Conditions may be right for sweeping tax reform, but the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries wants to make sure those changes don't gut the private retirement system.
Craig Hoffman, general counsel and director of regulatory affairs for ASPPA, in remarks at the ASPPA's annual regional conference in Atlanta last week, said that a bipartisan group of legislators believe the private retirement system needs to be completely overhauled as part of that reform.
Because the federal government is facing rising debt, federal bond ratings continue to drop and the most of the country wants Congress to start working together to fix the country's problems, the time is right for tax reform to come to the forefront, he said.
Recommended For You
But Hoffman disagrees with the assumption that the private retirement system needs to be fixed. Some lawmakers look at pre-tax deferrals made into the private retirement system as a potential source of government income. There is a risk that a large tax reform bill could include cuts on plan contributions and additional limitations on retirement benefits, he said.
Hoffman said ASPPA's board of directors recognizes the potential threat to the private retirement system and has committed ASPPA's resources to educate Congress about the value of the private retirement system and how changes would affect Americans' retirements.
In November, ASPPA launched a website to promote the benefits of the private retirement system to the general public.
The website, "savemy401k.com," includes a one-minute animated video, a video game, and a feature that allows individuals to quickly send an e-mail to their U.S. senators and representatives to urge protection of the private retirement system.
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
