Amd §§1301, 1304, 1309, 1313, 1310 & 1300, Gen Bus L
Ensures that employees are automatically enrolled into the secure choice savings program and if they do not want to participate in the program, they must opt out.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5978--B
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 22, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. RODRIGUEZ, MONTESANO, FAHY, PEOPLES-STOKES, WOER-
NER, WEPRIN, BARRON, BLAKE, ORTIZ, GOTTFRIED, PALMESANO, SANTABARBARA,
RAMOS, PICHARDO, JOYNER, MOSLEY, ARROYO -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of
A. GALEF -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental
Employees -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
amended and recommitted to said committee -- recommitted to the
Committee on Governmental Employees in accordance with Assembly Rule
3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to the secure
choice savings program
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 1301 of the general business law, as added by
2 section 2 of part X of chapter 55 of the laws of 2018, is amended to
3 read as follows:
4 § 1301. Program established. There is hereby established a retirement
5 savings program in the form of [a] an automatic enrollment payroll
6 deduction IRA, known as the New York state secure choice savings
7 program. The general administration and responsibility for the proper
8 operation of the program shall be administered by the board for the
9 purpose of promoting greater retirement savings for private-sector
10 employees in a convenient, low-cost, and portable manner. The board may
11 delegate such authority and responsibility for the development and
12 implementation of the program to the department of taxation and finance
13 as the board deems proper.
14 § 2. Subdivisions 7 and 9 of section 1304 of the general business law,
15 as added by section 2 of part X of chapter 55 of the laws of 2018, are
16 amended to read as follows:
17 7. Evaluate and establish or authorize the process for:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08082-07-0
A. 5978--B 2
1 (a) an enrollee to contribute a portion of his or her wages to the
2 program via payroll deduction; and
3 (b) the [voluntary] enrollment of participating employers in the
4 program.
5 9. Evaluate and establish or authorize the process for enrollment
6 including the process by which an employee may opt not to participate in
7 the program, select a contribution level, select an investment option,
8 and terminate participation in the program.
9 § 3. Subdivisions 3, 4 and 5 of section 1309 of the general business
10 law, as added by section 2 of part X of chapter 55 of the laws of 2018,
11 are amended to read as follows:
12 3. The employee informational materials shall include a disclosure
13 form. The disclosure form shall explain, but not be limited to, all of
14 the following:
15 (a) the benefits and risks associated with making contributions to the
16 program;
17 (b) the process for making contributions to the program;
18 (c) how to [cease participation in] opt out of the program;
19 (d) the process by which an employee can participate in the program
20 with a level of employee contributions other than three percent;
21 (e) that they are not required to participate or contribute more than
22 three percent;
23 (f) the process for withdrawal of retirement savings;
24 (g) the process for selecting beneficiaries of their retirement
25 savings;
26 (h) how to obtain additional information about the program;
27 (i) that employees seeking financial advice should contact financial
28 advisors, that participating employers are not in a position to provide
29 financial advice, and that participating employers are not liable for
30 decisions employees make pursuant to this article;
31 (j) information on how to access any available financial literacy
32 programs; [and]
33 (k) that the program fund is not guaranteed by the state; and
34 (l) that they can opt out after they have been enrolled.
35 4. The employee informational materials shall also include a form for
36 an employee to note his or her decision [regarding] to opt out of
37 participation in the program or [election] elect to participate with a
38 level of employee contributions other than three percent.
39 5. Participating employers shall supply the employee informational
40 materials to existing employees at least one month prior to the partic-
41 ipating employers' facilitation of access to the program. Participating
42 employers shall supply the employee informational materials to new
43 employees at the time of hiring and new employees may opt out of partic-
44 ipation in the program.
45 § 4. Subdivision 1 of section 1313 of the general business law, as
46 added by section 2 of part X of chapter 55 of the laws of 2018, is
47 amended to read as follows:
48 1. Participating employers shall not have any liability for an employ-
49 ee's decision regarding whether to participate in, or opt out of, the
50 program or for the investment decisions of the board or of any enrollee.
51 § 5. Subdivisions 1, 4 and 5 of section 1310 of the general business
52 law, as added by section 2 of part X of chapter 55 of the laws of 2018,
53 are amended to read as follows:
54 1. [No employer shall be required to participate in or otherwise
55 implement the program.] (a) Each participating employer shall have a
56 payroll deposit retirement savings arrangement to allow each employee to
A. 5978--B 3
1 participate in the program at most nine months after the board opens the
2 program for enrollment.
3 (b) Participating employers shall automatically enroll in the program
4 each of their employees who has not opted out of participation in the
5 program using the form described in this article and shall provide
6 payroll deduction retirement savings arrangements for such employees and
7 deposit, on behalf of such employees, these funds into the program.
8 4. Following initial implementation of the program pursuant to this
9 section, at least once every year, the program shall designate an open
10 enrollment period during which employees who previously opted out of the
11 program may enroll in the program.
12 5. An employee who [chooses not to participate in] opts out of the
13 program and who subsequently wants to participate may only enroll during
14 the program's designated open enrollment period or if permitted by the
15 program at an earlier time.
16 § 6. Subdivisions 4 and 8 of section 1300 of the general business law,
17 as added by section 2 of part X of chapter 55 of the laws of 2018, are
18 amended to read as follows:
19 4. "Employer" shall mean a person or entity engaged in a business,
20 industry, profession, trade, or other enterprise in New York state,
21 whether for profit or not for profit, that (i) has at all times during
22 the previous calendar year employed at least ten employees in the state,
23 (ii) has been in business at least two years, and (iii) has not offered
24 a qualified retirement plan, including, but not limited to, a plan qual-
25 ified under sections 401(a), 401(k), 403(a), 403(b), 408(k), 408(p) or
26 457(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 in the preceding two years.
27 8. "Participating employer" shall mean an employer that [elects to
28 facilitate] facilitates access to the program's payroll deduction IRA as
29 provided for by this article for its employees who are enrollees in the
30 program.
31 § 7. This act shall take effect immediately.
