Letter to the Hon. Steven Mnuchin, Secretary of the Treasury - Democrats Warn Trump Administration Against Further Efforts to Target Retirement Savings Programs

Letter

Dear Secretary Mnuchin,

We write today to encourage the Treasury Department to demonstrate its commitment to the myRA program. As you are aware, myRA is a starter retirement savings account for individuals who are otherwise unable to save for retirement because they are not covered by an employer-sponsored retirement savings plan or they do not have enough savings to meet the minimum balance required to open a private-sector individual retirement account (IRA). Given that this Administration has worked to reduce access to retirement plans for millions of Americans, it is more critical than ever for the Treasury to strengthen one of their remaining options for retirement savings.

Earlier this year, under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), Congress passed and President Trump signed into law the reversal of two rules promulgated by the Department of Labor in 2016. The rules were designed to provide certainty to states and certain political subdivisions regarding the establishment of retirement savings programs for private-sector workers who are not covered by employer-sponsored retirement plans. Last week the Department of Labor published these rule reversals in the Federal Register.[1] We strongly disagree with these actions given that the country is in the midst of a retirement crisis. As you are no doubt aware, 55 million Americans lack access to a workplace retirement plan.[2] Moreover, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found that almost half of all households with Americans age 55 and older have no retirement savings.[3]

Last December, it was reported that "[t]he Treasury Department said it will do more next year to highlight myRA on government websites, as well as promote it through TurboTax" in an effort to bolster the program's enrollees.[4] We urge you to execute these plans swiftly and demonstrate that this Administration is committed to helping hardworking families save for retirement.