Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Deferred Compensation Match topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Educators, officials testify in support of restoring employer match to state deferred compensation plan
Summary
Witnesses backed Senate Bill 20 to reinstate the employer match on state deferred compensation contributions suspended in 2008; the insurance commissioner raised funding-structure concerns. The committee heard testimony but did not record a vote.
The Senate Elections & Government Affairs Committee heard testimony on Senate Bill 20, which proposes reinstating the employer contribution match for state employees’ deferred compensation accounts that was suspended in July 2008.
Senate staff described the match as a recruitment and retention tool for state government: the state previously offered an employer match to help employees save for retirement, and the match was suspended during the Great Recession. Chris Haas, identified in the hearing as representing the insurance division, said his office does not oppose the bill but warned it could impose funding responsibilities on the department: "The bill would require the department to fully fund all matches ourselves with no support, from the general fund or any other funds," he said, reflecting a fiscal‑administration concern conveyed to the office of the state treasurer.
Stephanie Ingram, president of the Delaware State Education Association and a classroom teacher, testified in support of the bill on behalf of public educators, saying many members are living paycheck to paycheck and have limited ability to save for retirement. "When you're living paycheck to paycheck, saving for retirement can feel like a luxury you can't afford," Ingram said, urging lawmakers to restore the state match as fulfillment of a long‑standing legislative intent.
No formal motion or recorded vote on Senate Bill 20 appears in the hearing transcript; the committee concluded testimony and adjourned the meeting.
