IRI Applauds Congressional Resolution on the Importance of Tax Incentives for Retirement Savings
Protecting Tax-Deferred Status of Annuities Is Imperative to Providing Retirement Security to Millions of Americans
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) released the following statement from IRI President and CEO Cathy Weatherford in support of a concurrent resolution introduced by Congressmen Jim Gerlach (R-Pa.) and Richard Neal (D-Mass.) to express the sense of the Congress that the current tax incentives for retirement savings provide important benefits to Americans to help plan for a financially secure retirement.
“It has been well documented that the shift from defined benefit to defined contribution plans, longer life spans and the rising costs of health care are among the challenges that will put more of the burden of saving for retirement on the shoulders of individual investors. The recent recession’s significant impact on retirement savings and income has only made matters worse. Yet, those with insured retirement strategies have a higher confidence in their retirement expectations. The tax-deferred status of annuity earnings—not tax-free—is a key attribute that has led to Americans attaining financial security through lifetime income coverage. This is particularly of importance for middle-income Americans, who comprise the largest segment of annuity owners. Now more than ever, we need to work to protect the incentives available to help Americans attain a secure retirement. We thank Congressmen Gerlach and Neal for their leadership on this important issue, as well as the more than 100 members of Congress who have supported this resolution. We look forward to continuing to work with our elected leaders to protect and support incentives that help provide Americans with access to insured retirement solutions.”
To view the resolution, click here.
To view a one pager on the importance of the tax treatment of annuities, click here.
To view the IRI report on the tax treatment of annuities, click here.
To view the latest list of cosponsors for the resolution, click here.
About the Insured Retirement Institute: The Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) is a not-for-profit organization that for twenty years has been a mainstay of service, commitment and collaboration within the insured retirement industry. Today, IRI is considered to be the authoritative source of all things pertaining to annuities, insured retirement strategies and retirement planning. IRI proudly leads a national consumer education coalition of nearly twenty organizations and is the only association that represents the entire supply chain of insured retirement strategies: our members are the major insurers, asset managers, broker dealers and more than 75,000 financial professionals. IRI exists to vigorously promote consumer confidence in the value and viability of insured retirement strategies, bringing together the interests of the industry, financial advisors and consumers under one umbrella. IRI’s mission is to: encourage industry adherence to highest ethical principles; promote better understanding of the insured retirement value proposition; develop and promote best practice standards to improve value delivery; and to advocate before public policy makers on critical issues affecting insured retirement strategies and the consumers that rely on their guarantees. Visit www.IRIonline.org today to experience the vast resources of the Insured Retirement Institute for yourself.
