Washington, D.C.–U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Ranking Member of
the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, delivered the following remarks at an open
executive session to consider The Enhancing American Retirement Now (EARN) Act.
The
text of Ranking Member Crapo’s remarks, as prepared, is below.
“Thank
you, Mr. Chairman.
“Nearly
one year ago, we held a policy hearing on how we could strengthen private
retirement savings by building on the success of the original SECURE Act.
At the time, I noted retirement has a history of bipartisan cooperation and I
expected this process—SECURE 2.0—to be no different.
“My
expectation turned out to be true. Mr. Chairman, thank you for making
this legislation a priority and for working to construct a retirement package
that will garner widespread bipartisan support in this Committee and in the
entire Senate.
“Reaching
today’s markup on the Enhancing Americans Retirement Now, or EARN, Act is the
product of months of bipartisan work that resulted in a bill that will increase
participation in retirement plans, strengthen and encourage private retirement
savings, and make it easier for employers to offer retirement plans.
“Every
member of the Finance Committee had a hand in drafting this bill, and it
reflects priorities and input from every Committee member.
“Two
colleagues in particular have played a central, years-long role in laying the
foundation for what we will consider today: Senator Portman and Senator
Cardin.
“They
are leaders on retirement security issues and deserve a great deal of credit
for advancing many of the policies reflected in this legislation.
“Incentivizing
automatic enrollment in plans, increasing the required minimum distribution age
and catch-up contribution limit, and making it easier for part time workers to
participate in retirement plans are just a few of their policies that have
built the foundation for this bill and the entire ‘SECURE 2.0’ process.
“Senator
Portman and Senator Cardin, thank you for your commitment to this issue. “Senators
Grassley, Lankford and Hassan worked to improve rules relating to 403(b) plans,
while Senators Barrasso and Carper worked to create additional retirement plan
options for small businesses through their ‘starter 401(k)’ proposal.
“Senator
Cornyn worked with Senator Cortez-Masto on legislation to allow domestic abuse
survivors the ability to access retirement funds when they need it most, while
Senators Burr and Bennet worked to ensure terminally-ill patients can do the
same.
“Senators
Thune and Toomey worked across the aisle and led efforts regarding retired
first responders and corrections officers.
“Senator
Daines worked on a retirement ‘lost and found’ registry with Senator Warren,
while Senators Scott and Brown worked to improve portability between retirement
plans when workers change jobs, an area that has also gained Senator Sasse’s
interest.
“Senators
Cassidy and Menendez pushed for certainty for rules governing retirement
account withdrawals in the case of natural disasters.
“Senator
Lankford worked with Senator Bennet on an important issue—emergency withdrawals
from retirement accounts. Their legislation allows individuals the
ability to access small amounts of money when they are faced with an emergency.
“Senator
Young worked in a bipartisan way to improve the rules relating to special needs
trusts and also on a very important issue—emergency savings. I look
forward to continuing to work with you and our Senate Committee on Health,
Education, Labor and Pensions Committee colleagues on your bill.
“I also
want to recognize Senator Warner and his work with Senator Collins on the
SIMPLE IRAs and look forward to working with him as we move this along in the
future.
“These
are just a few examples of the broad range of ideas incorporated into the bill
we are considering today and it is a testament to the power of
bipartisanship. When we work together, we can create impactful and
lasting work.
“I also
thank and recognize the Joint Committee on Taxation for its tireless
work. The Finance Committee cannot properly function without JCT’s
expertise.
“So
thank you to Tom Barthold, JCT’s Chief of Staff, who is with us today and to
the policy staff at JCT who helped all Finance members prepare for today’s
markup: Rhonda Migdail, Clare Diefenbach, Sally Kwak, Kelly Scanlon and many
others who worked behind the scenes. Your hard work over the past few
months is greatly valued.
“Once
the Finance Committee reports this bill, I look forward to working with our
colleagues on the HELP Committee and our House colleagues to resolve any
differences and get a bill to the President’s desk.
“Thank
you, Mr. Chairman.”