401(k) Specialist Issue 1 - 2022 - 40

401(k) PROVIDER PERSPECTIVE
National Urban League, NAACP Endorse
401(k) Auto Portability
By Renée Wilder Guerin
ROBERT L. JOHNSON, Chairman of the Board
and largest shareholder of Retirement Clearinghouse
(RCH) has secured endorsements for
auto portability from two premier civil rights
organizations-the National Urban League, and
the National Association for the Advancement of
Colored People (NAACP).
Both organizations have over a century of
experience advocating for solutions that address
the inequities and economic challenges experienced
by Black Americans and other communities
of color.
The endorsements from the Urban League
and the NAACP dramatically expand a coalition
that has formed in support of auto portability,
including large defined contribution recordkeepers,
large employers, legislators, regulators, and
trade organizations.
The National Urban League's Endorsement
Writing on behalf of the National Urban
League, which includes 91 Urban League affiliates
across 36 states the District of Columbia,
President and CEO Marc H. Morial cited the
overall racial wealth gap, as well as the increased
incidence of retirement savings cash-out rates
for Black Americans as problems requiring
" affirmative steps " by private-sector retirement
plan providers, including the adoption of auto
portability.
Morial further noted both the individual and
systemic benefits of auto portability and specifically
referred to auto portability's bipartisan
political support, referencing Senators Tim Scott,
R-SC, and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.
Morial closed his endorsement by stating,
" Now is the time for all of us to work together
to reduce the wealth gap and make retirement
more secure for Black families. The National Urban
League stands behind all efforts to empower
Black Americans and we are pleased to be
aligned with you on the issue of Auto Portability. "
The NAACP's Endorsement
Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of
the NAACP, opened his endorsement by
40
ISSUE 1 2022 | 401kSpecialist.com
emphasizing the NAACP's " support of your
efforts to advocate for the full adoption of
auto portability across national retirement
programs. The implementation of auto portability
is a necessary and transformational
tool in addressing the racial wealth gap. It
will ensure that Black families, and other
communities of color, have the financial infrastructure
necessary to maintain economic
stability for retirement. "
Johnson then framed the NAACP's support
of auto portability in the context of " holistic
economic inclusion " -where Black Americans
must overcome retirement savings shortfalls that
begin " during a worker's earning years. "
Citing statistics revealing significantly
lower access by Blacks to employer-sponsored
retirement plans (particularly in the private
sector), lower retirement savings balances, and
higher cash-out rates, Johnson pivoted to the
importance of auto-enrollment as a " necessary
strategy to address racialized inequities within
retirement plans " -a strategy which he believes
will be augmented with the adoption of auto
portability.
In conclusion, Johnson noted that " the
NAACP is committed to being a partner in
advancing the implementation of auto-portability
as an essential tool to address racialized
economic inequities. "
A Growing Auto Portability Coalition
The endorsements from the Urban League
and the NAACP are vitally important in advancing
the adoption of auto portability, as these organizations
are forceful and effective advocates
for the needs of Black Americans and minorities,
who have consistently been under-represented
and under-served by workplace retirement
savings plans.
The endorsements also dramatically expand
the rapidly growing coalition that has formed
in support of auto portability, including large
defined contribution recordkeepers, large
employers, legislators, regulators, and trade
organizations.
This growing momentum for auto portability
was clear during the last four months of 2021,
when:
* In September, another large and highly-prestigious
recordkeeper announced their
plan to offer auto portability to their plan
sponsor clients and their participants.
* In October, the U.S. Senate's Special Committee
on Aging held a hearing focusing on
solving cashout leakage via auto portability,
which legislators vocally supported.
* In November, Brian Graff, CEO of the
American Retirement Association, voiced his
support for auto portability in a podcast interview
with 401(k) Specialist's John Sullivan.
* In December, at EBRI's 90th Public Policy
forum, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend,
Special Assistant to the Secretary of Labor,
identified portability and leakage as one of
the agency's three top retirement priorities,
and expressed views highly favorable to the
adoption of auto portability.
We are grateful for the endorsements offered
by the Urban League and the NAACP, and believe
that their position is correct, is socially responsible
and will be further embraced by the private
sector and receive the continued support of
public policymakers.
Renée Wilder Guerin Executive Vice president of Public
Policy with Retirement Clearinghouse.
http://www.401kSpecialist.com
401(k) Specialist Issue 1 - 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of 401(k) Specialist Issue 1 - 2022
