Source: Congress.gov
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Part of the American dream is having the financial freedom to retire. Buy that RV, go see the national parks. Republicans and Democrats agree every worker deserves to retire with dignity and financial security. Most Americans build retirement savings through employer-sponsored defined contribution plans like 401Ks, programs and plans that work for employees and employers. Congress improved the defined contribution system through Secure 2.0, which the HELP Committee unanimously passed supported last Congress. As a result, we're seeing record increased savings rates among Americans. In addition, President Trump and Secretary Chavez de Remer are advancing pro-worker policies, expanding alternative assets, promoting a more diversified and secure retirement, And working with the financial advisors, Americans now have access to new investment opportunities to grow retirement wealth. But there's more to do. We should build upon our success to further ensure financial security upon retirement. This is a top priority of this committee. Secure 2.0 auto-enrollment provisions help bring many workers into the retirement system. However, we know that sometimes workers are not able to begin saving immediately. This auto-enrollment provision encourages workers periodically to revisit their financial systems so they can begin saving. We build upon that which we know works. Second, empower young workers to save for their future. Workers that begin saving from a young age build strong habits and benefit from additional years of saving and compounding interest. With just a simple fix, Congress can help more Americans start saving when they enter the workforce by enabling companies to allow 18-year-olds to participate in retirement plans. Third, Congress should help workers access consistent, secure retirement income by improving access to lifetime income products, which allow workers to own and tailor their accounts to what works best for them, rather than having a one size fits all.
I've worked with Senator Kaine on multiple bills as regards to all this, including the Helping Young Americans Save for Retirement Act and the Auto Enroll Act of 2025. I thank Senator Kaine for his leadership and collaboration. Earlier this year, the committee and the Senate unanimously passed Senator Hassan Emine Employee Ownership Act and Senator Marshall and Senator Kaine's Retire Through Ownership Act. I hope House colleagues will act quickly to send them to President Trump. These pro-worker, pro-family policies support a more productive workforce and stronger economy. Thank you to our witnesses for being here. I look forward to this discussion.
With that, I recognize Senator Sanders. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding this hearing on an extremely important subject. It is no big secret that we have a retirement crisis in our country that demands immediate action. In America today, unbelievably, the richest country in the world, almost half of older workers have no retirement savings at all and no idea as to how they will retire with any shred of dignity or security. As frightening as the retirement crisis is for older workers, It is even a bigger concern for the millions of seniors who are no longer able to work, who have exhausted all of their savings and who have no pensions. Incredibly and unacceptably, and I learned about this a couple of years ago when I was chair of the committee, really is remarkable. Some 21% of seniors in this country are trying to survive on $15,000 a year or less. I don't know how anybody survives on $15,000, let alone but that is the reality. Half of our nation's older people are trying to make it on an income of less than $30,000 a year. According to the OECD, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, here in the United States, with more income and wealth inequality than we've ever had, we now have the dubious distinction of not only having one of the highest rates of childhood poverty in the industrialized world, we also have one of the highest rates of senior poverty compared to other wealthy nations. Today in America, nearly 23% of seniors are living in poverty. comparing that to Denmark 5%, France 5.8%, Germany 12.6%. In the United States of America, 23% of seniors are living in poverty.
And that is really a disgrace. These are the people who have helped build this economy. They've raised their families. They fought in wars. We should not have almost a quarter of our seniors living in poverty. 50 years ago, Mr. Chairman, it was not uncommon for corporations to provide workers with a defined benefit pension plan that guaranteed, underlined, guaranteed a monthly income in retirement.
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