Ideas for Improving lagging retirement savings for lower- and moderate-income workers

[Cynthia Van Bogaert]

Hello, I am writing this time as a member of the Retirement Reform Group, an informal, nonpartisan group of active and retired employee benefits attorneys working to address lagging savings for lower- and moderate-income workers.  If you are interested in this issue (and I hope you are), our website is: retirementreform.org. 

Members of the Retirement Reform Group participating in the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel Annual Meeting Education Program in San Diego, CA (October 10, 2026) are pleased to share handouts prepared for the meeting. While the seminar itself is not open to the general public, the following materials are available on our webpage:
- The Urgent Need and Incredible Opportunity to Expand Retirement Coverage through Efficient Plan Design (Richard Shea)
- The Challenges and Promise of Lifetime Income in a Defined Contribution World (Norman Stein)
- The IRA Protection Gap: Missing ERISA Safeguards, Rollover Vulnerabilities, and Paths to More and Safer Retirement Savings (Phyllis C. Borzi, Cynthia Van Bogaert)
- Improving Access to Non-Conflicted Retirement Information for Individuals and Small Employers (Maria O'Brien, Mark Iwry/Matthew I. Whitehorn, Lisa Germano)
-Why Aren’t They Saving? Real Plan Design and Demographic Barriers for Lower- and Moderate-Income Workers (Lisa M. Gomez)

We invite policymakers, practitioners, and other stakeholders interested in improving lagging retirement savings for lower- and moderate-income workers to access these resources here: https://retirementreform.org/resources/ under the Presentations and Materials section. 

Again, I am not providing legal or tax advice.  These are for informational purposes only.  You may share them with others.  Note that the Retirement Reform Group is limited to Fellows of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel, but is not affiliated with the College.

If you have ideas about problems and solutions you see in your practice, I would love to hear your thoughts.

Cindy Van Bogaert 

Member, Retirement Reform Group