An economy with full employment makes competition for talent exceedingly stiff, and legislation that allows small businesses to institute and offer retirement plans as a benefit that rivals larger corporations is seen as increasingly critical.
With an admitted dog in the hunt, a new Nationwide survey found it’s why many support the SECURE Act, short for “Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement.”
The company reports that 59% of business owners think the SECURE Act would have a positive impact on their ability to offer a 401k plan.
Among business owners who are familiar with the SECURE Act, one of the largest proposed overhauls of the U.S. retirement system in decades, 84 percent believe the legislation should make it easier for small business owners to offer a 401k.
Beyond helping business owners and employees financially prepare for retirement, the ability to offer a 401k has significant business benefits, Nationwide notes, including:
Nearly nine in 10 business owners agree that it provides both their business and employees tax advantages (88 percent), and it helps attract and recruit top talent (88 percent) and helps improve employee retention (86 percent).
Understanding Business Owners’ Awareness and Interest in the SECURE Act
Nationwide’s survey also found that 84% of business owners are at least slightly familiar with the SECURE Act and two in five owners are interested in learning more about the legislation.
Younger business owners between the ages of 18 and 34 are more likely to have heard of the SECURE Act, with 93% saying they are at least slightly familiar with it, compared with 79% for those between ages 35 and 54, and 76% over the age of 55.
One feature of the SECURE Act is the ability to establish open multiple employer plans (MEPs), where multiple businesses participate in a single qualified retirement plan, reducing individual company’s costs, fiduciary liability and administrative needs.
The SECURE Act will also provide an annual tax credit which covers up to $5,000 of plan costs for the first three years that an employer offers a plan, aimed at helping to ease any financial burden.
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.
