Pundits and politicians have long forewarned of the fiduciary fix to come. Indeed, our own Ary Rosenbaum has predicted some change—any change—will occur, and 401(k) advisors should therefore be prepared.
With Congressional opposition to the Department of Labor’s fiduciary proposal growing on both sides of the aisle, the year-end introduction of the bipartisan Strengthening Access to Valuable Education and Retirement Support (SAVERS) Act and the Affordable Retirement Advice Protection (ARAP) Act are drawing accolades from certain sectors both inside and outside the industry.
The Investment Company Institute, for example, praised the introduction of the legislation in a release from president and CEO Paul Schott Stevens.
The bipartisan bills would set a “best-interest standard covering those providing retirement advice and include other provisions that serve as an alternative to the current fiduciary-standard rule proposal under consideration by the Department of Labor (DOL),” according to the organization.
The bills’ introduction was led by Representatives Peter Roskam (R-IL), Richard Neal (D-MA), Phil Roe (R-TN), and John Larson (D-CT).
“These bipartisan bills present a commonsense approach to implementing the broad consensus in support of a new, consumer-focused best-interest standard—in stark contrast with the flawed approach that the DOL has pursued throughout this process,” Stevens wrote. “Provisions in these bills would protect the individual savers who would be harmed by the fiduciary rule currently proposed by the DOL.
“The DOL’s current course would inflict financial harm upon millions of individual savers and undermine America’s retirement savings system. Significantly, the bills give the DOL an opportunity to make necessary changes toward a more workable rule by allowing Congress to void the legislation if the DOL produces a satisfactory rule proposal. The DOL should heed this development and work with interested parties across the nation to get this rule right.”
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.
