Mississippi Reintroduces State-Run Retirement Program Bill

The Mississippi Legislature reintroduced legislation that would establish a state-run program to offer Roth individual retirement accounts and other after-tax contribution vehicles to provide coverage for private sector workers who lack access to retirement plans through their employers.

Similar bills were introduced but failed to pass out of committee during at least two previous sessions.

If passed, the state would establish a state-administered retirement savings program for workers whose employers do not offer retirement plans.

Employees aged at least 18 at participating companies would be automatically enrolled in the program but retain the right to opt out. Contributions would be deducted directly from paychecks and deposited into individual Roth IRAs invested in target-date funds.

The Mississippi State Treasury would oversee the program, with operations funded through the newly created Mississippi Work and Save Administrative Fund.

To reduce costs and improve efficiency, program administrators may partner with similar retirement savings programs in other states, pooling resources, investments and administrative functions to achieve economies of scale.

According to an October 2024 Pew Fact Sheet, more than half of Mississippi private sector workers lack access to a retirement savings plan.

As of January 1, 20 states have some form of state-run retirement program, according to Georgetown University’s Center for Retirement Initiatives.