Advisor Today Guest Column

January of 2025 is the 50th anniversary to one of the most important pieces of legislation in the retirement planning arena ever put into law by Congress. What I’m referring to is the enactment of ERISA, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. Without question, ERISA brought about significant changes during the second half of the twentieth century. The key component to ERISA, which became law on January 1, 1975, was the establishment of the Individual Retirement Account or IRA. And what a monumental impact IRAs have had on the retirement planning market from that day forward. According to recent data, approximately 55 million Americans (representing around 42% of all households) hold IRAs with the average balance being around $195,000 per taxpayer.

There are those who will tell you if the world was perfect, everyone would have the same financial opportunities and live a life of comfort and happiness with no monetary concerns. But the reality is, the world is not perfect, regardless of the income people earn or the financial opportunities they may possess. This is because people are, in fact, not “truly” equal – be it in the classroom, the athletic field, or with financial skills. Regardless of financial status, all of us possess good traits and some bad ones. Occasionally, luck may come our way – but most times it doesn’t. Even though we often make good choices in life, we occasionally make some really dumb ones too. From these mistakes, life dishes out the usual punishments we so often deserve.

I have had my share of memories regarding Presidential elections going back for some time now. Probably the first I vividly remember involved Republican challenger and Senator Barry Goldwater running against incumbent President Lyndon Johnson. I particularly remember the ad showing the potential destruction of an atomic bomb that was run by the Johnson campaign. It indicated that Senator Goldwater would be trigger-happy with the A-bomb if he won the White House. And so it has been regarding presidential elections since that time.

As most have now heard, NAIFA lost a very loyal friend and industry icon in Terry Headley this past Saturday, March 18. For those who knew him as a friend, he bravely faced his three-year illness with courage.

It is hard for me to put into words what his passing means to me personally. But even more for NAIFA, it is indescribable to speak of our loss and, yet, not appreciate the impact of this one individual on NAIFA over the past half-century.