McSally supports landmark retirement bill

Sen. Martha McSally (R-AZ) and other Republican senators sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) urging consideration of an act that would expand access to retirement plans.

The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act would address the nation’s retirement crisis by helping workers of all ages save for their futures, according to the senators.

“This bipartisan legislation would expand access to retirement plans for millions of Americans, allow older workers and retirees to contribute more to their retirement accounts, increase 401(k) coverage to part-time employees, prevent as many as 4 million people in private-sector pension plans from losing future benefits, protect 1,400 religiously affiliated organizations whose access to their defined contribution retirement plans is in jeopardy, and do the right thing for Gold Star families,” the letter from Sens. McSally, Thom Tillis (R-NC), Tim Scott (R-SC), Susan Collins (R-ME), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Rob Portman (R-OH) read.

Tom Dunn, president of the Arizona Builders Alliance, a group that advocates on behalf of the commercial and industrial construction industry, says his organization stands behind the SECURE Act.

“The SECURE Act would modernize retirement, allowing small business to compete in corporate America by leveling the playing field. It is also a strong step in the direction of financial literacy for the American workplace,” Dunn said.

The bill would amend the Internal Revenue Code to revise requirements for multiple employer pension plans and pooled employer plans. In addition, the bill would:

increase the cap for automatic contributions to pension plans from 10 percent to 15 percent,
increase the tax credit for small employer pension plan startup costs,
create a new three-year tax credit to small employers for startup costs for new pension plans that include automatic enrollment, and
eliminate the taxation of unearned income of children at rates applicable to trusts and estates.

The senators said the act will not only help workers save for retirement, it will also benefit Gold Star Families, apprenticeship program participants, low-income scholarship recipients and children of fallen first responders.

Gold Star Families are the immediate family members of fallen service members who have died while serving in a time of conflict.

“We encourage the Senate to take action on the SECURE Act as soon as possible,” the letter continued. “Doing so demonstrates to our constituents that the Senate can lead in a bipartisan way for workers saving for retirement, tax fairness, and family financial security.”

The SECURE Act received broad bipartisan support from the House of Representatives in May, receiving a vote of 417 to 3.

To read the full SECURE Act, click here.