Happy International Women’s Day this week to all the extraordinary women who have dedicated their time to retirement security. You are kicking it! Take a moment to recognize someone near you this week.

• We’re at DCIIA’s spring event series – the Innovation Forum, Retirement Research Summit, and Diversity Equity and Inclusion Awards. Special focus on the DEI Awards.

• Fresssh numbers from the states

• Key updates from California, Delaware, Connecticut, Kansas, and Missouri

• David John and one more nugget on Universal Auto IRA impact

• Hot Sauce and Cool Stuff

• … and Pix of the week! a great recc for those coffee lovers around Portland

Hello Friends! It is Black History Month in the US ♥️. To us, this month is incredibly important. Every year we find the dialogue about our shared history is getting richer. Are there plenty of concerns? Yes, there are. Opportunities to act? Yes, there are. And in the current focus our personal understanding of the ongoing contributions to all that we are together increases, and the world – at least the one close to us – gets better and becomes fuller. #thankyou

Happy Late January, friends! Is it just us or is the year already speeding by? There's a lot going on in the world of retirement savings innovations. Warm yourself up with a steaming cup of something (did you know Jan. 31 marks National Hot Chocolate Day?) and read on:

• Treasurer Michael Frerichs on Illinois Secure Choice at Five – Wow!

• Key updates from California, Connecticut, and Maine

• Our first Correction (certainly not our first mistake though)

• A hot take on SECURE 2.0 - key features of the Saver’s Match

• Hot Sauce and Cool Stuff – Always an audience favorite!

• Swearings-in and more in Pix of the week