Protecting ERISA Preemption Draft Page
SHORTEN TEXT BELOW
In enacting ERISA, Congress recognized that multistate employers cannot provide quality, affordable benefits to working families if they must comply with a patchwork of recordkeeping, reporting, or other state and local mandates on ERISA plans in addition to federal rules. ERISA’s preemption rule expressly prohibits states and localities from forcing employers to create or amend an employee benefit plan or from enacting statutes or ordinances controlling the administration of an employee benefit plan established under ERISA. Federal courts, including the United States Supreme Court, have consistently upheld these prohibitions for nearly 50 years since ERISA’s enactment.
Despite this clear and vital national policy, there is a growing wave of state and local laws that attempt to impose reporting, recordkeeping, or other mandates on employers and their benefit plans. In ERIC’s view, these mandates violate ERISA’s preemption provision, and ERIC has challenged them in federal court.
Eroding ERISA preemption will adversely impact labor markets, disadvantage employees based on where they live or work, cause employers to cut back on benefit coverage, and raise the cost of health insurance and retirement plans – ultimately pricing some employees and their families out of coverage and undermining financial and health well-being.
ERIC is committed to defending this vital area of federal law and the ability of large, multistate employers to provide uniform critical benefits to their nationwide workforces.
