On April 1, 2020, the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association filed a Notice Of Appeal with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, indicating that it is appealing the court’s March 10, 2020 dismissal of the Association’s lawsuit alleging that CalSavers, California’s mandated payroll deduction IRA program, was preempted by ERISA.  See CalSavers Not Preempted By ERISA! The appeal is to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

The decision last month was the second time the Eastern District had dismissed the case.  The Association originally filed suit in 2018 and the court dismissed it with leave to amend in March of last year.  See CalSavers Saved From ERISA Preemption By District Court.  The Association filed an amended complaint in April of 2019 and the United States Justice Department filed a statement of interest in September, agreeing with the Association that CalSavers was preempted. See HJTA Files Amended Complaint Challenging CalSavers Program and Friday the 13th Unlucky for CalSavers as U.S. Maintains Law is Preempted by ERISA.

The Notice of Appeal does not indicate the basis for the appeal.  One would expect the Justice Department to remain interested in the appeal.