With the introduction this week of its 2025 Federal Retirement Security Blueprint, the Insured Retirement Institute is prioritizing maintaining the current tax treatment of retirement saving and facilitating the greater use of protected, guaranteed lifetime income solutions for retirement savers.
The 2025 Blueprint, unveiled during a press conference Wednesday by the Washington, D.C.-based retirement security advocate, includes 33 proposals intended to enhance and strengthen retirement security for more of America’s workers and retirees.
“Enacting the policy proposals in the Blueprint plan will help even more Americans achieve a financially secure retirement, and we look forward to working with Congress and the administration to make that a reality,” Wayne Chopus, President and CEO of IRI, said during the press conference.
“With Peak 65 upon us, more Americans than ever before are reaching retirement age, underscoring the urgent need for holistic financial planning to ensure they do not outlive their savings,” Chopus added. “This demographic shift presents both a challenge and an opportunity—reinforcing the importance of expanding access to retirement plans and ensuring reliable income solutions for retirees. It also means an ambitious agenda for IRI as we work to build support in Congress to meet the evolving needs of millions of workers and retirees.”
Paul Richman, IRI Chief Government & Political Affairs Officer, said the 2025 Blueprint offers Congress and the administration recommendations to lift barriers that inhibit greater access to the use of protected guaranteed lifetime income solutions. “The proposals include to facilitate turning accumulated retirement savings from defined contribution plans into a sustainable stream of retirement income while also protecting individuals from the longevity risk of outliving what they have saved for retirement.”
Support for Auto IRA Act, CITs in 403(b)s
In the Blueprint, IRI also calls for requiring employers to offer retirement plans to employees by enacting the Automatic IRA Act of 2024, which would (1) require all but the smallest of employers to maintain a private-sector automatic retirement savings plan for employees, (2) provide those with $200,000 or more saved with the opportunity to receive up to 50% of their vested balance in the form of guaranteed lifetime income and (3) expand opportunities to save to gig economy workers by making available automatic IRAs to individuals who provide services that do not constitute employment.
“Enacting this measure would have a significant impact. If made law, it is estimated that in the next 10 years, $7 trillion in additional retirement savings will be generated and 62 million new retirement savers would be created – 98% of whom would earn less than $100,000 per year.” Richman said. “And that includes 7 million new Black savers and 10.8 million new Latino savers.”
Richman also reiterated IRI’s support for efforts to make Collective Investment Trusts (CITs) available to 403(b) plans, as they are to 401(k) and 457(b) plans. The Retirement Fairness for Charities and Educational Institutions Act of 2025, introduced in the House on Feb. 6, 2025 by Representatives Frank Lucas (R-OK), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Bill Foster (D-IL), and Andy Barr (R-KY), and in the Senate by Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) and co-sponsors Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and Raphel Warnock (D-GA). The legislation is the latest attempt to get the bipartisan effort over what’s been an elusive finish line.
Richman said bills with strong bipartisan support such as this are the ones most likely to move forward in 2025, and the 2025 Blueprint says Congress should enact the Retirement Fairness for Charities and Educational Institutions Act to provide parity to 403(b) plan participants.
Blueprint focus points
Among the 33 proposals, IRI’s 2025 Blueprint includes recommendations for Congress to:
• Maintain tax-deferred treatment of retirement savings as a necessary tool for workers to plan for and achieve a financially secure retirement.
• End the disparity in treatment under current securities law for 403(b) retirement plan participants to allow them access to more cost-efficient investment options that other retirement plan participants have.
• Eliminate a regulatory barrier that effectively prohibits the use of protected, guaranteed lifetime income solutions with delayed liquidity features, in a retirement plan’s qualified default investment alternative.
• Establish a “qualified payout option” (Q-PON) to require employers who have at least 10 employees and have provided a plan for at least 3 years to offer plan participants a distribution option consisting of a combination of lifetime income and payout solutions from which they can select from at retirement.
• Require most businesses to offer employees access to a workplace retirement plan.
• Allow employers to offer the option to employees to re-enroll into a workplace retirement plan every 3 years if those employees initially opted out of a plan. Employees could choose to opt-out.
• Direct the SEC to write a rule permitting the electronic delivery of shareholder reports for all registered investment companies.
• Establish a safe harbor for small businesses selecting annuity contracts.
• Allow for a diverse slate of indexed and variable annuity contracts with guaranteed benefits to be eligible to be treated as qualifying longevity annuity contracts (QLACs).
• Establish a default distribution option for defined contribution participants by deeming that an employer satisfies fiduciary duties under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) so long as participants are notified of the default annuitization option and can opt out at the time of distribution.
“IRI remains steadfast in its mission to champion retirement security for America’s workers and retirees,” Chopus said. “As the need for comprehensive retirement solutions grows, we will continue to engage with Congress and policymakers to advance legislation that enhances financial security and expands access to innovative retirement income strategies.”
The entire IRI 2025 Federal Retirement Security Blueprint can be accessed at this link.
SEE ALSO:
• House and Senate Reintroduce CITs in 403(b) Plans Legislation
• IRI Releases 2024 Retirement Security Blueprint Featuring 33 Proposals
Veteran financial services industry journalist Brian Anderson joined 401(k) Specialist as Managing Editor in January 2019. He has led editorial content for a variety of well-known properties including Insurance Forums, Life Insurance Selling, National Underwriter Life & Health, and Senior Market Advisor. He has always maintained a focus on providing readers with timely, useful information intended to help them build their business.