Thank you, Chairman Roskam, for holding this hearing. Today's topic is very important to millions of Americans who are saving for their retirement. Over the last 40 years, retirement plans have changed. Today, fewer Americans are covered by traditional pension plans, and many are covered by defined contribution plans, like Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) and 401(k)s.
These plans often require employees to make three decisions. First, the employee must decide how much to save. Second, the employee must decide where to invest his or her savings. And third, the employee must manage payouts from the plan during retirement. An employee might also need to weigh the merits of a lump-sum distribution option.
These are not easy decisions. A person’s retirement is at stake. For help, Americans rely on advice from retirement industry professionals to make the best decisions.
The Department of Labor recently issued a proposed rule designed to ensure that consumers receive conflict-free advice from their retirement advisors. However, the rule also would affect the long-standing way advisors are paid. The rule is controversial and has been the subject of thousands of comments.
We must do all we can to help American families save for their retirement. And this morning, I look forward to hearing more about why the rule is important, and whether changes should be made to the proposal so that that it works as intended. Again, I thank the Chairman for holding today's hearing.
