A New Jersey state Senate committee approved legislation that would expand access to New Jersey’s state-run retirement savings program by requiring more small businesses to participate, potentially allowing hundreds of thousands of additional workers in the state to begin saving for retirement through their jobs.

The bill would lower the threshold for mandatory participation in the New Jersey Secure Choice Savings Program from employers with 25 or more workers to those with at least 10 employees. The measure is sponsored by Democratic Sens. Troy Singleton of Burlington County and

State officials estimate the expansion could make the program available to roughly 515,000 additional New Jersey workers.

New Jersey’s Secure Choice program, known as RetireReady NJ, is a state-facilitated, automatic-enrollment payroll deduction individual retirement account for private-sector workers whose employers do not provide a qualified retirement plan. Employees are automatically enrolled but may opt out, and the accounts remain portable when workers change jobs. Contributions are held in a trust separate from the state’s general fund.

The program currently has more than 24,000 participants and over $16.5 million in assets, placing it among the six largest similar programs nationwide, according to state data.

Senator Raj Mukherji, who sponsored the bill, said the program has demonstrated that retirement savings can be expanded without placing significant burdens on employers, adding that broader access could help reduce financial insecurity later in life.

The original Secure Choice legislation, which was enacted in 2019 in response to concerns about insufficient retirement savings among private-sector workers, particularly those employed by small and mid-sized businesses. Lawmakers backing the expansion say increasing participation could also reduce future reliance on public assistance programs.

The bill now advances to the full Senate for further consideration.