Secure Choice Retirement Plans
We believe retirement security for ALL Americans lies in a partnership between the public and private sectors. What works for some should work for all.
The U.S. is Experiencing a Retirement Crisis
Until the 1980s, pensions were common and workers knew that with Social Security, their own savings including 401(k)s, and a pension, they could retire with dignity. Today, there’s somewhere between a $4-8 trillion retirement savings deficit.
Over the next 10 to 15 years, the bulk of the 75 million baby boomers will be of retirement age – giving the U.S. the largest over-65 population in its history. The retirement crisis should be a national priority.
Retirement security is a dire issue that affects us all. But only through continued and deliberate education, research, and engagement with policymakers will we find a solution.
NCPERS Advocates for the Secure Choice Pension Model
For the last 150 years public pensions have proven to be the most cost-effective vehicles for both taxpayers and pensioners to ensure a safe retirement. When properly funded by legislatures and employee contributions, these pensions are a model of how retirement policy can work at the national level.
NCPERS has been a strong advocate for the secure choice model, which are the basis for the state-run retirement programs for private-sector workers:
2011: We published The Secure Choice Pension: A Way Forward for Retirement Security in the Private Sector, which served as a roadmap for state-run retirement programs for private-sector workers.
2016: The Department of Labor (DOL) finalized two rules related to state or local government–run retirement programs for private-sector workers. DOL’s final rule on state-run savings arrangements established safe harbors from ERISA (the Employee Retirement Income Security Act) for certain state-run payroll-deduction savings programs for private-sector workers.
2017: Both of these safe harbors were repealed in 2017 by the Republican-controlled 115th Congress under the Congressional Review Act (CRA). Resolutions of disapproval, H.J. Res. 66 (for state-run plans) and 67 (for political subdivision–run plans), were approved by Congress and signed into law by the president.
Later that year, OregonSaves became the first state-sponsored retirement savings program. NCPERS published a second whitepaper, Secure Choice 2.0: States Blazing a Path to Retirement Security for All.
2019: Following passage of the CRA resolutions, legislation was introduced to statutorily protect certain payroll-deduction, IRA-based savings programs established by states or qualified political subdivisions. The legislation, known as the Preserve Rights of States and Political Subdivisions to Encourage Retirement Savings (PROSPERS) Act, has not yet gained traction. For now, the real work lies at the state capitals, where NCPERS continues to work diligently with state legislators toward enactment of such programs.
2025: State-facilitated retirement savings programs continue to grow. As of November, there are 16 Secure Choice-inspired state savings programs open with combined assets of more than $2.69 billion. In total, 20 states and two cities have enacted new programs for private sector workers, helping to close the gap in access to retirement savings programs.