Small business owners can reap the benefits from offering a 401k

On Tuesday, the powerful House ways and means committee unanimously – yes, unanimously – passed a bill that would have a big impact on how employees save for retirement with big incentives for small business owners who help them. The bill would allow small businesses to band together for the purposes of negotiating better fees when offering 401k accounts. It would also create a new $500 tax credit for businesses that set up plans with automatic enrollment and allow long-term, part-time workers to join these plans. There are additional provisions that make both individual IRA and 529 plans (a tax-advantaged plan that encourages saving for education) more attractive.