The bill would require many defined contribution retirement plans to get a spouse’s written consent before making certain distributions or changing a beneficiary. It includes exceptions, such as for some small withdrawals and required minimum distributions. It would also require providers offering retirement products or services to link to federal retirement education materials. Grants would support financial education for women and help low-income women and survivors of domestic violence obtain court orders to divide retirement benefits.
If you are married and have a defined contribution plan covered by the bill, your spouse may need to give written, witnessed consent for certain withdrawals or beneficiary changes. Community groups could apply for grants to provide women with retirement education or help with qualified domestic relations orders. The bill would apply to covered distributions and rollovers in plan years that begin more than one year after enactment.
The bill authorizes $100 million for each of its two grant programs for fiscal year 2026 and each year afterward. This is authorization for appropriations, not a statement that the funding has been provided. No publicly available information about other costs.
The bill’s stated purpose is to strengthen spousal protections in defined contribution plans. Its findings describe retirement savings gaps affecting women and the need for financial education and help obtaining retirement benefits after divorce or domestic violence.
No publicly available information.