New Jersey officials on Wednesday formally opened a state-run retirement savings plan that proponents say will benefit over 800,000 workers in the state.
The state’s Secure Choice Savings Program will make IRA-type retirement funds available to state residentse mployed at a business with 25 or more workers.
Many workers at small businesses don’t have access to retirement savings accounts, said Todd Hassler, executive director of the program.
“It’s often referred to as a retirement gap crisis,” he has said.
The state missed the original start date for the program of March 28, 2021, citing the COVID-19 pandemic for the delay. Another March deadline came and went in 2022.
California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Oregon and Washington have similar programs, on which New Jersey’s was modeled, and New York enacted its own version in 2021, according to a database run by Georgetown University.
NJ businesses must register with RetireReadyNJ
New Jersey businesses with at least 25 employees and that have been in business for at least two years now have to register in the program, known as RetireReadyNJ.
A smaller pilot program was run this spring, which entailed five New Jersey businesses encompassing 250 workers. State officials on Wednesday did not immediately disclose the names of those five participating businesses.
State Treasury Department officials said that participation in the program would cost nothing for employers. Companies that already offer a retirement plan, such as a 401(k), can verify that with the state.
Two webinars for business owners are being offered on the program, on July 17 and Aug. 7 at 11 a.m.