House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal,D-Mass. (Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Bloomberg)

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal, D-Mass.,is planning to move this year on "Secure Act 2.0" legislation, apackage of retirement planning bills that will include theAutomatic Retirement Plan Act and the Retirement PlanSimplification and Enhancement Act, Neal told BenefitsPRO's sisterpublication, ThinkAdvisor, in an email on Tuesday.

"Improving Americans' retirement security remains a top priorityof mine in 2020," Neal said.

"Last year, the House passed my Rehabilitation for MultiemployerPensions Act — also known as the Butch Lewis Act — and I intend todo all I can to make sure the Senate passes that critical billduring this Congress as well."

Neal also said he was working on bipartisan legislation "thatwill essentially be the Secure Act 2.0. I'm aiming to move theAutomatic Retirement Plan Act and the Retirement PlanSimplification and Enhancement Act with that package."

Neal said he'd like to get that legislation done "as soon aspossible," but exact timing hasn't been nailed down.

Neal first floated the Automatic Retirement Plan Act in 2017. Alsoknown as the "auto-401(k)" retirement bill, it would require smallemployers with 10 or fewer employees to maintain automaticcontribution retirement plans for employees. The bill has not beenreintroduced yet.

The Retirement Plan Simplification and EnhancementAct, which also has not yet been reintroduced in this Congress,would, among other measures, set a new cap on automatic employeedeferrals to 401(k) plans.

The Insured Retirement Institute said Tuesday that it wantslawmakers to make technical corrections to the Setting EveryCommunity Up for Retirement Enhancement Act, or Secure Act, whichwas signed into law on Dec. 20.

One amendment would allow pooled employer plans for 403(b)s,while another correction would clarify that the three-yearstartup credit applies to small businesses for three years from thetime the small business joins a multiple employer plan or a PEP andnot from the time the MEP or PEP begins operations, the annuitytrade group said on a Tuesday call to discuss its 2020 policyblueprint.

IRI plans to discuss the corrections in upcoming meetingsscheduled with lawmakers, including on Thursday during the group'sannual board of directors' Capitol Hill fly-in.

IRI also sees the Securities and Exchange Commission finalizingits variable annuity summary prospectus this year. "Our sense isthat staff is making very good progress on the open issues thatneeded to be addressed" and is moving "expeditiously," said Jason Berkowitz, IRI chief legal and regulatory affairs officer.