Colorado Secure Savings Plan Board Bill Passes Senate Finance Committee
March 14, 2019
Denver CO – The Senate Finance Committee today voted 4-to-3 to pass SB19-173, Colorado Secure Savings Plan Board, a bill sponsored by Senators Kerry Donovan (D-Vail) and Brittany Pettersen (D-Jefferson County) to help find ways to increase Colorado’s private sector workers’ retirement savings. The bill will now move to the Senate Appropriations Committee for consideration.
More than 75 percent of Coloradans believe it is only going to get harder to prepare for retirement, according to the Bell Policy Center. SB19-173 would establish the Colorado secure savings plan board to study ways to help Colorado’s private sector workers save for retirement. The board would work to increase the number of Colorado businesses that offer retirement savings and determine the feasibility of creating the Colorado secure savings plan.
“People work two or three jobs in my district, but none of them have traditional retirement benefits. This bill will look at options to let those people save for the future,” said Senator Donovan. “We know how people work is changing and we can play a role in making sure they can retire in the place they call home.”
“Younger Coloradans are being offered work-based retirement options at a much lower rate than previous generations. The lack of retirement options coupled with crushing student loan debt and rising home prices is putting the financial future of our families and our state at risk,” said Senator Pettersen.“We know the problem – and this study will ensure we create a solution that will empower more Coloradans to achieve the retirement goals they have worked their entire lives for.”
The board would conduct assessments to determine approaches to increasing retirement savings for private sector employees in low-cost and self-sustaining ways, and then it would recommend a plan to the Governor and General Assembly to implement these findings.
To learn more about SB19-173, please visit https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb19-173.
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