CalSavers Continues to See Retirement Plan Registrant Increase

The CalSavers retirement savings program continued to enroll employers and collect assets in November ahead of the approaching December 31 deadline for employer compliance, as of the latest data.

In November, 124,571 employers registered with the state-run auto-IRA program for private sector employees, while 46,865 made payroll deductions, and the state reported 471,303 funded participant accounts, according to the CalSavers November participation report.

The program last month added 2,910 businesses—2.4% growth from the number registered through October.  

Saver assets under management increased by $74 million in November, reflecting 12% growth for the month, to a total of $688.6 million, according to a CalSavers press release.

CalSavers is one of 21 retirement savings programs sponsored by local governments: 19 state programs and two city programs.

The dollar value of assets held in the CalSavers program continues to eclipse all other state-facilitated plans combined, according to data from Georgetown University’s Center for Retirement Initiatives. By comparison, through the end of October, OregonSaves held $209.02 million in assets; Illinois Secure Choice held $130.8 million; the Massachusetts Defined Contribution CORE Plan held $26 million (through September); Colorado Secure Savings held $21.3 million; Connecticut’s MyCTSavings program held $11.1 million; and MarylandSaves held $3.6 million.   

The programs were established at separate times; those in California, Oregon and Illinois were all established by 2018.

In 2022, California lawmakers expanded the state mandate to all employers with at least one employee, and, at the time, CalSavers surpassed 100,000 enrolled employers. The state law mandates that employers operating in California must register at different periods based on the number of workers employed.

Among those who have not received a notice to register in the past year, employers with five or more employees must register by December 31. The California state-mandated registration deadline for employers with between one and four employees is December 31, 2025. 

Data from the Pew Charitable Trusts finds that as many as 56 million private sector workers lack access to a retirement savings plan through their jobs. States have stepped in, approving programs to provide workers with access to retirement plans.

During the 2023 state legislative sessions, at least 25 states and Washington, D.C. considered legislation to either establish new programs, amend existing programs or form study groups to examine options, according to data from the Georgetown Center for Retirement initiatives. Three new auto-IRA programs have been enacted this year—Minnesota, Nevada and Vermont (which switched from a multiple employer plan)—along with one new multiple employer plan in Missouri.