SAFER Act of 2026

The SAFER Act of 2026 (HR8338), titled the "Safeguarding Americans' Fairly Earned Retirement Act of 2026," was introduced in the House of Representatives on April 16, 2026, by Rep. Liccardo (D-CA-16) with one cosponsor. The bill has been referred to the House Committee on Financial Services, indicating it is in the early stages of the legislative process. The core of HR8338 is to establish new federal guidelines for when financial institutions can yield custody of covered assets (securities, digital assets, investment accounts) under state unclaimed property or escheatment laws. For natural persons, this would generally require confirmation of death and no expression of interest from an estate fiduciary for at least three years. For entities other than natural persons, it would require no record of contact for at least five years. The bill also mandates financial institutions to compare records of inactive accounts belonging to natural persons of retirement age with state or federal death databases every five years. This legislation does not authorize or appropriate any federal funding. Its impact is regulatory, aiming to standardize and potentially extend the dormancy periods before assets can be escheated. Financial institutions, particularly those acting as custodians for a wide range of assets, would be directly affected by these new compliance requirements. This could lead to increased administrative burdens and changes in their escheatment policies and procedures. The bill's focus on preventing premature seizure could reduce the flow of escheated assets to states, which rely on these funds, but the primary impact is on the financial institutions managing these assets. Companies in the Finance sector that provide custodial services, such as large banks and brokerage firms, would be most directly impacted. This includes major players like JPMorgan Chase & Co. ($JPM), Bank of America Corp. ($BAC), Wells Fargo & Co. ($WFC), Morgan Stanley ($MS), Goldman Sachs Group Inc. ($GS), Charles Schwab Corp. ($SCHW), TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. ($AMTD), and Interactive Brokers Group Inc. ($IBKR). These firms would need to adapt their internal processes and potentially their technology systems to comply with the new federal escheatment standards if the bill were to become law. The Presidential Memorandum on large-scale energy and infrastructure is unrelated to this bill's scope and does not amplify or conflict with its provisions. As the bill has only been introduced and referred to committee, it faces a long legislative path. It must be considered by the House Committee on Financial Services, potentially undergo mark-up, pass a vote in the House, then go through a similar process in the Senate, and finally be signed by the President. The sponsorship by a single Democrat and one cosponsor suggests moderate initial momentum, but its progression will depend on committee engagement and broader support.