New York
On Oct. 21, 2021, Governor Kathy Hochul signed the New York State Secure Choice Savings Plan Act, which implemented a statewide retirement savings program for all private-sector employees in the state not currently enrolled in a retirement plan to electively participate in a state-facilitated automatic enrollment individual retirement account (IRA) program.
Legislative Summary:
Originally proposed by Senator Diane Savino (D) in February 2017, Senate Bill 4344 never made it out of committee. Then, in January 2021, Assemblyman Robert Rodriguez (D) introduce Assembly bill 3213 which passed the Aseembly in May 2021 and the Senate in June 2021. Meanwhile, Mayor DeBlasio enacted the New York City Retirement Security For All Act (NYC Act), which contained similar provisions to the State Program, but was limited to New York City employers.
Program Description:
The New York Secure Choice Savings Program is administered by the New York Secure Choice Savings Program Board, to provide a state-facilitated payroll-deduction individual retirement savings plan for private sector employees who do not have access to employer-sponsored retirement savings plans.
Affected Employers:
NY State – Employers with ten or more (10+) employees (who earn wages in New York State) that have been in business for at least two years, and have not offered a qualified retirement plan.
NY City – Employers with five or more (5+) employees that have been in business for at least two years, and have not offered a retirement plan. Employees (with regular work duties in NYC) who are at least 21 years old and work 20+ hours per week.
General Requirement:
NY State – Automatic enroll employees at 3% deferral with annual increases of 1% (up to a maximum of 10%) of the enrollee’s wages.
NY City – Automatic enroll employees at 5% deferral with annual increases of 1% (up to a maximum of 10%) of the enrollee’s wages.
Launch Status:
August 9, 2021
Full Implementation:
October 21, 2023
Compliance Deadline:
| Deadline | AFFECTED EMPLOYERS |
|---|---|
| August 9, 2023 | employers with 10 or more employees |
| October 9, 2023 | employers with 5 or more employees |
Non-Compliance Penalties:
Undetermined
Employer Costs:
Undetermined
Employee Costs:
Undetermined
Investments:
The program is anticipated to offer a suite of target date funds (TDFs), as the default investment option, and additional investment options – including a capital preservation, fixed-income, growth & income, and equity funds as well as an annuity option.
Program Website:
New York Secure Choice Savings Program