Oregon Retirement Savings Board Issues Status Report on OregonSaves

The Oregon Retirement Savings Board (ORSB) has issued a status report on OregonSaves, the state-sponsored retirement plan for private-sector workers.

Participation

OregonSaves originally had been open to employers with 100 or more employees, which had to either register with OregonSaves or certify that they are exempt from the program by Nov. 15, 2017. The ORSB says that most of the employers that registered have added their employees to the system; some have begun making payroll deductions. OregonSaves began sending employers in Oregon with 50-99 employees their first notice about the program in mid-January to give them an opportunity to register or claim exemption ahead of their May 15, 2018, registration deadline.

Contributions

The ORSB reports that by late January, employees who are participating have collectively saved more than $600,000 through OregonSaves. Drilling down, it adds that the first 108 participants, who began saving through OregonSaves in summer, have accumulated a combined $84,000 and the participants from employers with 100 or more employees together have saved more than $200,000.

A Caveat

While the number of employees participating in OregonSaves is growing, according to Bloomberg Law there are employees choosing to opt out of OregonSaves as well.