As May wraps up, Auto IRA initiatives are in high gear, racing against the end of the 2023 legislative session. Grab a refreshing drink and catch up on the latest: Minnesota, Missouri, and Vermont making strides in retirement savings, state metrics with over 50,000 employers facilitating, key updates from Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, New Jersey, and Oregon, plus trends shaping the big picture. Don’t miss Hot Sauce, cool finds, and Pix of the Week! Let’s dive in!

Did you miss us?! We took a spring break to fit those COVID vaccines in. While we’ve been laying around developing antibodies like mad, there’s been *so much* going on in the world of retirement security! You will not want to miss:

• Mark Iwry on the concept of Automatic – and how getting there really wasn’t …

• Fresh state stats: funded accounts are up 25% year to date!

Determining the “default” investment for savers who do not make a decision about where to direct their contributions is a weighty decision. The downside of putting the money into investments that carry more risk, and a greater potential for loss, is obvious. But parking the contributions in a “safe” investment with lower risk means participants’ accounts may not grow sufficiently to provide significant income security in retirement. Increasingly, target-date funds (TDFs) have become a popular solution.