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Treasurer’s office seeks technical fixes to Secure Choice retirement program
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Summary
The committee heard technical amendments to Rhode Island’s Secure Choice retirement savings program to align definitions with federal rules and clarify investment-committee review; treasurer’s office reported 3,000 employees already saving through the program.
The House Committee on Corporations heard House Bill 7475, a technical amendment package to the Rhode Island Secure Choice Retirement Savings Program Act designed to ease administration and ensure compliance with federal rules.
Rob Craven, speaking on behalf of the treasurer's office, said two primary changes clarify the definition of an "optional employee" to align with Employee Retirement Income Security Act regulations and define how the State Investment Commission reviews and approves the program's investment lineup. Craven noted the state’s partnership with Connecticut on investment selection to reduce fees for savers and said the program already had roughly 3,000 employees enrolled from more than 500 businesses since launch last fall.
Representative Phillips asked whether accrued money remains portable when an employee moves to a firm with an existing retirement plan; Craven replied portability depends on the precise account type (for example, Roth IRA to Roth IRA transfers are straightforward, while conversions between pretax and post-tax accounts can have tax consequences). The committee closed the hearing after receiving several written testimonies from stakeholders who did not present live.
