Executive_Director's_Message
The philosophy of “relentless incrementalism” came to mind as news of the SECURE Act 2.0 legislation crossed my desk in Washington. Many in our NAELA community worked on predecessors to this piece of legislation, including the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2014 which created new tax-advantaged savings programs for people with disabilities. Many also championed, and continue to champion, the SECURE Act legislation which is currently being implemented after widespread bipartisan support. In fact, this May NAELA provided public comments to the Internal Revenue Service on SECURE’s implementation, continuing our charge to ensure that retirement and planning tools do not unfairly disadvantage people living with disabilities and special needs.
Like any great policy or program, hindsight gives us 20/20 vision. As far as I can tell, no one on Capitol Hill or in the federal government has been issued a crystal ball that forecasts the future. Even the best-intentioned legislation has had shortfalls, and this is true of the ABLE Act.
The 2014 legislation applied only to people who acquired their disability before the age of 26. This fell short of the vision for the program, which intended to protect individuals with disabilities from losing public benefits and to provide a means for them to save for their own futures through ABLE accounts. The new proposal — known as the ABLE Age Adjustment Act — broadens eligibility requirements to extend access to ABLE accounts to people who acquired their disability before age 46. This NAELA-supported proposal has worked its way through various national coalitions, Hill offices, and iterations before being folded into the Encouraging American Retirement Now (EARN) Act in June. In a sweeping bipartisan effort, EARN passed through the Senate Finance Committee. The Senate version of the legislation will now be reconciled with the House version, before moving to a vote.
This momentum is a testament to the leadership of aging champions such as Senator Bob Casey (PA), colleague organizations such as the Special Needs Alliance (SNA), and the tireless efforts of NAELA advocates, among other voices in the national aging and disability community. Change is slow and it may not happen as fast as we might want it to happen for the clients and families we serve. That doesn’t mean it’s not happening.
As Voltaire once said, “the perfect is the enemy of the good.” Our relentless incrementalism to improve the quality of life, financial security, and wellness of older adults and people with disabilities is making waves — and it’s a good moment to look back and see how far we’ve come.