Skip to main content

You are here

Advertisement


Oregon Employers Now Liable for Compliance with OregonSaves Rules

Oregon employers that do not comply with the rules of OregonSaves — the Beaver State’s state-sponsored retirement program — will face penalties starting next year.

Gov. Kate Brown (D) has signed into law SB 164, a measure which provides that an employer found not to be in compliance will face civil penalties of up to $5,000 per year if they do not comply with the rules of the program and their employees still do not have access to a retirement plan in which they can participate.

Under the new law, employees can file a complaint with the Commissioner of the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries if the employer is not in compliance. The commissioner or the Oregon Retirement Savings Board also may make inquiries and investigations into the matter when there is a complaint.

If an employer is found to have been in violation, the commissioner is authorized to assess a civil penalty of up to $100 for each employee of who is eligible to participate in OregonSaves, up to $5,000 per year.

Employees cannot file complaints immediately, however. First, at least two years must pass after the deadline by which the employer was to have registered with OregonSaves before an employee can do so.

The new law takes effect Jan. 1, 2020.