Research Project Issues State-by-State Scorecards on Economic Readiness for Retirement

The National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS) has published an analysis which indicates that Americans in nearly every state will fall far short in meeting their economic needs in retirement. According to "The State Financial Security Scorecards" research project—which gauges the retirement readiness of future retirees in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in three key areas: anticipated retirement income; major retirement costs like housing and healthcare; and labor market conditions for older workers—even the highest-ranking states due to their relatively strong labor markets and lower retiree costs, hare weak in terms of potential retirement income for retirees.

According to Diane Oakley, NIRS executive director:

The retirement savings shortfall has become increasingly important at the state level because policymakers know it can have a deep impact on strained state budgets. The largest source of retirement income for most Americans is Social Security, but this critical federal program typically provides only a part of the income working families need to be self-sufficient. State programs must fill the gap and help Americans meet their most basic needs for food, shelter and medicine. The good news is that some states like California and Illinois already have enacted legislation to reduce future retiree poverty by encouraging workers to save today.

In addition to publishing the 51 scorecards, NIRS held a webinar to review the project's findings, hearing from Oakley, as well as Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Task Force on Retirement Security for All Marylanders chair and former Maryland lieutenant governor, and Hank Kim, National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems executive director.

Source: National Institute on Retirement Security Press Release (July 30, 2015)

Additional sources: ThinkAdvisor "12 Weakest States for Retirement Security: NIRS" (August 11, 2015)