President Unveils “MyRA”

During last night’s State of the Union address, President Obama unveiled a plan to create a new retirement investment product called a “MyRA,” which is described as a “starter savings account” backed by the U.S. government. 

This “new savings bond” would encourage workers whose employers don’t offer a retirement plan to build a nest egg with a guarantee of “a decent return with no risk of losing what you put in.”  According to Brain Graff, CEO of American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries, under this plan, workers can deduct a percentage of their paycheck to purchase these new Treasury bonds.  Once enough money has been invested in the bonds, the account would turn into a traditional IRA.

See Kevin Cirilli & Zachary Warmbrodt, State of the Union 2014: Obama Touts ‘MyRA’ Retirement Savings Proposal, Politico, Jan. 28, 2014. 

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.