benefits) are automatically enrolled into an Auto IRA-type retirement program overseen by the state, with investments run by the private sector. The benefit is portable, staying with the employee if they change employers. Employee participation is completely voluntary, and any eligible employee may elect to opt out of the program, to change their investment risk levels, or to increase or decrease their contribution rate at any time.  

Secure Choice does not expose employers to any cost, or to any legal or fiduciary liability. In fact, the only things that an employer will need to do is to provide their employees with the program information and set up an automatic payroll deduction for those employees who wish to save with Secure Choice. There are no fees for employers, and they are always free to offer a private sector retirement plan of their choosing. Secure Choice delivers big results for businesses as it helps to attract a better hiring pool and retain invaluable long-term employees. In addition, the bill would make Secure Choice available to businesses with 1-4 employees if they choose to participate.  

The average Social Security benefit in Rhode Island is about $22,000 a year, while on average older families in Rhode Island spend $30,000 a year on food, utilities, and health care alone. Social Security was never intended to be a person’s sole source of income in retirement. At this rate, one out of every two middle-class retirees will be unable to afford their basic needs in retirement- things like medicine, utilities, and rent. This will cost taxpayers down the line in social services. Research done by PEW Trusts show that if current retirement savings rates do not increase, the state of Rhode Island will pay $456,000,000 in public asistance programs between 2021 and 2040. If we take action today we can reverse this trend, and that is what The Secure Choice Act seek to do.

Learn more at www.AARP.org/RISecureChoice

Pledge Your Support of The Secure Choice Act!