2017 Archives: Financial Security and Consumer Affairs

L:  On July 13, 2017 AARP sent a letter to House Committee on the Budget Chair Diane Black communicating our views as the Committee prepares to consider a House Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2018.  In the letter, we noted that it is widely reported that the House budget may include $200 billion in proposed reductions to mandatory spending.  AARP urged the Budget Committee to reject mandatory cuts that would have a devastating impact on older Americans. (PDF)

May

L:  On May 1, 2017 AARP sent a letter to the entire U.S. Senate urging Senators to vote against H.J. Res. 66, a Congressional Review Act resolution to overturn the Department of Labor’s guidance on “Savings Arrangements Established by States for Non-Governmental Employees.”  Today, 55 million working Americans do not have a way to save for retirement out of their regular paycheck. To promote greater retirement savings, more than half the states in the last two years have considered a variety of options to provide employers and their workers with low-cost savings options. H.J. Res. 66 sends an unmistakable message to states and to voters that state flexibility to encourage greater retirement savings is not desired by Congress. (PDF)

March

L:  On March 17, 2017 AARP sent a letter to the U.S. Employee Benefits Security Administration expressing strong opposition to the U.S. Department of Labor’s proposal to delay the applicability dates of the “Definition of the Term ‘Fiduciary’; Conflict of Interest Rule – Retirement Invest Advice” (the Rule) and its related prohibited transaction class exemptions for a period of sixty days.  The Department used a deliberative and inclusive process, including six years of review, four days of hearings, numerous meetings with interested stakeholders, over 375 pages of regulatory impact analysis, in excess of 3,000 public comments, and more than 375,000 petition signatures. The time is now to protect hard-earned retirement savings of participants and beneficiaries. (PDF)

February

L:  On February 23, 2017 AARP sent a letter to the House Ways and Means Committee expressing our thoughts on the important role that tax incentives play in promoting and improving the health and financial security of millions of Americans and their families.  We expressed support for the development of a tax system that is both simpler and makes the U.S. more competitive, but also want a tax code that provides fairness and protection to Americans on fixed incomes, especially against the potential harm of large price increases. (PDF)