Written by Adam Bermudez
Photo c/o youtube.com. (The White House)
This week, the President rolled out a proposal to create the “MyRA”, a
retirement account like an “IRA” for workers who don’t have access to an
employer-sponsored retirement plan.
The MyRA targets the many Americans who currently lack access to
workplace retirement savings plans, attempting to offer a options
already available to government workers and many private sector
employees. The account will earn interest at the same variable
interest rate as a similar plan offered to federal employees.
Video c/o whitehouse.gov.
Examining the issue, The PBS Newshour featured a conversation between
weekend host Hari Srinivasan and White House Correspondent for “Real
Clear Politics” Alexis Simendinger shown below.
Video c/o pbs.org/newshour.
As the San Fransisco Chronicle reported today,
“It will have the same tax rules as a Roth individual retirement
account, but employees will contribute through payroll deduction – as
little as $25 to start and $5 per paycheck. This eliminates the need
to open an account with a financial institution, which generally don’t
welcome tiny IRAs.
It’s called the myRA, but nobody is sure how to pronounce it. Even
Obama stumbled over it in his State of the Union speech. (Is it
my-IRA, My-RA or Myra? Treasury says it’s the middle one and is short
for my retirement account.)
The guaranteed, no-fee account could chip away at the vast number of
Americans who have saved almost nothing for retirement. But it won’t
lead to dramatic change because employers don’t have to enroll their
workers.”
The White House has offered a fact sheet on the program available
here.
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