Compliance March 10, 2001

Workforce Committee Approves Boehner Bill

October 3, 2001 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The Education & the Workforce Committee of the House of Representatives today approved the Retirement Security Advice Act, H.R. 2269, sponsored by committee chairman John Boehner (R- Ohio), by a bipartisan vote of 29-17.

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editors@plansponsor.com

The bill updates federal law to allow employers to provide their workers with access to investment advice to assist them in planning for retirement.

In a show of support for the bill, Assistant Secretary of Labor Ann Combs released a letter emphasizing the Bush Administration’s commitment to such legislation.

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The Retirement Security Advice Act would:

expand the ability of providers to enter the investment advice arena by diminishing the impact of ERISA rules that today effectively block a money manager from offering advice, for a fee, on assets it manages. Specific disclosures about the fees, services and the relationship of the provider to the investment fund choices would be offered to participants.
Hold designated “fiduciary advisers” personally liable for any failure to act in the worker’s interest, and will still be subject to fiduciary liability under ERISA, as well as securities and state insurance regulatory protections.

In July, the Labor Department endorsed the bill (see DoL Embraces Advice Bill in Dramatic Turnaround ), and the Employer-Employee Relations Subcommittee approved it by voice vote in early August (see Participant Advice Bill Passes Subcommittee ).

– Camilla Klein editors@plansponsor.com