The State of Oregon could become the next state to provide astate-managed retirement plan forworkers who do not have access to a plan at work.

Read: State-run retirement programs picking upsteam

The Oregon Senate passed the bill, creating a seven-memberOregon Retirement Savings Board with all Republicans voting againstthe measure, and the bill is on its way to Governor Kate Brown forsignature. It’s expected that business groups will try to lobby thegovernor to veto it.

The plan that the bill would create, according to Sen. LeeBeyer, D-Springfield, resembles the Oregon College Savings Plan inthat individual contributions would be aggregated into a singlelarge investment fund that would be privately managed. Privatesector employers would be required to offer the plan to employeesif they do not already provide a retirement plan.

Oregon Treasurer Ted Wheeler’s office said in a statement that“[u]nder the plan, businesses will not be exposed to fiduciaryliability, the state will not guarantee returns, and the state willnot be liable for investment losses. The plan, funded throughaccount fees, will be self-sustaining and cannot be raided by theLegislature.”

Read: Support grows for public pension plan forall

While employers are required to offer the plan, employees willnot be required to participate—though they would be automaticallyenrolled and would have to opt out. Contributions would becollected by payroll deduction at the workplace and accounts wouldbe portable, so that when employees switch jobs they could taketheir retirement savings with them.

Wheeler’s office said in a statement that about half ofprivate-sector employees in Oregon do not have access to anemployer-sponsored retirement plan. In addition, according to areport from the Oregon Retirement Savings Task Force, half thestate’s workers have less than $20,000 in retirement savings and afourth have less than $1,000.

Despite support for the retirement plan from numerous groups,Republicans have been fiercely opposed to the bill, claiming thatit will cost about $1 million to implement and will cause problemsfor small businesses.

Democrats have pointed out that employers don’t have tocontribute to the plan, while Wheeler said in a statement, “Farfrom being a burden on small businesses, the Retirement SecurityBill provides an attractive option to small business owners whowould like to offer their employees a retirement plan, but cannotbecause of cost and administrative hassle.”

In addition, according to research from the Northwest EconomicResearch Center at the University of Portland, it’s estimated thatmore than 400,000 Oregon workers could participate in the new plan.Should they earn returns on a par with those received by currentretirees, the research notes, their combined income from the planwould exceed $2 billion annually.