HOUSE Republican Leader John Boehner

Washington, Jan 16 - House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today issued the following statement after the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced approval of regulations implementing independent investment advice provisions a bipartisan majority in Congress passed on behalf of workers and retirees in August 2006 as part of the landmark Pension Protection Act: 

“I applaud the Administration’s action – one that will benefit countless workers, retirees, and their families.  During this time of economic uncertainty, Americans are understandably uneasy about their financial security and retirement savings.  Now more than ever, workers need independent, personally-tailored investment advice to help them navigate the turbulent markets and safeguard their financial futures.  In bipartisan fashion, Congress passed the Pension Protection Act in part to ensure that this important benefit was not limited to corporate executives, but instead available to all workers.  These new regulations make our bipartisan promise of high-quality investment advice a reality.

“This action is also a fresh reminder of how important retirement security benefits are to America’s working families.  Some special interest groups closely aligned with the Democratic Majority in Congress want to take away workers’ 401(k)s and deny them access to independent investment advice that can help them maximize their retirement security and replace it all with a big government program.  Republicans will vigorously oppose any scheme that would take away workers’ ability to determine the best course for their own retirement security.  We look forward to working with President-elect Obama and Democratic leaders to strengthen workers’ retirement accounts and get our economy back on track.”

NOTE: The final OMB regulations are expected to be printed in the Federal Register later this month. The bipartisan Pension Protection Act, authored by Boehner, represented the most sweeping overhaul to U.S. pension laws in more than 30 years.  The bill significantly strengthened antiquated pension laws and gave workers new access to face-to-face, personally-tailored professional investment advice.                           

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