By Tyler Durden
Boiling Frog Alert: Congress Wants Automatic Wage Deductions To Pay Down The Debt
Folks… you just can’t make this stuff up.
On July 6th, just two days ago, at least a dozen busybody Congressmen sponsored the introduction of HR 2411, the “Reduce America’s Debt Now Act of 2011.” They always come up with fantastic names for these pieces of legislation… and rest assured, the better/more patriotic the name, the more ominous the bill. This one follows the pattern.
HR 2411 states that every worker in America should be able to voluntarily have a portion of his/her wages automatically withheld and sent directly to the Treasury Department for the purposes of paying down the federal debt.
“Every employer making payment of wages shall deduct and withhold upon such wages any amounts so elected, and shall pay such amounts over to the Secretary of the Treasury…”
Comment # 1438110 By Fukushima Sam on Fri, 07/08/2011 – 16:06
T Rowe Price manages my employer’s 401k program. I just got a letter from them saying that starting August 1 I would be “automatically enrolled” in a 3% deduction for the plan “even if I previously elected not to participate.” Naturally the wording of the letter was about how lucky I was that they made this so easy on me.
This smacks of desperation. Not sure if this decision is my employer’s, or the plan, or if .gov needs to siphon more earnings into the 401ks before confiscating them, but it is very strange.