II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2603 

To establish a commission for the purpose of studying the issue of retirement 

security. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 4, 2021 

Mr. YOUNG (for himself and Mr. BOOKER) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 

Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To establish a commission for the purpose of studying the 

issue of retirement security. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Commission on Retire5 ment Security Act of 2021’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT. 

7 There is established in the executive branch a com8 mission to be known as the ‘‘Commission on Retirement 

9 Security’’ (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Commission’’). 


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1 SEC. 3. MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION. 

2 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Commission 

3 shall be comprised of 15 members as follows: 

4 (1) The Secretary of the Treasury (or the Sec5 retary’s designee). 

6 (2) The Secretary of Labor (or the Secretary’s 

7 designee). 

8 (3) The Secretary of Commerce (or the Sec9 retary’s designee). 

10 (4) Three shall be appointed by the Speaker of 

11 the House of Representatives, of whom— 

12 (A) one shall be an expert in economics or 

13 behavioral economics, with particular experience 

14 in retirement security, aging, benefits, or pen15 sions plan design, finance, serial employment, 

16 or the contingent workforce; 

17 (B) one shall be a practitioner with exper18 tise or experience engaging with employers, 

19 labor unions, or consumers in the design and 

20 administration of retirement plans; and 

21 (C) one shall be a current or former Mem22 ber of Congress. 

23 (5) Three shall be appointed by the minority 

24 leader of the House of Representatives, of whom— 

25 (A) one shall be an expert in economics or 

26 behavioral economics, with particular experience 


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1 in retirement security, aging, benefits, or pen2 sions plan design, finance, serial employment, 

3 or the contingent workforce; 

4 (B) one shall be a practitioner with exper5 tise or experience engaging with employers, 

6 labor unions, or consumers in the design and 

7 administration of retirement plans; and 

8 (C) one shall be a current or former Mem9 ber of Congress. 

10 (6) Three shall be appointed by the majority 

11 leader of the Senate, of whom— 

12 (A) one shall be an expert in economics or 

13 behavioral economics, with particular experience 

14 in retirement security, aging, benefits, or pen15 sions plan design, finance, serial employment, 

16 or the contingent workforce; 

17 (B) one shall be a practitioner with exper18 tise or experience engaging with employers, 

19 labor unions, or consumers in the design and 

20 administration of retirement plans; and 

21 (C) one shall be a current or former Mem22 ber of Congress. 

23 (7) Three shall be appointed by the minority 

24 leader of the Senate, of whom— 


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1 (A) one shall be an expert in economics or 

2 behavioral economics, with particular experience 

3 in retirement security, aging, benefits, or pen4 sions plan design, finance, serial employment, 

5 or the contingent workforce; 

6 (B) one shall be a practitioner with exper7 tise or experience engaging with employers, 

8 labor unions, or consumers in the design and 

9 administration of retirement plans; and 

10 (C) one shall be a current or former Mem11 ber of Congress. 

12 (b) EXPERTISE.—In making appointments under this 

13 section, consideration should be given to individuals with 

14 expertise in economics, behavioral economics, retirement 

15 security, savings incentives, pension plan design, benefit 

16 plan design, actuarial science, the Employee Retirement 

17 Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), 

18 or consumer protection. 

19 (c) CHAIRPERSON AND CO-CHAIRPERSON.— 

20 (1) CHAIRPERSON.—The President shall select 

21 the chairperson of the Commission from among the 

22 Members selected for the Commission. 

23 (2) CO-CHAIRPERSON.—The co-chairperson 

24 shall be selected as follows: 


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1 (A) If, on the date of appointment, the 

2 majority leader of the Senate is of a different 

3 political party than the President, such majority 

4 leader shall select the co-chairperson from 

5 among the Members selected for the Commis6 sion. 

7 (B) If, on the date of appointment, the 

8 majority leader of the Senate is of the same po9 litical party as the President, the minority lead10 er of the Senate shall select the co-chairperson 

11 from among the Members selected for the Com12 mission. 

13 (d) TIMING OF APPOINTMENTS.—Appointments to 

14 the Commission shall be made not later than 45 days after 

15 the date of enactment of this Act. 

16 (e) TERMS; VACANCIES.—Each member shall be ap17 pointed for the duration of the Commission. Any vacancy 

18 in the Commission shall not affect its powers, and shall 

19 be filled in the manner in which the original appointment 

20 was made. 

21 (f) HEARINGS.—In carrying out its duties under this 

22 Act, the Commission is authorized to hold such hearings 

23 and take testimony with respect to matters to which it 

24 has a responsibility under this Act. The Chairperson, or 

25 any member authorized by the Chairperson, may adminVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:16 Aug 05, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2603.IS S2603

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1 ister oaths or affirmations to witnesses appearing before 

2 the Commission. The Commission shall hold, at minimum, 

3 not fewer than 4 hearings in a location that is outside 

4 of the metropolitan area of Washington, DC, and within 

5 the United States. 

6 (g) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Commission 

7 shall serve without pay. 

8 (h) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member of the Com9 mission shall be allowed travel expenses, including per 

10 diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employ11 ees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 

12 5, United States Code, while away from their homes or 

13 regular places of business in the performance of services 

14 for the Commission. 

15 SEC. 4. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION. 

16 (a) STUDY OF RETIREMENT SECURITY.—The Com17 mission shall— 

18 (1) conduct a comprehensive study of the state 

19 of retirement security in the United States, which 

20 shall include— 

21 (A) a comprehensive review of private ben22 efit programs existing in the United States, 

23 with a particular focus on the historical move24 ment from the defined benefit model to the de25 fined contribution model; 


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1 (B) a comprehensive review of private re2 tirement coverage, individual and household ac3 counts balances, investment trends, costs and 

4 net returns, and retention and distribution dur5 ing retirement; 

6 (C) a comprehensive review of societal 

7 trends, including wage growth, economic 

8 growth, unique small business challenges, serial 

9 employment, gig economy, health care costs, life 

10 expectancy, and shrinking household size, that 

11 could lead future generations to be less finan12 cially secure in retirement compared to previous 

13 generations; and 

14 (D) a comprehensive review of other coun15 tries’ retirement programs; and 

16 (2) submit to Congress recommendations on 

17 how to improve or replace existing private retirement 

18 programs. 

19 (b) REPORT.—Upon the affirmative vote of at least 

3 20 ⁄4 of the members of the Commission, the Commission 

21 shall submit to the President and Congress a detailed 

22 statement of its findings and conclusions as a result of 

23 the study under subsection (a), together with its rec24 ommendations for such legislation or administrative acVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:16 Aug 05, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2603.IS S2603

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1 tions as the Commission considers appropriate in light of 

2 the results of the study. 

3 (c) DEADLINE.—The report under subsection (b) 

4 shall be submitted not later than the date that is 2 years 

5 after the date a majority of the members of the Commis6 sion are appointed pursuant to section 3. 

7 (d) AVAILABLE REPORTS.—In conducting its study 

8 and developing findings, conclusions, and recommenda9 tions for legislation or administrative action, the Commis10 sion— 

11 (1) shall take into account available reports and 

12 materials; and 

13 (2) may consult with the Government Account14 ability Office. 

15 SEC. 5. OPERATION AND POWERS OF THE COMMISSION. 

16 (a) EXECUTIVE BRANCH ASSISTANCE.—The heads of 

17 the following agencies shall advise and consult with the 

18 Commission on matters within their respective areas of re19 sponsibility: 

20 (1) The Bureau of the Census. 

21 (2) The Internal Revenue Service. 

22 (3) The Department of Housing and Urban De23 velopment. 

24 (4) The Social Security Administration. 


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1 (5) The Department of Health and Human 

2 Services. 

3 (6) The Department of Agriculture. 

4 (7) The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. 

5 (8) Any other agency, as determined by the 

6 Commission. 

7 (b) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Federal Ad8 visory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to 

9 the Commission. 

10 (c) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet not 

11 later than 30 days after the date upon which a majority 

12 of its members have been appointed and at such times 

13 thereafter as the chairperson or co-chairperson shall deter14 mine. Detailed minutes of each meeting of the Commis15 sion, except for any closed session, shall be kept and shall 

16 include a record of the persons present and a complete 

17 and accurate description of matters discussed. 

18 (d) RULES OF PROCEDURE.—The chairperson and 

19 co-chairperson shall, with the approval of a majority of 

20 the members of the Commission, establish written rules 

21 of procedure for the Commission, which shall include a 

22 quorum requirement to conduct the business of the Com23 mission. 

24 (e) HEARINGS.—The Commission may, for the pur25 pose of carrying out this Act, hold hearings, sit and act 


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1 at times and places, take testimony, and receive evidence 

2 as the Commission considers appropriate. Timely public 

3 notice of each hearing, including the time, place, and agen4 da of the meeting, shall be provided by any means that 

5 will result in wide publicity in the region of the United 

6 States in which it is held. Timely notice of each regular 

7 meeting shall be published in the Federal Register. Inter8 ested persons shall be permitted to submit written state9 ments regarding the matters on the agenda of such hear10 ings. 

11 (f) CONTRACTS.—The Commission may contract with 

12 and compensate government and private agencies or per13 sons for the purpose of carrying out this Act. 

14 (g) MAILS.—The Commission may use the United 

15 States mails in the same manner and under the same con16 ditions as other agencies of the Federal Government. 

17 SEC. 6. FUNDING. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b) and the 

19 availability of appropriations at the request of the Sec20 retary of the Treasury, the agencies described in section 

21 5(a) shall transfer funds, as specified in advance in appro22 priations Act and in a total amount not to exceed 

23 $5,000,000, to the Department of the Treasury for the 

24 purpose of carrying out the activities of the Commission 

25 in accordance with this Act. 


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1 (b) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT.—The Department of 

2 the Treasury shall provide administrative support to the 

3 Commission, which may include providing physical space 

4 at, and access to, the headquarters of the Department of 

5 the Treasury located in Washington, DC. 

6 (c) PROHIBITION ON NEW FUNDING.—No additional 

7 funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 

8 Act. This Act shall be carried out using amounts otherwise 

9 available for the Department of the Treasury or the agen10 cies described in section 5(a). 

11 SEC. 7. PERSONNEL. 

12 (a) DIRECTOR.—The Commission shall have a Direc13 tor who shall be appointed by the chairperson with the 

14 concurrence of the co-chairperson. The Director shall be 

15 paid at a rate of pay established by the chairperson and 

16 co-chairperson, not to exceed the annual rate of basic pay 

17 payable for level V of the Executive Schedule under section 

18 5316 of title 5, United States Code. The Director shall 

19 include in budget recommendations a summary of the 

20 amounts such Director determines necessary for the ex21 penses of the Commission, including expenses for publica22 tions of reports, as appropriate. 

23 (b) STAFF.—The Director may appoint and fix the 

24 pay of additional staff as the Director determines appro25 priate. No staff of the Commission shall receive compensaVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:16 Aug 05, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2603.IS S2603

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1 tion at a rate in excess of the rate specified for GS–15 

2 of the General Schedule under section 5332 of title 5, 

3 United States Code. 

4 (c) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—The Commission 

5 may procure temporary and intermittent services under 

6 section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, at rates 

7 for individuals which do not exceed the daily equivalent 

8 of the annual rate of basic pay for a comparable position 

9 paid under the General Schedule. 

10 (d) AUTHORITY TO ACCEPT VOLUNTARY SERV11 ICES.—Notwithstanding the provisions of section 1342 of 

12 title 31, United States Code, the Commission is authorized 

13 to accept and utilize the services of volunteers serving 

14 without compensation. The Commission may reimburse 

15 such volunteers for local travel and office supplies, and 

16 for other travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of sub17 sistence, as authorized by section 5703 of title 5, United 

18 States Code. A person providing volunteer services to the 

19 Commission shall be considered an employee of the Fed20 eral Government in the performance of those services for 

21 the purposes of the following provisions of law: 

22 (1) Chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, 

23 relating to compensation for work-related injuries. 

24 (2) Chapter 171 of title 28, United States 

25 Code, relating to tort claims. 


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1 (3) Chapter 11 of title 18, United States Code, 

2 relating to conflicts of interest. 

3 SEC. 8. TERMINATION. 

4 The Commission shall terminate not later than 2 

5 years after the date of enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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