Five years ago, the California Legislature passed a law requiring most California employers to register for CalSavers, a retirement savings plan. Employers that do not offer a private retirement plan and who have more than 100 employees should immediately comply with state law and register for the CalSavers Retirement Savings Program before penalties are imposed this month. The CalSavers Retirement Savings Board reports that more than 24,000 employers have already registered. Non-compliance penalties start at $250 per employee. Dozens of notifications and reminders have already been sent by letter and email from CalSavers. Employers that offer their own qualified retirement plans (such as Section 401(k) or Simplified Employee Pension (SEP)) are exempt from the law’s mandate, but must certify that exemption to the State. According to the State, CalSavers was created to address retirement insecurity for all workers, as more than half of private sector workers reportedly lack access to a retirement plan at work. Designed to make it easier to save for retirement, CalSavers is easy for employers to facilitate; there are no employer fees, and no employer contributions are allowed. The CalSavers registration requirement applies to all employers with five or more employees. Mandated employers must register for CalSavers at www.calsavers.com before their applicable deadline. The deadline for businesses with more than 100 employees was September 30, 2020. The deadline for businesses with more than 50 employees passed on June 30, 2021 and non-compliance penalties for this group are slated for mid-2022. The deadline for employers with five or more employees to register is June 30, 2022. Non-compliant employers will be penalized $250 per employee upon the first penalty notice and, if non-compliance persists for another 90 days, an additional $500 per employee, for a total of $750 per employee for sustained noncompliance. | 
