There’s a battle going on in America. It’s a battle to protect your retirement savings and crack down on conflicts of interest that cost the middle class and working families over $17 billion every year. As President Obama called for in February, the Department of Labor is proposing to update rules to protect consumers by requiring that all retirement advisers put your interests first.

You mean my retirement adviser isn’t doing this already? You ask. Too often, the answer is a resounding, “no.” Under the current rules, retirement advisers can recommend products that are good for their bottom line but not necessarily good for yours. Investment advice stemming from these conflicts of interest can easily cost you one percentage point of return every year. These conflicts can result in thousands of lost dollars over the years leading to less income for life... your life.

Unfortunately, there are special interests trying hard to derail the Department of Labor’s fiduciary proposal. As you can imagine, there’s a lot of money at stake. If the Department of Labor is successful, banks, brokerage firms, and insurance companies stand to lose a lot of money – your money, by the way. So the battle wages on.
 

Banks, brokerages, and insurance companies are throwing millions and millions of dollars at Congress to get lawmakers to derail the Department of Labor's fiduciary proposal. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has even released a study entitled “Locked Out of Retirement” intended to scare businesses to believe that banks, brokerage firms, and insurance companies will incur significant costs to act in your best interest and will likely pass the costs on to you or stop doing business altogether. Don't be fooled.
 

The fact is, there are already a number of fiduciary advisors that will work with you, your employer, and your employer’s retirement plan. These advisors are already fiduciaries -- legally obligated to act in your best interest -- which is what the banks, brokerage firms, and insurance companies are fighting so hard not to do.
 

Your IRAs and retirement savings plan accounts have been exploited by far too many for far too long. The Department of Labor’s fiduciary proposal puts an end to conflicts of interest and puts more money back in your pocket.
 

Contact your Senate and Congressional representatives to tell them that you support the Department of Labor Fiduciary proposal. Congressional and Senate offices log and count calls and emails; so your contact makes a difference!

Comment on the DOL proposal here: http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/regs/conflictsofinterest.html
 

Contact your Senator here: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
 

Contact your Congressional Representative here: http://www.house.gov/representatives/