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Fiduciary Legislation to be Honed for the Holidays

Some may consider it a bundle of coal, and others a vision of sugarplums, but a bipartisan group of lawmakers now says that their legislative proposal to ensure retirement advisors protect clients’ best interests could be introduced before the holiday break.

The members of the bipartisan working group — Reps. Phil Roe (R-TN), Richard Neal (D-MA), Peter Roskam (R-IL) and John Larson (D-CT) — issued the following joint statement: “In recent weeks, we have been working together to draft a legislative proposal reflecting the principles we believe will help Americans save for retirement. The growing bipartisan interest we have seen demonstrates the continued concerns many have with the department’s approach and the need for Congress to offer a responsible solution. While we still have a few details to finalize, we are optimistic we will introduce a bill before Congress breaks for the holidays.”

The legislation has been developed among what the working group described as “bipartisan concerns” that the Labor Department’s fiduciary proposal “…will make it harder for low- and middle-income families to plan for retirement.”

According to a press release, the principles underlying the legislation are:


  • Promoting families and individuals saving for a financially secure retirement is an essential public policy good.

  • Retirement advisors must serve in their clients’ best interests and must be required to do so.

  • Retirement advisors must deliver clear, simple, and relevant disclosure of material conflicts, including compensation received and all investment fees to individuals saving for retirement.

  • Public policies must protect access to investment advice and education for low- and middle-income workers and retirees.

  • Public policies should never deny individuals the financial information they need to make informed decisions.

  • Investor choice and consumer access to all investment services — such as proprietary products, commission-based sales and guaranteed lifetime income — should be preserved in a way that does not pick winners and losers.

  • Small business owners should have access to the financial advice and products they need to establish and maintain retirement plans and help workers save for retirement.


The announcement comes in the wake of a U.S. House subcommittee hearing last week at which the principles underlying this legislation were a focus of discussion. That subcommittee, the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Education and the Workforce Committee, of which one of the bill’s co-sponsors, Rep. Roe, is chairman, heard testimony from four witnesses, three adamantly opposed to the Labor Department’s fiduciary proposal, one just as adamantly in favor.

Plans for the legislation and the principles underlying it were announced about a month ago. The Department of Labor has, not surprisingly, already labeled the effort “puzzling and disappointing.”

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