SAFER Act of 2026

Bill Number

H.R. 8338

Origin Chamber

House

Congress

119th Congress, Session 2

Policy Area

Finance and Financial Sector

Status

Introduced

Latest Action

2026-04-16: Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.

Last Updated

2026-06-27T20:41:19Z

AI-Generated Summary

Summary of H.R. 8338: Safeguarding Americans' Fairly Earned Retirement Act of 2026 (SAFER Act of 2026)

Purpose

The legislation aims to prevent financial institutions from prematurely turning over (or "escheating") an individual's securities (like stocks), digital assets (like cryptocurrencies), or investment accounts (including retirement accounts) to states as unclaimed property under state escheatment laws. Escheatment is the legal process where dormant property is transferred to the government if the owner cannot be contacted.

Key Provisions

• Restrictions on Escheatment:
• Financial institutions cannot yield custody of a covered asset (securities, digital assets, or investment accounts, excluding certain employee benefit plans under ERISA) unless specific conditions are met.
• For assets owned by natural persons (individuals):
• Confirmation of the owner's death at least 3 years prior.
• No contact from an estate fiduciary for at least 3 years.
• If jointly owned, confirmation of all owners' deaths.
• For assets owned by non-natural persons (e.g., businesses): No contact with a representative for at least 5 years.
• Death Checks for Retirees:
• For inactive accounts of individuals at retirement age (as defined in tax law, typically age 72 for required minimum distributions), institutions must check state or federal death databases every 5 years starting after 5 years of inactivity.
• Death Confirmation: Requires a death certificate or other sufficient legal documents.
• Preemption: Overrides any conflicting state laws requiring escheatment.
• Sense of Congress: Does not block state communication requirements with owners or legal remedies for mishandled assets.
• Scope: Applies to assets held on or after enactment that have not already been escheated; includes proceeds (e.g., sales, dividends, crypto forks/airdrops).
• Definitions:

| Term | Explanation | |-----------------------|-------------| | Covered asset | Securities, digital assets, or investment accounts (excludes ERISA plans). | | Digital asset | Value recorded on a blockchain or similar tech (e.g., crypto). | | Financial institution | Banks, transfer agents, crypto exchanges, etc. |

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• Introduces stricter federal standards with longer dormancy periods (3-5 years vs. typical state periods of 1-5 years) and mandatory death verification before escheatment.
• Preempts state escheatment laws that conflict, shifting control from states to federal rules.
• Adds periodic death database checks for retirement-age accounts, a new compliance requirement.

Potential Impacts

• Citizens: Protects retirees and investors from losing access to assets due to inactivity (e.g., during illness or travel), preserving savings longer.
• Financial Institutions: Increases compliance burdens (e.g., death checks, record-keeping) but reduces premature escheatment risks and liability.
• Government Agencies (States): May reduce revenue from unclaimed property funds (used for public services), as fewer assets escheat quickly.
• No direct international relations impact.

Main Stakeholders Affected

• Individual investors and retirees: Primary beneficiaries, especially owners of dormant accounts.
• Financial institutions (banks, brokers, crypto platforms): Must follow new rules.
• State governments: Lose quicker access to unclaimed assets.
• Estates and fiduciaries: Gain more time to claim assets.

Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications

• Federal Preemption: Uses Commerce Clause authority to override state laws, potentially raising 10th Amendment tensions over state property rights (mitigated by "sense of Congress" preserving some state roles).
• Property Rights: Strengthens protections against government seizure of private assets without clear owner death confirmation.
• Crypto Inclusion: First major federal law addressing digital assets in escheatment, signaling regulatory clarity for blockchain holdings.
• Political: Bipartisan (introduced by Reps. Liccardo and Lawler); focuses on protecting "fairly earned retirement" amid concerns over aggressive state unclaimed property practices.

This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.

Sponsor

Rep. Liccardo, Sam T. [D-CA-16]

Cosponsors (3)

Rep. Lawler, Michael [R-NY-17], Rep. Correa, J. Luis [D-CA-46], Rep. Gottheimer, Josh [D-NJ-5]

Recent Actions

• 2026-04-16: Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
• 2026-04-16: Introduced in House
• 2026-04-16: Introduced in House

Bill Versions

• Safeguarding Americans’ Fairly Earned Retirement Act of 2026 — issued 2026-04-16 — PDF (6 pages)