Oregon Savings Plan For Workers
New research finds overwhelming support for Oregon’s new retirement savings program. OregonSaves is an alternative to workers whose employers don’t offer a retirement savings option, giving them the chance to sock away part of their paycheck and also bring those savings to other jobs if they want. D-H-M Research conducted the survey for A-A-R-P Oregon and found nearly 80-percent of respondents support or strongly support this idea. OregonSaves is now conducting a pilot program. D-H-M Vice President John Horvick says support for the program comes from Oregonians’ anxiety over retirement savings, and also the potential benefits it could have for taxpayers.
201:”Oregonians are concerned that if folks don’t have enough money for retirement, that taxpayers are going to have to support them with social services. And there’s an interest, just from a taxpayer perspective, to make sure that folks are saving for retirement.”
Horvick offers the caveat that only about one in five Oregonians surveyed had heard specifically of OregonSaves, though the program was described to respondents. An estimated one-million Oregonians will potentially be eligible. Critics have said it could be burdensome for business owners, who must choose whether to opt out. Judy Beebe is head of MicroEnterprise Resources, Initiatives and Training or MERIT, a nonprofit in Salem that consults small businesses. She says MERIT has had a different experience with OregonSaves. The organization joined the pilot program in July. She says because her nonprofit makes do on a shoestring budget, MERIT isn’t able to offer benefits.
202: “This was a great way to be able to offer a benefit to our employees. And our employees love it because they didn’t have to think about what kind of plan to sign up for, or how to invest the money. It was a very simple process.”
Savings come out of employees’ paychecks. Beebe says MERIT now recommends the program to the businesses it works with. OregonSaves is not connected to the Public Employees Retirement System.
No One Discovered At Siuslaw River Bridge
Sunday afternoon the Florence police department was notified that there were two juveniles that were climbing the Siuslaw River Bridge, but when police responded to the call there was no one on the bridge.
Safe Trick or Treating
Halloween can be a fun time for kids and adults but it can also be dangerous. With hundreds of children flooding the streets in costumes, some of which are difficult to see as the sun goes down. Halloween is consistently one of the top three days for pedestrian injuries and fatalities due to the combination of impaired driving and foot traffic. Between 2006 and 2015 there were 10 fatalities on Oregon roads for the holiday and last year there were none. Oregon department of transportation and the Oregon State Police are highlighting the need to take extra caution. If the search for candy takes you into the night remember to carry a flashlight and use reflective tape to augment your children’s costumes.
Volunteers For ATV Committee Sought
The Oregon Department of Parks and Recreation is recuiting 5 volunteers who are interested in All Terrain Vehicle recreation. The committee is commissioned with reviewing accidents and fatalities, changes in vehicle classification, safety features of all classes of off-road vehicles, and recommendations for appropriate safety requirements to protect child operators and riders. Volunteers should have experience in Class II and Class III ATVs. Forms for consideration can be found at oregonohv.org.