HB 1200 Summary

• Establishes the "Save Toward a Retirement Today" (START) program administered by the North Dakota State Treasurer to provide voluntary retirement savings accounts for small nongovernmental employers with 100 or fewer employees that do not currently offer retirement plans.

• Allows nongovernmental employers with 100 or fewer employees to voluntarily participate by making payroll deductions and remittances; employees may elect to defer wages into accounts offering fixed or variable annuities, savings accounts, certificates of deposit, mutual funds, bonds, and other eligible investments.

• Permits employees of nonparticipating employers to participate directly in the program by deferring a portion of wages, with the employer only required to process payroll deductions and remittances.

• Exempts compensation deferred under the program from North Dakota state income tax and requires the State Treasurer to work with the IRS to ensure federal tax deferral status; account balances are protected from attachment, garnishment, and bankruptcy proceedings.

• Appropriates $100,000 to the State Treasurer for designing and implementing the START program for the biennium beginning July 1, 2015, and provides for biennial audits with reports to the Governor and Legislative Audit and Fiscal Review Committee.