PR Newswire
Congresswoman Tubbs Jones Urges Congress to Make Retirement Readiness for All Americans a Top Priority
07.13.06, 2:16 PM ET
New Study Shows Residents in Over Half of the Largest U.S. Counties At Financial Risk in Retirement WASHINGTON, July 13 /PRNewswire/ -- In response to a recent study by Americans for Secure Retirement which found that residents in over half of the largest counties in America are at risk of declining standards of living in retirement. U.S. Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-OH) today urged Congress to act on legislation she supports to help Americans ensure a steady stream of income for life. The study, entitled "The Retirement Readiness Assessment: Are You Prepared?" weighed the retirement risk of individuals in the 250 largest U.S. counties and found that residents in 132 of those counties, including 11 in Ohio, are at risk of not being able to maintain their standard of living in retirement.
"Today's release of the Retirement Readiness Assessment reveals that people in over half the country's largest counties, including many here in Ohio, are at risk of serious financial strain in retirement. These findings illustrate the need for policies to encourage people to secure a steady stream of income that will last throughout retirement," said Tubbs Jones, who is a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over tax and retirement policy issues. "That's why I support bipartisan legislation that would provide a tax incentive for Americans to use lifetime annuities as a means to guarantee earning a 'paycheck for life.'"
The study examines thirty economic and demographic variables for the 250 counties - including cost of living, home ownership data, access to pension funds and household income - each of which makes a county have higher or lower retirement risk. The combination of these variables allows each county to be categorized on a relative scale according to their retirement preparedness ranging from "Very High Retirement Risk" to "Nominal Retirement Risk."
"This study should serve as a wake up call, bringing long overdue attention to the fact that Americans need help in making their retirement savings last a lifetime," said Shannon Hunt, Executive Director of Americans for Secure Retirement. "We are grateful to Congresswoman Tubbs Jones for her leadership on retirement issues, particularly the ever-important but less talked about need for guaranteed retirement income that can't be outlived."
Currently, 88 million American workers either do not participate in, or have access to, any sort of employer-sponsored retirement plan - that is over half of the entire American workforce. Moreover, Social Security today on average replaces only about 42 percent of pre-retirement income. All of these factors compound, resulting in an income gap that individuals must be prepared to fill with their own personal savings in retirement.
"With many Americans living 20-30 years in retirement and increasingly fewer Americans receiving monthly pension payments, the need for people to secure for themselves a guaranteed stream of income is critical," Tubbs Jones said. "Today's study should serve as a wake up call to the urgent need for incentives that can facilitate secure retirement planning for our friends and neighbors across the country and in our area."
Congresswoman Tubbs Jones is an original co-sponsor of The Retirement Security for Life Act (H.R. 819, S. 381), which now enjoys 77 co-sponsors. This bill would help alleviate the vulnerability cited in this report by encouraging Americans to use lifetime annuities as a way to secure a steady stream of income throughout retirement. Specifically, the bill would allow a 50 percent tax exclusion on the payout of a lifetime annuity up to a maximum of $20,000 per year. For a typical American in the 25 percent tax bracket, this would provide an annual tax savings of up to $5,000.
To view the complete study, including specific data for each of the 250 largest U.S. counties the report examined, please visit: www.paycheckforlife.org.
SOURCE Office of Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones -0- 07/13/2006 /CONTACT: Nicole Y. Williams of the Office of Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones, +1-202-225-7032/ /Web site: http://www.house.gov/tubbsjones / CO: Office of Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones ST: Ohio, District of Columbia IN: SU: LEG SVY JE-WB -- CLTH059 -- 4781 07/13/2006 14:15 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com