Brookings Briefing; Filling the Savings Gap: How to Get Moderate- Income Households to Save for Retirement

5/13/2004

From: Brookings Institution, 202-797-6105

News Advisory:

WHEN: Monday, May 17, 2004, 9:30 to 11 a.m.

WHERE: The Brookings Institution, Falk Auditorium, 1775 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC

Introductory Remarks:

MAUREEN BYRNES: Director, Policy Initiatives and the Health and Human Services Program, Pew Charitable Trusts

Moderator:

PETER R. ORSZAG: Joseph A. Pechman Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings

Panelists:

LEN BURMAN: Senior Fellow, Urban Institute; Co-director, Tax Policy Center

MARK IWRY: Nonresident Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings; Former Deputy Benefits Tax Counsel, Treasury Department, Clinton Administration

FRED T. GOLDBERG, JR.: Partner, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP; Former IRS Commissioner, George H.W. Bush Administration

ROBERT WEINBERGER: Vice President of Government Relations, H&R Block, Inc.

Although the United States spends $150 billion a year on tax preferences for pensions, concerns persist about how well the pension system functions. Only half of all workers participate in an employer-based pension plan in any given year, and participation rates in Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) are even lower. As a result, many households are approaching retirement without an adequate nest egg. The median defined contribution balance among all heads of households aged fifty- five to fifty-nine in 2001 was only about $10,000.

At this Brookings event, panelists will explore innovative ways to improve retirement security, including changes to the saver's credit that was part of the 2001 tax legislation and which is set to expire in 2006. The event will also launch the Retirement Security Project, which brings together pension researchers and health care experts to undertake nonpartisan research and outreach aimed at bolstering financial security for America's aging population by raising retirement savings and improving long-term care insurance products.

The Retirement Security Project, supported by a grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts, can be found on the Brookings website at http://www.brookings.edu/retirementsecurity.

RSVP: Please call the Brookings Office of Communications, 202- 797-6105, or email us at communications@brookings.edu or visit us online at http://www.brookings.edu/comm/events/20040517.htm.