Ways&Means to Hold Hearings on 401(k) Fees

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles B. Rangel (D-New York) on Friday commended Congressman George Miller’s introduction of the 401(k) Fair Disclosure for Retirement Security Act of 2007, which would call for a number of reforms regarding fee disclosure (see Fee Disclosure Legislation Introduced in House).

“I congratulate Chairman Miller on his bill to require full disclosure of all fees charged to 401(k) participants, an issue of vital importance to Americans workers,” Rangel said, in a statement. “Our retirement system has experienced a major shift from traditional benefit plans to defined contribution plans, with 401(k) plans being the most popular type of plan. But this growth explosion in 401(k) plans has comes with an annual cost to the Federal Government and American taxpayers of roughly $40 billion. It is the responsibility of the Congress to ensure that the taxpayers` interests are protected. It is also our responsibility to ensure that the retirement savings of Americans are not eaten away by unreasonable administrative and investment fees.’

“I intend to have hearings in the Ways and Means Committee on this issue later this year and continue to move forward in the spirit of comity and bipartisanship, which has guided our deliberations thus far,’ Rangel continued. He also said that he looked “forward to working with Chairman Miller and his Members to develop a reasonable and balanced resolution that serves America’s workers who participate in 401(k) plans, and the employers who sponsor these plans.”