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Hillary Clinton Campaign Press Release - SC Hillary Campaign And Charleston Small Business Owners Unveil State Impact Report for Hillary's Retirement Savings Plan

October 10, 2007

990,000 SC Workers Gain New 401(k); $1,000 Incentive for all SC Workers to Save

(CHARLESTON) – Small business owners and members of the Charleston County Council Teddie Pryor and Colleen Condon unveiled a report by the Hillary campaign detailing the impact of Hillary's new retirement savings plan on South Carolinians today in Charleston, detailing widespread impact in the Palmetto State.

"As a small business owner, I'd like to offer my employees a retirement plan, but it just isn't financially feasible," Pryor said at the unveiling held at his Charleston business, Pryor's Towing and Radiator. "For 990,000 South Carolinians that don't have access to a retirement savings plan through their jobs, Hillary's plan will help them save, invest and build for retirement with their own 401(k) and financial incentives to put money back for their senior years."

According to the State Impact Report, 46 percent of South Carolina workers are employed by firms that do not offer a pension or retirement plan. Many workers in firms that do offer plans are not taking advantage of the chance to save. The level of retirement savings is particularly low for workers in small businesses and farms, parents and others who take time out from the work force, and lower-income families. Hillary's plan will offer expanded tax credits to help many of South Carolina's 339,000 small businesses offset start-up administrative costs of providing the direct deposit options to their employees.

"Hillary's plan helps offset the economic squeeze on our families and small businesses in the Charleston area and in our state. I want to offer retirement options like a 401(k), but I haven't found a good solution having just two employees," Condon, owner and principal of Condon Law Firm, a small family law firm with two employees, said. "Hillary's plan helps families employed by small businesses and low-income families alike save for retirement and at the same time gives an incentive to South Carolinians who already have a retirement plan to aggressively save."

According to the State Impact Report, 2.17 million South Carolina workers who currently have access to an employer-sponsored retirement savings account could benefit from the tax incentives in Senator Clinton's plan.

Hillary's bold new Universal 401(k) plan, announced today, includes generous matching tax cuts that—alongside her efforts to strengthen defined benefit pension plans—will help hundreds of thousands of middle class South Carolina families build wealth for their future. Building on her commitment to protect the guaranteed benefit of Social Security, Hillary's Universal 401(k) plan will tackle the current retirement savings crisis by helping ensure that all Americans can afford a dignified retirement.

Hillary's proposal will provide a matching tax credit – dollar-for-dollar – of the first $1,000 of savings done by every married couple making up to $60,000. The plan will provide a 50% match on the first $1,000 of savings for every family making between $60,000 and $100,000, which will be phased out after that. This matching tax credit will be available to all Americans in existing 401(k) type accounts as well as the new American Retirement Accounts. These accounts will allow individuals to contribute up to $5,000 per year on a tax-deferred basis. The first $1000 contributed into the accounts would be eligible for the new 1-to-1 and 50% government matches.

A copy of the state impact report is below.

South Carolina's Retirement Accounts Plan: A 401(k) Plan for All South Carolina Families

On Tuesday October 9th, Hillary Clinton announced a bold new American Retirement Accounts Plan with generous matching tax cuts that—alongside her efforts to strengthen defined benefit pension plans—will help hundreds of thousands of middle class South Carolina families build wealth for their future. Building on her commitment to protect the guaranteed benefit of Social Security, Hillary's American Retirement Accounts Plan will tackle the current retirement savings crisis by helping ensure that all Americans can afford a dignified retirement. Fully Portable and Matching Retirement Savings Accounts for South Carolina Workers and Families

The American Retirement Accounts Plan will give all Americans an opportunity to save and build wealth for retirement that is as easy, secure and generous as is offered by good employer-sponsored 401(k)s. Hillary's American Retirement Accounts Plan will give that chance to the tens of millions of Americans who are currently falling through the cracks while reducing wealth inequality, increasing national savings, and encouraging economic growth. Under the plan, working and middle class families who currently have the hardest time saving will receive generous matching tax cuts as an incentive to help them save. And all middle-class Americans will get to open new American Retirement Accounts that will be designed to provide no-hassle, portable savings throughout their careers.

  • New matching tax cuts will benefit South Carolina families. This new proposal will provide a matching tax credit – dollar-for-dollar – of the first $1,000 of savings done by every married couple making up to $60,000. The plan will provide a 50% match on the first $1,000 of savings for every family making between $60,000 and $100,000, which will be phased out after that. This matching tax credit will be available to all Americans in existing 401(k) type accounts as well as the new American Retirement Accounts. That means that in South Carolina, where the median family income is $39,454, most South Carolina families will get matching tax cuts of $1,000 or $500 to help them build a nest egg for retirement.[1]
  • If you are one of the 990,000 South Carolina workers that have no access to employer-sponsored retirement accounts, Senator Clinton's plan will finally ensure that you can get a fully portable and matching retirement account with strong incentives to save. Senator Clinton will let all middle-class Americans open a new American Retirement Account. These accounts will allow individuals to contribute up to $5,000 per year on a tax-deferred basis. The first $1,000 contributed into the accounts would be eligible for the new 1-to-1 and 50% government matches. [Retirement Security Project, 2006].

Individuals would have the choice to set up their account with any private provider that offered diversified investment options that included an age appropriate investment life-cycle fund as a default option. Individuals would also have a fall-back option of setting up accounts through a similar system to the ones that Members of Congress currently get to use.

  • If you are one of the 2.17 million South Carolina workers who currently has access to an employer-sponsored retirement savings account, Senator Clinton's plan provides you with flexibility and increased incentives to save—if you are happy with your current plan you can keep it and you may be eligible for the generous new matching tax credits. [Retirement Security Project, 2006].

Expanded Access to Retirement Savings for South Carolina Parents, Self-Employed Workers, and Middle and Working Class Families – and Aid for Small Firms

Forty-six percent of South Carolina workers are employed by firms that do not offer a pension or retirement plan, and many workers in firms that do offer plans, are not taking advantage of the chance to save. The level of retirement savings is particularly low for workers in small businesses and farms, parents and others who take time out from the work force, and lower-income families.

  • By offering access to a fully portable retirement account to South Carolina Parents, Senator Clinton's plan will help families to save for a secure future. A parent who takes five years off over a 20 year period to care for a child—and stops saving in their traditional 401(k) because they lose the matching incentive—could lose 35% of their account compared to continuing saving with Senator Clinton's proposed American Retirement Account matching incentives.
  • Hillary's plan will offer expanded tax credits to help many of South Carolina's 339,900 small businesses offset start-up administrative costs of providing the direct deposit options to their employees. For small businesses, administrative costs associated with setting up employer-sponsored retirement plans can be particularly daunting. Senator Clinton's plan will ensure that employees of small businesses get access to a retirement savings plan that is simple, automatic, portable and flexible to help them save for their retirement.[2]

No Asset Tests That Force Moderate-Income South Carolina Families to Choose Between Saving for Retirement and Receiving Benefits Like Food Stamps

In addition to providing generous new incentives for working families to save, Hillary's American Retirement Accounts Plan will reduce disincentives to save that exist in our retirement system. Unfortunately, current policy actually penalizes lower-income families who want to save for retirement in 401(k)s and IRAs, by disqualifying them for means-tested benefit programs like food stamps, SSI, and Medicaid. The asset tests in these programs are not indexed for inflation and have not been raised in over a decade. The food stamp asset limit for most households is $2,000; the SSI limits are $2,000 for singles and $3,000 for couples.

  • If your household is one of the 227,000 South Carolina households participating in food stamp programs – 55 percent of which are households with children – Senator Clinton's plan will finally ensure that you are not forced to choose between saving for retirement and receiving benefits.[3]

[1]U.S. Census Bureau (2004).

[2]Small Business Administration (2006).

[3]Retirement Security Project (2006).

Hillary Clinton, Hillary Clinton Campaign Press Release - SC Hillary Campaign And Charleston Small Business Owners Unveil State Impact Report for Hillary's Retirement Savings Plan Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/292550

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