CHICAGO (AP) – States are moving forward with new initiatives to help millions of workers save for retirement, even as the Republican-led Congress moves to block rules making it easier for them to do so.
Studies show a sharp divide in retirement savings between those who have employer-sponsored plans and those who do not. The state programs are designed to fill in the gap.
Seven states are in various stages of implementing state-sponsored retirement savings plans. They are California, Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland, Oregon and Washington, in addition to Illinois.
In Illinois alone, official estimate that 1.2 million workers could benefit.
The states programs were helped along by Labor Department rules governing automatic enrollment and payroll deductions.
But Congress is moving to block those rules, with a vote scheduled in the House Wednesday.