EARN Act
Latest action. Placed on Senate legislative calendarThe list of measures reported out of committee and eligible for floor action. Being on the calendar is not a promise of a vote.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) under General Orders. Calendar No. 480.
Enhancing American Retirement Now Act or the EARN Act
This bill revises or establishes new tax provisions relating to retirement plans for individuals, retirees, public safety officers and military personnel, disaster relief, and employer plans.
The bill revises various provisions relating to individual retirement plans, including provisions to (1) establish a safe harbor for automatic enrollment plans; (2) allow a refundable income tax credit, up to $1,000, for retirement savings contributions; (3) allow penalty-free withdrawals from plans for emergency expenses; (4) modify age requirements for catch-up provisions; (5) allow penalty free withdrawals from plans in domestic abuse cases; (6) allow transfers of plans (portability); and (7) modify the age requirement for ABLE programs for disabled individuals.
The bill makes changes to plans for retirees, including by (1) increasing the age for the start of mandatory plan distributions, (2) reducing the excise tax on certain accumulations in qualified retirement plans, (3) recovering retirement plan overpayments, (4) modifying certain Roth IRA distribution requirements, and (5) allowing plan distributions for individuals with a terminal illness.
The bill modifies provisions relating to retirement plans of public safety offices and military personnel. It allows (1) small employers a tax credit for establishing military spouse retirement plans, (2) penalty-free distributions to firefighters, (3) a tax exclusion for certain disability-related payment for first responders, and (4) an exemption from the early withdrawal penalty for distributions to certain state and local corrections employees.
The bill establishes special tax rules for the use of retirement funds for federally declared disasters.
The bill also modifies or establishes requirements relating to employer plans, including (1) allowing a tax credit for small employers with respect to safe harbor requirements for retirement plans, (2) increasing the credit limitation for small employer pension plan startup costs, (3) reforming family attribution rules, (4) providing for starter 401(k) plans for employers with no retirement plan, (5) allowing a tax credit for small employers that adopt an automatic portability arrangement, (6) modifying Internal Revenue Service mortality tables, (7) extending the period for transferring excess pension assets to retiree health accounts, and (8) deferring the tax on certain sales of employer stock to employee stock ownership plans sponsored by S corporations.
The summary continues for 1 more paragraph. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Reported to Senate" stage on September 8, 2022. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on September 8, 2022: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 480.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 117th Congress (2021-22), 362 of the 15,242 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.4 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Ron Wyden (D-OR) introduced it on September 8, 2022. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on September 8, 2022, 1463 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 1463 days ago, on September 8, 2022.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 117th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2023 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers