Pascrell Celebrates House Passage of SECURE Act Retirement Bill

Bipartisan legislation will expand opportunities for Americans to increase their golden years savings

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09), the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Oversight, today voted in favor of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2022, which was approved by the House this afternoon.

“There is a retirement crisis in our country. Almost half of all working-age households are at risk of losing their standard of living in retirement and nearly one-in-three workers have no retirement savings,” said Chairman Pascrell. “Employer-sponsored retirement plans are essential to helping Americans prepare for retirement. This new legislation incentivizes employers while simultaneously aiding our workers in saving for their retirement. Provisions including catch-up contributions, exclusion of first responder disability-related pension payments, and matching funds for employees’ student loan payments will provide security to countless workers. These changes will be decisive. The Senate should move with urgency to pass the SECURE Act so we can get it to President Biden’s desk now.”

Rep. Pascrell authored a provision of this legislation that would allow first responders to exclude service-connected disability pension payments from their gross income after they reach retirement age, providing much-needed financial relief for first responders and their families. Pascrell was a cosponsor and vocal supporter of the SECURE Act of 2019 when it passed in the 116th Congress. He championed several key provisions of that bill, including a repeal of the so-called “widow’s tax increase” which provided urgent relief to Gold Star families.

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