Summer Season: Getting Ready for 2024
Zoom zoom, let’s go!
Photo credit: Jairo Anaya
Have we been taking it easy this summer, enjoying the lazy days of sunshine and vines? Yes, we have. It’s the legislative off season for many in the state and federal systems, and a time of project management and breath-catching for those working in the private sector and policy space.
And it’s also a good time to turn our attention to 2024. Yes, 2024. If you want to think about the future in a relaxed way, it needs to be in the future.
Whichever seat you occupy, we’ve compiled a view of some of the things you can be considering, connected to your role in expanding retirement savings access and use in the coming year. Today we’ll give you the first three.
Legislative Advocacy: Are you in the policy, state, or federal space? If your portfolio includes retirement, you may be getting ready to:
Work with lawmakers to draft and support legislation that encourages our employers to offer retirement savings plans, or requires them to facilitate state-led savings programs. It’s a light lift for a lot of impact.
Here’s a federal version of this – we prefer a standard that allows employers to use existing state programs across borders over a new federal plan for a few reasons – but all ideas deserve a good look.
Draft improvements to existing legislation that simplify access and use for more savers – like this one, and this one. Get your conversations and collaboration with lawmakers on – legislation is hard!
Advocate for state-level tax incentives for individuals and small businesses to contribute to retirement accounts. Did you know states accrue significant taxpayer savings opportunities when retirement readiness levels go up?
Financial Education and Literacy Programs:
Develop ways to coordinate and integrate comprehensive financial literacy campaigns targeting various demographics, especially underserved communities. Here’s a federal example. And a national one.
Support state efforts to expand financial education in schools. These states have been active recently.
Link financial education to development of an Auto IRA program, like Colorado has.
Partner with schools, community organizations, and employers to offer workshops, seminars, and online resources on retirement planning. #peoplefirst
Technology Integration and Innovation:
Invest in user-friendly online tools, apps, and platforms that make retirement planning more accessible and understandable. Here’s what else your colleagues are up to.
Explore innovative solutions like robo-advisors to provide personalized investment advice at a lower cost. We all have opinions on this. Engine-powered advice supported by human engagement seems optimal.
Are you using AI in consumer-facing solutions? We’re having a love-hate relationship with it’s out-of-the-box capabilities, but here’s what some others are up to.
We’ve got more to talk about, but this is plenty for a hot August day.
Get back to sipping that lemonade and plinking through email, right after you schedule yourself some time to cogitate and make your plans for a great 2024.
This piece was featured in the August 17, 2023, edition of Retirement Security Matters. For more fresh thinking on retirement savings innovation, check out the newsletter here
