| 1 | 1 | | 86R28364 KSM-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Farrar H.R. No. 1439 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 6 | 6 | | WHEREAS, The nation is facing a vast retirement savings |
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| 7 | 7 | | deficit, and it is estimated that half of all households are on a |
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| 8 | 8 | | path that leads to financial insecurity in retirement; this |
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| 9 | 9 | | retirement security crisis will have a significant impact on state |
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| 10 | 10 | | and local governments as well as on retirees and their families; and |
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| 11 | 11 | | WHEREAS, Although the preparedness of Texans to retire in a |
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| 12 | 12 | | financially secure manner has not been studied, it is estimated |
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| 13 | 13 | | that Social Security provides 90 percent of the retirement income |
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| 14 | 14 | | of nearly a quarter of Texans over the age of 65 and that the average |
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| 15 | 15 | | amount of a Social Security check in Texas is about $1,375 per |
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| 16 | 16 | | month; and |
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| 17 | 17 | | WHEREAS, Many Texans can rely on an employer-sponsored |
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| 18 | 18 | | retirement plan to supplement their Social Security income; |
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| 19 | 19 | | however, more than half of Texas workers in the private sector work |
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| 20 | 20 | | for a business that does not offer such a plan; this is despite |
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| 21 | 21 | | evidence that offering a retirement plan makes a business more |
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| 22 | 22 | | competitive and helps with employee turnover; and |
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| 23 | 23 | | WHEREAS, Employees who are given the option of enrolling in a |
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| 24 | 24 | | payroll deduction retirement plan are 15 times more likely to save |
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| 25 | 25 | | for retirement; unfortunately, many small businesses do not choose |
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| 26 | 26 | | to offer a payroll deduction retirement plan because of concerns |
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| 27 | 27 | | about costs, complexity, time burdens, and potential liability; and |
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| 28 | 28 | | WHEREAS, The State of Texas has a vested interest in removing |
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| 29 | 29 | | obstacles that prevent Texans from saving for retirement, and a |
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| 30 | 30 | | study of retirement security in Texas would help to identify such |
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| 31 | 31 | | obstacles; now, therefore, be it |
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| 32 | 32 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 86th Texas |
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| 33 | 33 | | Legislature hereby request the speaker to provide for an interim |
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| 34 | 34 | | house study on retirement security in Texas; specifically, the |
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| 35 | 35 | | study should: (1) examine ways the State of Texas can reduce the |
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| 36 | 36 | | regulatory and operational burden on small businesses that want to |
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| 37 | 37 | | offer a payroll deduction retirement plan to employees; and (2) |
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| 38 | 38 | | study the preparedness of Texans to retire in a financially secure |
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| 39 | 39 | | manner; and, be it further |
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| 40 | 40 | | RESOLVED, That the speaker assign the study to a select or |
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| 41 | 41 | | standing committee at his discretion, exercising authority granted |
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| 42 | 42 | | to the speaker by House Rule 1, Section 17, Interim Studies, and |
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| 43 | 43 | | House Rule 4, Chapter F, Interim Study Committees. |
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