Media Coverage

Is employee demand behind the shift toward portable retirement plans?

BenefitsPRO's Kristen Beckman examines a "new era of 'employee centric' retirement benefits" where "workers now want a plan that follows them from job to job." While Beckman's article mostly focuses on a new, non-401(k) plan that one vendor is promoting, it acknowledges that "other organizations are targeting portability as well" -- citing "a new partnership between 401(k) administrators Fidelity Investments, Vanguard, and Alight Solutions, which represent approximately 43.8 million workers across more than 48,000 employer-sponsored retirement plans" and "will utilize Retirement Clearinghouse (RCH), a service that provides account portability for retirement plans when workers change jobs."

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Yahoo Finance Covers Fidelity Q3 Research; Mentions Auto Portability

Yahoo Finance adds itself to the list of media outlets drawing attention to Fidelity Investments Q3 research, which noted that, despite continued volatility, retirement fundamentals remain sound. In that release, Fidelity's Kevin Barry praised auto portability, noting that the feature holds promise for addressing the needs of "those millions of workers who change jobs and leave behind low retirement balances" while adding that "auto portability can play a crucial role in increasing retirement security for these Americans."

Did You Lose Your 401(k)? Here’s How To Find It

Writing in Forbes, contributor John F. Wasik addresses the problems of tracking down old 401(k) plans left behind with a previous employer, and the associated cashout leakage that occurs following a job change. Wasik establishes a clear connection to an emerging solution -- the new industry-led consortium Portability Services Network, recently created by "[t]hree of the industry’s largest 401(k) administrators — Fidelity Investments, Vanguard Group and Alight Solutions."

$1.3 trillion sits in forgotten 401(k)s. Here's how advisors can help clients reclaim their money

Financial Planning reporter Dan Shaw examines the problem that "forgotten 401(k)s" can create for advisors, who sometimes spend an incessant amount of time on the phone, tracking down clients' balances. Shaw reports that "Fidelity, Vanguard and Alight Solutions announced in October that they were working together with the online account portability service Retirement Clearinghouse to ensure retirement money can be transferred easily when employees switch jobs." Shaw also notes that "the companies work with 48,000 employer-sponsored plans, holding money from 48.3 million workers."

Auto-Portability Receives Bipartisan Backing with House Bill

401k Specialist's Amanda Umpierrez examines HR 9252, auto portability legislation recently introduced to the House of Representatives by Reps. Brad Schneider (D-IL) and Ron Estes (R-KS). Umpierrez turns to Renee Wilder-Guerin, RCH's EVP, Public Policy, who states: “[w]e hope that it indicates that not only do we have support for auto-portability on the Senate side, but we have support on the House, and that increases the chances of auto-portability language being included in SECURE 2.0.”

Auto-Portability Secures Bipartisan Backing in the House

NAPA Net reporter Ted Godbout analyzes the recently-introduced Advancing Auto-Portability Act of 2022 (H.R. 9252), which was proposed Oct. 28 by Reps. Brad Schneider (D-IL) and Ron Estes (R-KS), who are both members of the House Ways and Means Committee, where the legislation was referred. As Godbout points out, this companion bill to the previously-introduced Senate proposal of the same name means that auto portability legislative proposals enjoy both bicameral as well as bipartisan support.
Also featured in ASPPA Net

401(k) auto-portability bill floated in House

P&I DC reporter Brian Croce covers HR 9252 (Advancing Auto-Portability Act of 2022), introduced October 28th by Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Ill., and Rep. Ron Estes, R-Kan. The bill, writes Croce, "is a companion bill to legislation with the same name introduced in June by Sens. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, that's aimed at reducing plan leakage."

New Legislation for Reducing Premature Retirement Savings Cashouts

Insurica, a large multi-state insurance broker, writes about pending auto portability legislation in their blog, noting the Advancing Auto-Portability Act of 2022, which was originally introduced into the Senate by Senators Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH), with a companion bill recently introduced into the House. The blog's author points out that the bill "aims to encourage the adoption of auto portability programs" and "would incentivize employers who adopt auto portability with a tax credit of $500 if they offer this option to their employees."