Four bipartisan bills that have the potential to modernize retirement plans, enhance retail investor access to private markets, reduce regulatory burdens, and protect seniors from financial fraud are being marked up by the House Financial Services Committee during a two-day session that began this morning.
Two of the bills—The Retirement Fairness for Charities and Educational Institutions Act, HR 1013 and the Improving Disclosure for Investors Act, HR 2441—are supported by both the Insured Retirement Institute and the Investment Company Institute as legislative priorities this year.
IRI is also supporting the Senior Security Act, HR 1469, another among the two-dozen bills being considered by the committee during the markup session, while ICI is also advocating for The Increasing Investor Opportunities Act.
• UPDATE: The House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday debated and voted to advance the four measures mentioned in this article. The votes were:
• The Retirement Fairness for Charities and Educational Institutions Act of 2025: 43-8 to pass the bill.
• The Improving Disclosure for Investors Act of 2025: 39-11 to pass the bill.
• The Senior Security Act of 2025: 51-0 to pass the bill.
• The Increasing Investor Opportunities Act: was passed out of committee (vote tally not yet reported).
Following the bills’ advancement from the committee, they are expected to proceed to the House floor for further debate and voting. – Editor
Here’s a closer look at the each of the bills the two organizations are supporting.
Retirement Fairness for Charities and Educational Institutions Act
This one would finally fix an oversight in oversight in the SECURE 2.0 Act that inadvertently prevented 403(b) retirement plans from investing in collective investment trusts (CITs), as was intended by lawmakers.

The Retirement Fairness for Charities and Educational Institutions Act would allow 403(b) retirement plans to invest in CITs, allowing public sector and nonprofit employees participating in 403(b)s to benefit from the same cost-efficient investment options already available to all other employer-sponsored retirement plan participants, including 401(k)s.
Fixing this mistake has been a priority for the workplace retirement plan industry ever since SECURE 2.0 was passed in 2022. While SECURE 2.0 amended the Internal Revenue Code to permit such investments, it failed to include necessary changes to federal securities laws, which continue to restrict 403(b) plans from utilizing CITs.
403(b) retirement plans principally serve teachers, hospital workers, clergy, and non-profit employees.
“Retirement savers participating in other employer-sponsored retirement plans, such as 401(k) plans, have access to cost-effective collective investment trusts (CITs) and unregistered insurance company separate accounts,” said Wayne Chopus, President and CEO at IRI. “The legislation will provide parity for 403(b) plan participants and also allow plan providers increased flexibility to build more robust investment lineups with lower-cost options that preserve principal and provide protected guaranteed lifetime income solutions.”
Improving Disclosure for Investors Act
The Improving Disclosure for Investors Act would direct the SEC to adopt rules allowing firms to send disclosures electronically by default, while preserving paper delivery for investors who request it.
Update – Paper Cuts: Congress Moves to Modernize Investor Disclosures
“The Improving Disclosure for Investors Act will reduce the cost associated with sharing reports and disclosures to investors and increase the likelihood of investors accessing pertinent information,” IRI’s Chopus said.
“Continuing to send customers paper disclosure notices is not only wasteful but fails to acknowledge that digital communications are safer and more effective in reaching all Americans.”
Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI)
Electronic delivery provides a more widely accessible, cost-effective, and speedy means to convey and receive information than paper delivery. Using electronic delivery to communicate with investors also creates opportunities for the industry to provide dynamic, real-time information rather than static data making it easier for consumers to find information at a level of detail they prefer.
This “bipartisan, common-sense legislation,” as described by bill sponsor Bill Huizenga (R-MI), was most recently introduced in Congress on March 31, 2025.
“Continuing to send customers paper disclosure notices is not only wasteful but fails to acknowledge that digital communications are safer and more effective in reaching all Americans. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House as well as the Securities and Exchange Commission to finally make this a reality,” Rep. Huizenga said.
In the 118th Congress, the House of Representatives overwhelming passed the Improving Disclosure for Investors Act with a vote of 269-153, but it did not become law because it failed to advance in the Senate before the session concluded.
Increasing Investor Opportunities Act

This bipartisan legislation would give closed-end funds (CEFs) more flexibility to invest in private market securities, expanding access for retail investors to these growing markets. The bill, supported by the Investment Company Institute, also would protect retail investors, including many seniors, from harmful activists that misuse closed-end funds to extract quick profits for themselves.
ICI points out in a one-page summary of the bill that it would restrict the amount of CEF shares that activist investors and their affiliates could acquire to no more than 10%, closing the loophole that activists exploit at the expense of CEFs’ long-term shareholders. And it would prevent the SEC from unilaterally limiting how much CEFs can invest in privately offered funds.
Congresswoman Ann Wagner (R-MO) reintroduced the bill on May 14, 2025. “Families need greater access to investment opportunities, and small businesses deserve to grow without fighting reckless overregulation by the government,” Wagner said.
Senior Security Act
The third IRI-supported measure, the Senior Security Act, HR 1469, would create an interdivisional task force at the SEC to investigate the challenges facing investors and determine meaningful recommendations to Congress about what other measures might be needed to increase protections for the most vulnerable Americans.
Additionally, the bill directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study and report on the economic impact and consequences of elder financial exploitation to help policymakers better understand the breadth and scope that financial exploitation of older Americans has on the U.S. economy.
“Older Americans who worked and saved to achieve a secure and dignified retirement are often exposed to financial exploitation that threatens their savings,” IRI’s Chopus said. “We support efforts to reduce this threat and to by increasing protections and resources to combat financial fraud and exploitation.”
The House passed the Senior Security Act of 2023, introduced by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO) with unanimous bipartisan support, and was received in the Senate, where it was referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. However, it did not advance further before the conclusion of the 118th Congress.
The House Financial Services Committee planned two-day markup to consider the two dozen bills, can be watched via live stream at this link.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article has been updated since publication to include news of the bills passing out of committee (see above).
SEE ALSO:
• ‘Retirement Savings for Americans Act’ Introduced Again in Congress
• CITs in 403(b)s Bill Headed to Senate
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.