Smaller Businesses Should Have Access to Retirement Savings Programs

At the height of the pandemic, I had to focus on the urgent resources needed to keep my business afloat. As a small business owner, I had limited resources to navigate ever-changing markets and manage benefit options like retirement for my employees. Despite these challenges, having a financial planner background, I always understood the importance of supporting a program like CalSavers. This is why I’m excited to support the expansion of the CalSavers Retirement Savings Trust Act. Micro-businesses like mine don’t have access to a designated Human Resources department that can spend long hours digging into the weeds of retirement options and keeping up with the administrative burdens of traditional retirement savings programs. This expansion will remove an inequity for the state’s smallest employers so that I can access a no-fee, easy-to-use tool that will aid in my employee recruitment. Because I’m such a small business, I really do think of my employees as family. I always want to treat them well and I know that part of that is to help them retire with dignity. I hope that the entire California Assembly passes this legislation and quickly sends it to the Governor’s desk.

- Stacy Williams, Owner, Valley Progressive Solutions, Fresno