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Bonamici Introduces Bill to Help Workers Track, Grow Retirement Savings Accounts

November 3, 2021

WASHINGTON, DC [11/3/21] – Today Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) introduced legislation to help workers who move between jobs track, consolidate, and grow their retirement savings accounts. 

The Retirement Savings Lost and Found Act of 2021 would create an Office of the Retirement Savings Lost and Found, which would provide workers with tools to locate and manage accounts after leaving an employer. According to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, about 25 million people changed jobs between 2004 and 2014 and left at least one retirement account behind.

"It takes years of hard work for families and individuals to build up their retirement savings, and we must make sure they are able to access every dollar they earned," said Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici. "Tracking retirement savings accounts after leaving an employer can be extremely difficult, and many people lose access completely. The Retirement Savings Lost and Found Act would help provide workers with the tools they need to access and preserve their hard-earned savings." 

The number of left-behind accounts is expected to grow because young workers frequently transition between jobs. In 2020, the Department of Labor reported a 10-year median job tenure for workers between the ages of 55 and 64 compared to just under three years for workers between ages 25 and 34.

The Retirement Savings Lost and Found Act of 2021 is endorsed by the Pension Rights Center.

"PRC has long advocated for a pension registry that will enable people to find their ‘lost' pension or 401(k) plans years after their former companies changed their names or addresses or structures," said Karen Friedman, Executive Director of Pension Rights Center. "Creating such a registry is critical in helping people find their plans so they can apply for their critical retirement benefits – enabling them to live their retirement years with security."

The legislation will: 

  • Create a national lost and found database for retirement accounts. The bill uses data employers are already required to report to create a national lost and found database for workers to find their former employer-sponsored retirement accounts. This database will be located at the Department of Labor.
  • Maximize investment earnings. The bill directs the Department of Labor to issue new guidance permitting employers to move small retirement accounts into age-appropriate target-date or life cycle funds to allow workers to maximize their investment returns, which helps workers to continue building their retirement savings.
  • Transferring and reinvesting small accounts. The bill permits employers to transfer accounts of $1,000 or less to a new Department of Labor Office of Retirement Savings Lost and Found. This is a win-win. It clarifies what employers should do with accounts of no greater than $1,000 and makes sure workers avoid any fees that erode their account balance. The Office will be charged with investing the accounts it receives and paying out such accounts with interest.

A summary of the legislation can be found here.

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