Ron Kind: “I thank my friend from Texas for yielding me this time. I am an original sponsor of the original bill, which became the…”

“I thank my friend from Texas for yielding me this time. I am an original sponsor of the original bill, which became the basis of this bill, the Retirement Enhancement Security Act. Unfortunately, today this bill is not that bill. A lot has changed, a lot was taken out, and a lot was removed from it because the process is broken. We didn't have hearings. We didn't have consultation. We didn't have the back-and-forth that is needed to build bipartisan support for an important measure such as this. We do have a retirement savings in this country. We can be doing more to make it easier for individuals and small businesses to offer retirement savings plans for their employees. I have been proud to work with my friend from Pennsylvania, Mr. Kelly, on legislation to try to correct it. Part of the original bill, the RESA bill, it has been called, was based on legislation that I have offered for years with my friend and colleague from Washington State, Mr. Reichert, another Member of the committee. In fact, the original RESA bill, when it was up before the Senate Finance Committee, passed 26-0. That is how controversial it was. But unfortunately, again, this bill does not reflect what was done there.…”