Fifteen years ago, when safe-harbor IRAs were first proposed as a destination for small, stranded 401(k) accounts that can be automatically rolled out of plans, then-U.S. Assistant Secretary of Labor Ann L. Combs spelled out what these investment vehicles were supposed to accomplish.
In a March 3, 2004 press release from the U.S. Department of Labor, she stated: “Preservation of retirement savings when workers change jobs is key to ensuring retirement security. The proposed rule changes the landscape from one where workers cash out and spend small distributions to one where savings accumulate over time and are available when needed at retirement.”
