Bill to Boost RMD Age to 75 Up for Vote in 'Next Few Weeks': Rep. Neal
The retirement bill, dubbed the Secure Act 2.0, also increases auto-enrollment and catch-up contributions in 401(k)s.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass., said Thursday that he’ll be moving through his committee “in the next few weeks” the Securing a Strong Retirement Act of 2020, commonly called Secure Act 2.0, which would boost the required minimum distribution age from 72 to 75.
During comments Thursday at the 2021 Aspen Institute Leadership Forum on Retirement Savings, Neal said that the Secure Act 2.0, introduced last year, expands auto-enrollment in 401(k) plans, 403(b) and Simple plans to automatically enroll participants in plans “upon becoming eligible.”
For 2.0 “to work, we’ve also included legislation related to student loans, and a 401(k) matching contribution and increased the required minimum distribution age even further, to 75,” Neal said.
Further, “we indexed the catch-up provisions and we also created a higher catch-up amount for people at age 60,” Neal said. “These changes will make it a lot easier for American families to prepare for a financially secure retirement.”
The bipartisan Secure Act 2.0 has been endorsed by AARP and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
“I’ll remind you,” Neal said, “the Secure Act passed our committee unanimously and passed the House by a vote of 417 to 3. I anticipate we’ll see a similar path with Secure 2.0, and we hope to move that legislation through our committee in the next few weeks.”
Auto-IRA Bill Also a Priority
Neal said another priority for House Ways and Means is his auto-IRA legislation.
“We’ve made tremendous progress in improving our retirement system with the Secure Act and we’ll continue to do so with Secure 2.0,” Neal said. “However, the reality is, about 50% of American workers work for an employer that does not offer a retirement plan at work. To make a significant dent in this coverage gap, it is critical that we enact legislation that requires employers that don’t currently offer a retirement plan to, at minimum, provide for their employees with an auto-IRA option.”
Neal continued: “If you couple IRA legislation with what I’ve also championed over the last few years, to make the savers credit refundable, the results are remarkable.”
“The time has come to get it over the finish line,” Neal added. “Therefore, as we consider ideas for our next package over the next couple of months, the auto-IRA and refundable savers credit legislation will be on my short list.”