Lead-Up to the Election: September is Legislative Risk Awareness Month

September, it seems, is a month designated for celebrations and observations. 

After all, September is National Square Dance Month, National Potato Month, Disaster Preparedness Month, and Library Card Sign-Up Month. 

And while some of these observances can help your clients in retirement (the library is full of good resources!), Stonewood Financial is adding an important observance to the mix: 

Legislative Risk Awareness Month.  

Legislative Risk is one of the most pressing - and least understood - risks facing your clients as they approach retirement. And with November’s election on the horizon, September is the perfect month to help educate your clients on identifying and addressing legislative risk. 

So what is Legislative Risk, and how can it impact your clients in retirement? 

Legislative Risk is the risk that Congress passes legislation that changes the rules on a saver’s retirement approach. This could impact savings vehicles themselves, or how those vehicles are taxed and structured. In short, it is the risk that Congress changes what is taxed, when it is taxed, and for whom it is taxed.

We just experienced a good example of Legislative Risk in 2019. In the Secure Act, Congress included a provision eliminating the Stretch IRA for most Americans, requiring most savers who inherit a retirement account to drain the account within 10 years. This change impacted when inherited IRAs are taxed, potentially upending tax strategies IRA owners had put in place for their heirs.

Legislative Risk goes hand-in-hand with Tax Risk, which is the risk that a saver’s taxes are higher in retirement than planned. Together, Tax and Legislative Risk underscore how retirees could end up sending more of their retirement income to the IRS as taxes, thereby leaving them with less retirement income to spend on living expenses. 

Legislative Risk Awareness Month - Leading into the 2024 Election

Unless your clients have been living under a rock, they know there’s an election coming up in November. So Stonewood Financial wants to help you leverage that awareness into meaningful conversations with clients and prospects - conversations that help them make educated (and timely!) decisions about their retirement assets.

Watch this space for three special resources we’ll be rolling out in September: 

• Webinar: The 2024 Election & Your Clients: Join me for a special webinar where I’ll look at the upcoming election and how it could impact your clients. We’ll discuss the top three ways to frame up the election with your clients and prospects alike - all without getting political with your clients. Register Here. 

• New Client Memo: I’ve drafted a new election-year memo you can use with your clients and prospects to educate them on Legislative Risk. In it, I cover the most pressing issues in Washington when it comes to retirement savings: government spending, debt, tax proposals, and more. (Want an advance copy of the memo? I’m happy to send it your way ahead of our official launch - just drop me a note here.)

• Message Frames: Each week in September, we’ll be releasing a blog post on a key topic impacting the election and Legislative Risk. Be sure to watch this space! 

• New Consumer Videos: Watch this space for quick videos you can post to your website and social media on Tax and Legislative Risk.

September is a busy month, and it’s a critical time to start educating your clients and prospects on Legislative Risk and the election. 

Once they understand the impact Washington can have on their retirement - and the strategies you can help them implement to mitigate that risk - they can turn their attention to other observances. Enjoy a potato. Check a book out of the library. And maybe learn how to square dance.