Taxing Retirement Plans Is ‘Off The Table,’ Congressman Tells IRI

WASHINGTON-- Congressman John B. Larson, D-Conn., showed up a half-hour late for his 8:35 a.m. breakfast talk to Insured Retirement Institute members.

But he had a good excuse.

"We came by way of the Conestoga (wagon)," he quipped during IRI's Government, Law and Regulatory Conference.

One of the rare Democrats to participate in an IRI event, Larson previously was honored by the trade association as a 2016 recipient of its Champion of Retirement Security Award.

Larson parted with colleague Rep. Bruce Poliquin, R-Maine, who told IRI members Monday that any taxing of retirement plans is "off the table."

If the GOP doesn't get its border tax proposal, it will be looking for revenue, Larson said, and retirement plan incentives could be in the crosshairs.

Otherwise, Larson emphasized that Social Security is America's biggest and most successful "insurance program." Democrats want to expand Social Security and make it solvent into the next century with a modest increase in contributions, he explained.

"In the greatest country in the world, we ought to be able to make sure that everyone can get an across-the-board 2 percent increase in Social Security," Larson said.

With regards to tax reform, the parties are not as split as it seems, Larson said. A number of changes "could be widely embraced by both sides," he said.

The Donald J. Trump administration had three major goals: health care reform, tax reform and infrastructure. The majority party tackled them in the wrong order, Larson said. Infrastructure is the least partisan issue and might have been passed by now, he said.

But Washington is a bit frenzied at the moment as the new president deals with swirling controversies on several fronts, the elephant in the room that Larson acknowledged at the start of his remarks.

"No major tweets yet this morning," he joked upon taking the stage.

InsuranceNewsNet Senior Editor John Hilton has covered business and other beats in more than 20 years of daily journalism. John may be reached at john.hilton@innfeedback.com.

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InsuranceNewsNet Senior Editor John Hilton has covered business and other beats in more than 20 years of daily journalism. John may be reached at john.hilton@innfeedback.com. Follow him on Twitter @INNJohnH.