Chairs Miller and Andrews Statement on Department of Labor Retirement Security Proposal
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Reps. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, and Rob Andrews (D-NJ), chairman of the pensions subcommittee, today issued a statement on a Department of Labor proposal to protect workers’ retirement from investment advisors who have a direct financial interest in the products they recommend. Vice President Joe Biden announced the proposal today as part of the Middle Class Task Force’s annual report. “Today’s announcement is welcome news for the millions of Americans concerned about their retirement security. All too often, the worst performing products with the highest fees and best commissions for financial service firms have been pushed by Wall Street on our nation’s workers. We hope that this proposal will help to ensure that investment advice is based on what is best for a family’s long-term retirement security, not the investment advisor’s commissions.”
The Bush administration approved a last-minute regulation that allowed financial services firms to offer potentially conflicted investment advice on workers’ retirement accounts.
The 401(k) Fair Disclosure and Pension Security Act (H.R. 2989), approved by the committee last year, would help workers shop around for the best retirement investment options by providing information on how much in fees is taken from their retirement accounts. It would also have banned conflicted investment advice in the workplace. Current law does not require disclosure of certain fees, and even for fee information that is available, it can be difficult for workers to find and evaluate.
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