Legislative Report…Daniel Nnorth and Claudia Schott

More than 7 million working Californians do not have access to retirement savings plans through their employers. That is why AARP is working to pass SB 1234, Secure Choice Savings Program Act. Secure Choice makes it easier for small businesses to establish a basic retirement savings option for employees. Secure Choice would not be a state program, it would be a public-private partnership. This would be a hassle-free way for small businesses with 5 employees or more to offer their employees a simple retirement plan. Employees would have a choice of whether to participate. Accounts would follow the employee so a person could continue to save if they change jobs. Please join us and sign AARP’s online petition to pass Secure Choice. Together, we can help individuals build retirement savings so more people can have the freedom to live independently throughout their lives.

SB 1234 (Secure Choice) Update – Passed Assembly Labor & Employment with bi-partisan support. It now heads to Assembly Appropriations. Your help is needed. Please tell your Assembly Member to vote YES on this critical piece of legislation, and take action here. https://action.aarp.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=5803

State Budget: Governor Brown has signed the state budget. AARP’s letter on the budget has, among other things, the provisions we supported that are now law, including the reduction of Medi-Cal Estate Recovery to the federal minimum, a small increase in the monthly SSI grant, reversal of the 7% hours cut for In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) recipients, and increased funding for Alzheimer’s early detection and diagnosis.