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February 17, 2012 at 08:56 AM
Lost in the bliss of Valentine’s Day, I missed an email that hit my desk last week. In the wake of President Obama’s 2013 budget, the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) states “that while the proposed budget does not explicitly call for changes in the tax status of annuities for all, it is concerned about several proposed changes, including the elimination of certain tax incentives for retirement savings and new limitations on deductions for retirement contributions.”
One goal of the organization is to urge policymakers to protect financial security for working Americans by “maintaining the tax-deferred status of annuities for everyone.”
In a prepared statement, IRI president Cathy Weatherford said: “Our research has shown that the tax-deferred status of annuities has been pivotal in helping middle-income Americans utilize lifetime income strategies as part of their retirement savings plan.”
Weatherford went on to say that the removal of this “incentive would not necessarily increase tax revenue, but certainly would add a new barrier that would prevent Americans from attaining lifetime income coverage. With today’s unprecedented retirement challenges, now more than ever, we need to protect the incentives available to help Americans attain a financially secure retirement. We look forward to working with the Administration and Congress to help all Americans access insured retirement solutions.”
