To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to permit employee stock ownership plan participants to benefit from the full amount of beneficial ownership that can be accrued in the plan while also fully realizing the benefits of saving for retirement in a defined contribution plan.
About This Bill
Committee
Latest Action · July 20, 2026
Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
The Employee Ownership Fairness Act of 2026 modifies how contribution limits work for employees who participate in employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) alongside other retirement savings plans like 401(k)s. Currently, when an ESOP grows in value because a company becomes more profitable, those gains count toward federal contribution caps, which can prevent employees from making additional retirement savings contributions and employers from providing matching contributions they would otherwise offer. This bill changes the rules so that employer stock contributions to ESOPs and loan repayments for acquiring company stock no longer count toward the annual contribution limits, and ESOPs are treated separately from other defined contribution plans for purposes of calculating contribution limits. The changes take effect for plan years beginning after the bill is enacted and primarily affect workers at employee-owned companies who want to diversify their retirement savings while still benefiting from their company's growth through ESOP ownership.
Take Action
Your position
Add a comment
to comment on this bill.
Annotate the text
Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.