Dear NAGDCA Members,
It is only June, but it has already been a long hot summer for many of you. Regardless of temperature, the team at NAGDCA has been diligently preparing for our Annual Conference in Phoenix this September (fingers crossed the heat dome has moved on by then!), but we have a couple of important deadlines I want to point out before we see you again.
The first is for our prestigious Art Caple President’s Award. This award is for the plan that has championed the participant-first mentality that Art demonstrated in his work building financial security for public employees in Maryland.
Unlike past years, this year we are asking for a separate submission for the Caple award. Why? In previous years, we have used the submissions from our other awards, and selected the highest vote-getters from each category as finalists for the Caple Award. While this process has helped us recognize great plans each year, it has been difficult for our evaluators to compare across categories, such as disparate aspects of one plan’s financial wellness program against another’s National Retirement Security Month campaign.
So, we created a new submission opportunity to level the playing field. We hope that this also offers those plans that have been working on big projects over several years or whose projects don’t quite fit into our other categories an opportunity to shine.
Anyone can provide a submission – service provider or plan sponsor – and service providers can nominate as many of your clients as you like. We have had some great submissions so far, and we look forward to seeing more of the wonderful work you’ve done. The deadline is this Friday, June 28 so get those submissions in now!
The second upcoming deadline is for our Industry Committee. If you are an industry member who is passionate about the public sector, you should consider submitting a nomination for yourself. Members of the committee work with me and the Executive Board President to provide the industry perspective on our programming and organizational strategy. Your term culminates in a two-year stint on our Executive Board where you will have a seat at the table to determine NAGDCA’s future. You can submit nominations starting July 15, with a deadline of Wednesday, August 7. If you have any questions about the committee, feel free to write to me directly at mpetersen@nagdca.org.
Thank you for your membership, stay cool out there, and we can’t wait to see you in Phoenix!
All the Best,
Matt Petersen
Executive Director
By Groom Law Group
A recent report from the Congressional Budget Office states that extending the expiring provisions of 2017’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“TCJA”) would cost $4.6 trillion, an increase of $1.1 trillion from the agency’s 2023 estimate. This number includes extending the numerous changes to the individual tax code, the gift and estate tax rate, and business taxes. Which provisions might be renewed will depend in large part upon the outcome of this fall’s Presidential and Congressional elections. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO) said recently that if Republicans retake the House he intends to pass a tax reform bill “in the first quarter” of next year. Chairman Smith also indicated there is at least some support among Republicans for raising the corporate income tax rate, which was lowered to 21% from 35% in 2017. On May 23, former House Ways and Means Committee Chairman and architect of the TCJA Kevin Brady (R-TX) cautioned lawmakers against raising the rate. At a Tax Foundation event, he said, “I think lawmakers of both parties should be conscious, very conscious, of raising the corporate tax rate. That works against incentives, driving economy, driving investment in a major way.”
Many lawmakers will want to extend at least some of the tax cuts, and extending even relatively small tax cuts often comes with a substantial cost. Lawmakers will likely decide it is necessary or appropriate to offset the cost of any tax cut extensions, so they will need to find additional sources of revenue. In 2017, Republican leadership proposed paying for individual and corporate tax cuts by reducing the tax incentive for retirement savings. For example, former Chairman Brady supported various proposals to “Rothify” the system by only allowing employees to make 401(k) and similar defined contribution plan contributions on a post-tax, Roth basis. Similarly, the SECURE 2.0 Act paid for a substantial portion of the cost of the bill by requiring catch-up contributions for highly compensated employees be made on a post-tax (Roth) basis.
In 2017, the Save Our Savings Coalition and its partners were able to successfully defend the tax incentive for retirement savings by leveraging a broad base of bipartisan support for the 401(k) system. However, there are growing calls to make fundamental changes to the current retirement system. For example, Alicia Munnell at Boston College’s Center for Retirement Research and Andrew Biggs at the American Enterprise Institute recently argued that the money the government spends on the tax incentives for retirement would be better spent shoring up Social Security. Similarly, the New York Times Magazine recently ran a story making the argument that the 401(k) system had largely been a failure. The need for revenue to extend or modify the 2017 TCJA and the growing calls to make fundamental reforms to the current retirement system are warning signs that problematic proposals could be considered as part of tax reform efforts in 2025 and attempts at entitlement reform in coming years.
CAPLE AWARD NOMINATIONS DUE JUNE 28
Don’t miss the chance to nominate your plan for the 2024 NAGDCA-Art Caple President’s Award. This prestigious award celebrates visionary leadership and dedication to enhancing the financial well-being of plan participants. In 2024, NAGDCA is expanding the criteria to recognize strategic initiatives that have had a sustained impact on participant outcomes.
Click here to learn more and submit a nomination before the deadline on June 28!
2025 COMMITTEE SIGN UPS CLOSE JULY 2
Don’t miss your chance to get more involved with NAGDCA! Volunteering for a committee is a great way to get involved with the community and connect with other public sector retirement professionals. We’re looking for individuals from across the industry with all levels of experience and expertise.
Click here to learn more and to volunteer!
REGISTER TODAY FOR #NAGDCA24
Register today for the 2024 NAGDCA Annual Conference September 15-18 in Phoenix! The event is an opportunity for you to build a national network of plan sponsors and industry representatives, share ideas with peers, learn innovative techniques for improving retirement outcomes, and much more.