AARP Ohio Urges Legislature to Create Committee to Study Public/Private Retirement Savings Options
AARP Ohio announces its support of House Bill 501 introduced by state Rep. Sara Carruthers that can assist in facing Ohio’s looming retirement crisis. The bill will create the Joint Legislative Study Committee on Small Business Retirement Options to study and report on state-facilitated options to improve access to workplace retirement savings programs for workers in the private sector.
“Nearly 2 million Ohioans do not have access to a retirement savings plan at work. For these workers, each passing day means less time to grow the savings they need to cover expenses and provide for their families in retirement,” said Holly Holtzen, AARP Ohio state director. “We need commonsense solutions that allow workers to grow the savings they need for a more secure future. This bill is an important first step and needs support from legislators.”
Without retirement savings accounts, Ohioans will count on Social Security even more for financial security. However, Social Security alone is not enough to afford basic necessities such as gas, healthcare, food and housing.
An AARP report indicates that in 2020, about 42 percent of Ohio private sector workers ages 18 to 64 were employed by businesses that do not offer any type of retirement plan. Americans, however, are 15 times more likely to save for retirement when they can do so at work.
“We know that Ohio is an aging community, and we must help this community thrive. If we don’t act to address the retirement crisis now, the problem will just keep growing, and the cost of inaction will be felt by all Ohioans, The Joint Legislative Study Committee on Small Business Retirement Options will investigate and report on options that will give workers the chance to take control of their future,” Rep. Carruthers said.
A retirement option would also lessen the strain on public assistance programs. Pew Charitable Trust research indicates that the lack of retirement savings could cost the state $11.8 billion in costs for social services and loss of revenue.
AARP Ohio, along with the majority of Ohio small business owners recently surveyed, support the creation of a public-private retirement savings option that allows Ohio workers to save their own money for the future, with no cost to employers. The program could be available to workers who don’t currently have a retirement savings plan through their job – and operated like a 529 college savings plan.
Similar retirement-savings partnerships are up and running in 19 other states.
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