House passes bill to open 403(b) plans of charities, schools and churches to collective investment trusts
The House voted 295 to 128 on Nov. 11 for H.R. 1013, two days after the Rules Committee set the terms of debate. The bill now goes to the Senate, where a companion bill sits in the Banking Committee.
Washington. The House on Wednesday, Nov. 11, passed a bill that would let the 403(b) retirement plans of charities, public schools and churches invest in collective investment trusts, the pooled funds that 401(k) plans already use. The vote on H.R. 1013, the Retirement Fairness for Charities and Educational Institutions Act, was 295 to 128, according to the House Clerk's record of roll call 321.
The vote follows the step the Herald reported on Nov. 9, when the House Rules Committee met on the bill. The committee approved a closed rule, 7 to 3, that allowed no floor amendments, and the House adopted that rule 215 to 209 on Nov. 10. Two amendments from Democrats were submitted to the committee and not made in order: one by Rep. Maxine Waters of California requiring trust managers to disclose a fund fact sheet with fees and compensation arrangements, and one by Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts limiting the change to plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
How the House voted
All 211 Republicans voting, 83 Democrats and one independent voted yes; 128 Democrats voted no, and 10 members did not vote. The bill was introduced by Rep. Frank Lucas, a Republican from Oklahoma.
The bill amends federal securities laws so that 403(b) plans can buy collective investment trusts and insurance company separate accounts. In remarks he released after speaking on the floor, Mr. Lucas said these products can cost less to run than many mutual funds, and that a worker saving $10,000 a year for 40 years at a 6 percent return could lose more than $19,000 by paying five hundredths of a percentage point more in annual fees. He said the tax code was changed for 403(b) plans in an earlier Congress and that the securities laws still need the same fix.
Mr. Lynch spoke against the bill as written, the trade publication 401(k) Specialist reported.
What comes next
The House has passed the same text before, as part of the INVEST Act in December 2025, and the Senate has not acted on it. A Senate version, S. 424, sponsored by Sen. Katie Britt, a Republican from Alabama, and Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Democrat from Georgia, awaits action in the Senate Banking Committee, 401(k) Specialist reported. For nonprofits that sponsor 403(b) plans, nothing changes unless the Senate passes a bill and the president signs it.
About this story
501c3.help wrote this story from the sources listed with it, not from material an organization sent. Our editors approved it on Nov. 12, 2026. Stories in The Nonprofit Herald are free, and nothing is asked in return. Editorial rules.
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