Title 35
Public Finance

Chapter 23
Rhode Island Secure Choice Retirement Savings Program Act

§ 35-23-6. Powers of the office of the general treasurer.

(a) The office of the general treasurer shall have the power and authority to do all of the following:

(1) Adopt a seal and change and amend it from time to time;

(2) Make provisions for the payment of costs of administration and operation of the program;

(3) Retain and contract with a Rhode Island public retirement system, consultants, actuaries, counsel, auditors, and other professionals as necessary;

(4) Procure insurance against any loss in connection with the property, assets, or activities of the program;

(5) Set minimum and maximum contribution levels in accordance with contribution limits set for IRAs by the Internal Revenue Code;

(6) Collaborate and cooperate with private financial institutions, service providers, and business, financial, trade, membership, and other organizations to the extent necessary or desirable for the effective and efficient design, implementation, and administration of the program and to maximize outreach to eligible or optional employers and eligible employees;

(7) Collaborate with, and evaluate the role of, licensed insurance agents and financial advisors in assisting and providing guidance for eligible employees;

(8) Cause expenses incurred to initiate, implement, maintain, and administer the program to be paid from contributions to, or investment returns or assets of, the program or arrangements established under the program, to the extent permitted under state and federal law;

(9) Facilitate compliance by the retirement savings program or arrangements established under the program with all applicable requirements for the program under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, including tax qualification requirements or any other applicable law and accounting requirements, including providing or arranging for assistance to program sponsors and individuals in complying with applicable law and tax qualification requirements in a cost-effective manner;

(10) Carry out the duties and obligations of the Rhode Island secure choice retirement savings program pursuant to this title and exercise any and all other powers as appropriate for the effectuation of the purposes, objectives, and provisions of this title pertaining to the program;

(11) Enter into intergovernmental agreements with any state agency to further the successful implementation and operation of the program and all such agencies and instrumentalities shall cooperate with the office of the general treasurer. All state agencies shall cooperate as requested by the program in the performance of its duties under this chapter, including, unless otherwise prohibited, the sharing of relevant data as the parties shall mutually agree;

(12) Make and enter into contracts, agreements, memoranda of understanding, arrangements, partnerships, or other arrangements to collaborate, cooperate, coordinate, contract, or combine resources, investments, or administrative functions with other governmental entities, including any states or their agencies or instrumentalities that maintain or are establishing retirement savings programs compatible with the program, including collective, common, or pooled investments with other funds of other states’ programs with which the assets of the program and trust are permitted by law to be collectively invested, to the extent necessary or desirable for the effective and efficient design, administration, and implementation of the program consistent with the purposes set forth in this title, including the purpose of achieving economies of scale and other efficiencies designed to minimize costs for the program and its participants; and

(13) Develop and implement an investment policy that defines the program’s investment objectives, consistent with the objectives of the program, and that provides for policies and procedures consistent with those investment objectives. The office of the general treasurer shall designate appropriate default investments that include a mix of asset classes, such as target date and balanced funds. The office of the general treasurer shall seek to minimize participant fees and expenses of investment and administration. The office of the general treasurer shall strive to design and implement investment options available to holders of accounts established as part of the program and other program features that are intended to achieve maximum possible income replacement balanced with an appropriate level of risk in an IRA-based environment consistent with the investment objectives under the policy. The investment options may encompass a range of risk and return opportunities and allow for a rate of return commensurate with an appropriate level of risk in view of the investment objectives under the policy. The menu of investment options shall be determined taking into account the nature and objectives of the program, the desirability (based on behavioral research findings) of limiting investment choices under the program to a reasonable number, and the extensive investment choices available to participants in the event that they roll over to an IRA outside the program.

(b) The office of the general treasurer shall adopt regulations it deems necessary to implement this chapter consistent with the Internal Revenue Code and regulations issued pursuant to that code to ensure that the program meets all criteria for federal tax-deferral or tax-exempt benefits, or both.