The GOP’s Plans for Your Retirement Accounts

President Obama released his 2010 government budget in February. In it, he proposed that all employees who don’t have access to workplace pension plans be automatically enrolled in a direct-deposit IRA. For families that earn less than $65,000, a 50 percent match on the first $1000 would also be provided. Employees who don’t wish to participate may opt out.

The GOP, however, has different plans to try to help retirement savers, which include blocking efforts to introduce government-run retirement accounts. The GOP Savings Recovery Solutions Group, a House Republican group led by John Boehner of Ohio, yesterday released a blueprint for the Savings Recovery Act, which includes ideas such as:

• Raise the contribution and catch-up limits for retirement accounts
• Double the Social Security earnings limit from $14,160 to $28,320. This is the amount Social Security receipts between age 62 and the year they reach their full retirement age can earn before part of their benefit check is temporarily withheld.
• Suspend the capital gains tax on newly acquired assets for the next two years
• Raise and index to inflation the amount of capital losses allowed against ordinary income to $10,000
• Suspend taxes on dividend income through 2011

Tell us, will these ideas help retirement savers weather the recession?

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