“One of the best ways to help people save money for retirement may soon be blocked by Congress. This week, two Republican Congressmen introduced bills that would effectively prevent states and cities from setting up automatic retirement programs for small business workers. More than 30 states are in various stages of developing these savings plans, according to the Georgetown Center for Retirement Initiatives. The basic approach is to require any business that doesn’t offer retirement plans to auto-enroll workers in an IRA account, with contributions funneled from their paychecks into the investment vehicle. An IRA is a tax-advantaged retirement account. The worker may also choose to opt out.”