AARP Legislative Goals: Retirement Security, Caregiving, Consumer Protection

ALBANY, N.Y., Jan. 7, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The voting group responsible for electing New York's lawmakers – the 50+ - has a few key issues on their mind as the 2015 legislative session starts today.  AARP New York will focus on retirement security, caregiving, and utility consumer protection.

New York's 50+ voters voted at nearly twice the rate of 18-49 year olds in November, tipping the scales decidedly in state elections.

"AARP extensively surveyed  50+ voters across the state. They've got a lot on their mind and are looking to those who they elected to tackle these issues this session," said Beth Finkel, State Director for AARP in New York State. "Offering a vehicle for the 50+ - and those younger – to save their own money for a secure retirement, preparing them to provide invaluable and cost-effective care to help their older loved ones live independently at home, and helping them afford the basic necessity of energy are goals AARP feels all of New York's elected representatives should support."

A "Work & Save" program that would allow private sector employers to offer a retirement savings plan option to the millions of New Yorkers who lack access to one is among AARP New York's three top priorities this year.

The association will also fight to ensure family caregivers are properly trained to provide cost-effective care for their loved ones at home following a hospital stay – improving care and cutting expensive but preventable hospital readmissions. And it will work to make New York the 41^st state to give its overburdened utility consumers a strong and independent advocate.

WORK & SAVE

More than a quarter of New York's working 50+ are not confident they'll ever be able to retire, while another third are only "somewhat confident," AARP's surveys found.

Meantime 54 percent of all New Yorkers working in the private sector –over 3.6 million people ages 18 to 64 – lack access to an employer-sponsored retirement savings plan. A state-administered "Work & Save" payroll-deduction IRA (Individual Retirement Account) plan, modeled on the highly successful 529 college savings program, could help millions save for retirement and reduce the need for taxpayer-funded safety-net programs.

Workers are 15 times more likely to save for retirement if they have access to an employer-sponsored retirement savings program. Nationally, 63% of small businesses say they want to offer such a program to their employees but can't afford to do so.

An astounding 92% of working households fail to meet conservative retirement savings targets for their age and income based on 401(k)–type accounts and IRA balances.

ENSURING FAMILY CAREGIVERS ARE ADEQUATELY PREPARED

More than nine of every 10 New York voters 50 and older support legislation to ensure hospitals properly instruct family caregivers - before their loved one is discharged – in how to perform necessary medical or nursing tasks at home, such as administering medications, dressing wounds and handling other important procedures.

With most of New York's hospitals exceeding the national average in penalties for preventable re-admissions, AARP believes the legislation, known as the CARE Act (Caregiver Advise, Record and Enable), could help reduce costly hospital re-admissions.

The bill was introduced late in 2014 by Senate Health Committee Chairman Kemp Hannon and Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal, who are expected to reintroduce it this year.

More than 4.1 million family caregivers in New York provide care valued at $32 billion a year - and help keep many frail elderly out of expensive, taxpayer-funded nursing homes.

A VOICE FOR UTILITY CONSUMERS

About seven of every 10 of New York's 50+ voters are concerned about paying their utility bills, with three quarters saying the cost of heating their households poses a financial strain.

New Yorkers consistently pay among the highest average residential electric rates in the continental U.S. – including more than $10 million a year to underwrite their utility companies' expenses to press for rate hikes and other regulatory changes. Yet New York is one of just 10 states that don't provide utility consumers with their own independent advocate.

With the State Assembly having twice passed a bill to create an advocate in New York, the Senate's Independent Democratic Conference supportive of the measure and Gov. Andrew Cuomo's own Moreland Commission on Utility Storm Preparation and Response endorsing such a plan, AARP will again press for an independent utility consumer advocate for New Yorkers.

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AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, with a membership of more than 37 million, that helps people turn their goals and dreams into real possibilities, strengthens communities and fights for the issues that matter most to families such as healthcare, employment and income security, retirement planning, affordable utilities and protection from financial abuse. We advocate for individuals in the marketplace by selecting products and services of high quality and value to carry the AARP name as well as help our members obtain discounts on a wide range of products, travel, and services.  A trusted source for lifestyle tips, news and educational information, AARP produces AARP The Magazine, the world's largest circulation magazine; AARP Bulletin; www.aarp.org; AARP TV & Radio; AARP Books; and AARP en Español, a Spanish-language website addressing the interests and needs of Hispanics. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to political campaigns or candidates. AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity of AARP that is working to win back opportunity for struggling Americans 50+ by being a force for change on the most serious issues they face today: housing, hunger, income and isolation. AARP has staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Learn more at www.aarp.org.

SOURCE AARP New York