December 7, 2025 • 8 mins
In this timely and eye-opening interview, host Mark Alyn sits down with Kevin Busque, Head of Gusto 401(k) powered by Guideline, to break down what California small-business owners urgently need to know about the state’s retirement savings mandate—and why waiting could be a costly mistake. With the December 31, 2025 compliance deadline rapidly approaching, California employers with as few as one W-2 employee are legally required to offer a retirement savings option. Business owners must either enroll employees in the state-run CalSavers IRA program or implement a qualified private retirement plan, such as a 401(k). Yet, according to recent research shared in the interview, nearly 75% of small-business owners are unaware of CalSavers, and 65% don’t realize they could face fines of up to $750 per employee for missing deadlines. Kevin clearly explains the penalty structure, which begins with $250 per eligible employee after 90 days of noncompliance and escalates to an additional $500 per employee after 180 days. But this conversation goes far beyond warnings—it’s about smart, strategic action. Kevin outlines how today’s modern 401(k) plans are far more affordable, flexible, and tax-advantaged than many business owners realize. With new federal tax credits and simplified administration, retirement plans are no longer just for big corporations. Mark and Kevin also explore how offering a quality retirement benefit can do more than satisfy a mandate—it can boost recruitment, strengthen employee loyalty, enhance your employer brand, and align with long-term business growth. Kevin’s entrepreneurial background and leadership at Guideline and Gusto add practical insight into how small companies can implement powerful benefits without overwhelming cost or complexity. This interview is a must-watch for any California business owner who wants to avoid penalties, stay compliant, and turn a regulatory requirement into a competitive advantage. #CaliforniaBusiness #SmallBusinessOwners #RetirementPlanning #CalSavers #401kPlans #EmployeeBenefits #BusinessCompliance #MarkAlyn #Gusto401k #GuidelineRetirement #Entrepreneurship #HRCompliance #WorkplaceBenefits
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
This is a special edition of Late Night Health. I'm
Mark Allen. There's a deadline looming here in California for
business owners small, medium, and large. I would assume our
guest is the head of Gusto and his name is
Kevin Busky. I think I got that right, Kevin. What's
(00:29):
going on? Even if I have a small business in
like two or three employees, I'm going to have to
provide retirement benefits?
Speaker 2 (00:39):
That's right. So there's a state man date linked to
cal Savers, which is part of a California retirement program.
The mandate actually goes into effect on December thirty first
of twenty twenty five for all small businesses in California
with one or more employees. So this cal Savers has
been around since twenty nineteen. It's been rolled out in phases,
(01:01):
but unfortunately the word has not gotten out to small businesses.
And it does come with a quite a hefty stick
on the end of it, and it's two hundred and
fifty dollars per employee. Fine if you don't offer a
retirement program through through the employer. So we're trying to
get the word out there are options to meet this mandate.
(01:24):
There's call savers itself, which is kind of the self
serving state mandate, and then there are normal programs like
four oh one K et cetera that are more traditional
and better for employees, et cetera, that also meet this mandate.
So we're just trying to make sure that, you know,
as we build a platform for small businesses, that we
are front center and making sure that they understand that
(01:44):
this mandate does exist and fines will come about ninety
days after the deadline.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
So if they don't provide it, they get fined and
they can be up to seven hundred and fifty dollars.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Correct, Yeah, it's two hundred and fifty dollars per person
or per employee, and they will compound over time.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
What about having a program where the employee contributes, would
that be something that would save some money for the employer.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
Yeah. Absolutely, And most of the time, even with four
one K, it's the employee doing the contribution, So less
than fifty percent of all four one K contributions have
an employer match associated with them, so it's really just
about sponsoring the program. Four one K itself has to
be sponsored by the employer, and we have super low
(02:37):
cost options like a starter program, which is thirty nine
dollars a month, and that does meet the mandate when
you created this program directly for small businesses to be
able to offer an affordable, streamlined and actually a quality
benefit over the state programs.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
So for thirty nine dollars a month per employee.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
That's now thirty nine dollars a month speed and it's
just four dollars per employees. So when you do the map,
it's considerably in those fines.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
There's it would seem to me that that's that's a
no brainer.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
It gets better than that, because there's in twenty twenty two,
there's a law pass called Secure two point zero which
actually has a tax benefits. So these are tax credits
up to sixteen thousand dollars sixteen five hundred dollars that
can be used for those fees. So largely net benefit
to the employers. This could be a free program.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Is this program of employees are going to love it.
Our employers kind of fighting it. But it would seem
to me that that's so inexpensive. It's as I said,
it's a no brainer.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
No, I think employers are just thinking that as another burden,
another tax from the state, right and it's it's actually
a bit self serving because the state has their own
state program that charges asset based fees, and those fees
aren't going into the program itself, they're just paying the
cost of the of the program and the mandate. So
(04:07):
for us, it's very important that we actually offered a
meaningful benefit, and this is a benefit. You know, a
Gusto four to one k is a benefit that people
actually want. It's the second most requested benefit next to healthcare.
So a meaningful benefit that has a mobile app that
has a contribution and you can it's very streamlined, it's
very simple. The administration is handled by Gusto and we
(04:31):
do all the integration for you. So it's a very
hands off program to the small business employer, which is
extremely important because they need to get back to doing
their work and not worrying about you know, state mandates,
et cetera.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
And of course, small business drives the state and America.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Yeah, this is about four point two million small businesses
affected by this mandate in California alone.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
Now we're seeing you know, a variety of different and
kinds of companies. A burised. We saw somebody making coffee,
We saw somebody at a plant store. My point is
that all small businesses, no matter how many employees one
or more, you need to participate.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
That's right.
Speaker 1 (05:21):
Why don't people know about this? Employers don't know?
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Yeah, it's a great question. I think there's a lot
to you know, the state isn't doing a great job
with educating small businesses. I know there was a few mailers,
but really seventy five percent of all small businesses in
the state don't know that this mandate exists. And that's
just a failure by the state with the mandate and
launching cal sabers And we're doing our best at Gusto
(05:46):
as a small business platform to make sure that we
educate these small business owners and make sure that they're
aware of the consequences and really trying to get in
front and center and also offer a great benefit that
will actually be positive for a small business.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Is there? You know? I think the state maybe you
should have sent a flower out, a plant out with
a note because to the employers, and I think that
would have helped. Why did California create this? Do you know?
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Yeah? This is not just California. Just to be clear,
I live and love and love this state, but there
are twenty plus states also having a mandate for retirement,
and really this is about awareness of getting people to
not rely so heavily on Social Security, etc. So the
states are taking on a little bit of that burden
(06:38):
and wants to educate people and do I think it's
a little bit heavy handed with the stick. Absolutely. I
would have much preferred just the caret of secure two
point zero. But this is the world that we're living in.
It's not just California. There's twenty plus other states that
have similar mandates.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
And the key word here is mandate. You have to do.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
It, that's right, mandate. It's not just awareness, it's not
just the caret. It does come with a fine about
ninety days after the deadline.
Speaker 1 (07:07):
And Gusto will take care of everything for the employer,
that's right.
Speaker 2 (07:15):
Gusto is the small business platform. We're obviously out here
trying to educate small businesses on this mandate. We run payroll.
We do almost a trillion dollars in payroll annually. Gusto
dot com Slash four one K has all the information
I'm giving you today and also super easy five to
eight minute onboarding to meet this band aid. It's very
(07:38):
simple very straightforward and it's meant to take the burden
away for the small business.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Repeat the URL again so that people can can get that.
Speaker 2 (07:50):
Yeah, it's just Gusto dot com slash for zero one K.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
That's easy, Kevin. Thank you very much for sharing that.
Employers get on. You only have a couple of weeks
to do this or you're gonna be fined. And if
you have more than a couple of employees, wow, it's
gonna that's gonna hurt. Kevin. Thank you very much. I'm
(08:17):
Mark Allen and this is Late Night Health
This is a special edition of Late Night Health. I'm
Mark Allen. There's a deadline looming here in California for
business owners small, medium, and large. I would assume our
guest is the head of Gusto and his name is
Kevin Busky. I think I got that right, Kevin. What's
(00:29):
going on? Even if I have a small business in
like two or three employees, I'm going to have to
provide retirement benefits?
Speaker 2 (00:39):
That's right. So there's a state man date linked to
cal Savers, which is part of a California retirement program.
The mandate actually goes into effect on December thirty first
of twenty twenty five for all small businesses in California
with one or more employees. So this cal Savers has
been around since twenty nineteen. It's been rolled out in phases,
(01:01):
but unfortunately the word has not gotten out to small businesses.
And it does come with a quite a hefty stick
on the end of it, and it's two hundred and
fifty dollars per employee. Fine if you don't offer a
retirement program through through the employer. So we're trying to
get the word out there are options to meet this mandate.
(01:24):
There's call savers itself, which is kind of the self
serving state mandate, and then there are normal programs like
four oh one K et cetera that are more traditional
and better for employees, et cetera, that also meet this mandate.
So we're just trying to make sure that, you know,
as we build a platform for small businesses, that we
are front center and making sure that they understand that
(01:44):
this mandate does exist and fines will come about ninety
days after the deadline.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
So if they don't provide it, they get fined and
they can be up to seven hundred and fifty dollars.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Correct, Yeah, it's two hundred and fifty dollars per person
or per employee, and they will compound over time.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
What about having a program where the employee contributes, would
that be something that would save some money for the employer.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
Yeah. Absolutely, And most of the time, even with four
one K, it's the employee doing the contribution, So less
than fifty percent of all four one K contributions have
an employer match associated with them, so it's really just
about sponsoring the program. Four one K itself has to
be sponsored by the employer, and we have super low
(02:37):
cost options like a starter program, which is thirty nine
dollars a month, and that does meet the mandate when
you created this program directly for small businesses to be
able to offer an affordable, streamlined and actually a quality
benefit over the state programs.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
So for thirty nine dollars a month per employee.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
That's now thirty nine dollars a month speed and it's
just four dollars per employees. So when you do the map,
it's considerably in those fines.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
There's it would seem to me that that's that's a
no brainer.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
It gets better than that, because there's in twenty twenty two,
there's a law pass called Secure two point zero which
actually has a tax benefits. So these are tax credits
up to sixteen thousand dollars sixteen five hundred dollars that
can be used for those fees. So largely net benefit
to the employers. This could be a free program.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Is this program of employees are going to love it.
Our employers kind of fighting it. But it would seem
to me that that's so inexpensive. It's as I said,
it's a no brainer.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
No, I think employers are just thinking that as another burden,
another tax from the state, right and it's it's actually
a bit self serving because the state has their own
state program that charges asset based fees, and those fees
aren't going into the program itself, they're just paying the
cost of the of the program and the mandate. So
(04:07):
for us, it's very important that we actually offered a
meaningful benefit, and this is a benefit. You know, a
Gusto four to one k is a benefit that people
actually want. It's the second most requested benefit next to healthcare.
So a meaningful benefit that has a mobile app that
has a contribution and you can it's very streamlined, it's
very simple. The administration is handled by Gusto and we
(04:31):
do all the integration for you. So it's a very
hands off program to the small business employer, which is
extremely important because they need to get back to doing
their work and not worrying about you know, state mandates,
et cetera.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
And of course, small business drives the state and America.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Yeah, this is about four point two million small businesses
affected by this mandate in California alone.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
Now we're seeing you know, a variety of different and
kinds of companies. A burised. We saw somebody making coffee,
We saw somebody at a plant store. My point is
that all small businesses, no matter how many employees one
or more, you need to participate.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
That's right.
Speaker 1 (05:21):
Why don't people know about this? Employers don't know?
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Yeah, it's a great question. I think there's a lot
to you know, the state isn't doing a great job
with educating small businesses. I know there was a few mailers,
but really seventy five percent of all small businesses in
the state don't know that this mandate exists. And that's
just a failure by the state with the mandate and
launching cal sabers And we're doing our best at Gusto
(05:46):
as a small business platform to make sure that we
educate these small business owners and make sure that they're
aware of the consequences and really trying to get in
front and center and also offer a great benefit that
will actually be positive for a small business.
Speaker 1 (06:01):
Is there? You know? I think the state maybe you
should have sent a flower out, a plant out with
a note because to the employers, and I think that
would have helped. Why did California create this? Do you know?
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Yeah? This is not just California. Just to be clear,
I live and love and love this state, but there
are twenty plus states also having a mandate for retirement,
and really this is about awareness of getting people to
not rely so heavily on Social Security, etc. So the
states are taking on a little bit of that burden
(06:38):
and wants to educate people and do I think it's
a little bit heavy handed with the stick. Absolutely. I
would have much preferred just the caret of secure two
point zero. But this is the world that we're living in.
It's not just California. There's twenty plus other states that
have similar mandates.
Speaker 1 (06:54):
And the key word here is mandate. You have to do.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
It, that's right, mandate. It's not just awareness, it's not
just the caret. It does come with a fine about
ninety days after the deadline.
Speaker 1 (07:07):
And Gusto will take care of everything for the employer,
that's right.
Speaker 2 (07:15):
Gusto is the small business platform. We're obviously out here
trying to educate small businesses on this mandate. We run payroll.
We do almost a trillion dollars in payroll annually. Gusto
dot com Slash four one K has all the information
I'm giving you today and also super easy five to
eight minute onboarding to meet this band aid. It's very
(07:38):
simple very straightforward and it's meant to take the burden
away for the small business.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Repeat the URL again so that people can can get that.
Speaker 2 (07:50):
Yeah, it's just Gusto dot com slash for zero one K.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
That's easy, Kevin. Thank you very much for sharing that.
Employers get on. You only have a couple of weeks
to do this or you're gonna be fined. And if
you have more than a couple of employees, wow, it's
gonna that's gonna hurt. Kevin. Thank you very much. I'm
(08:17):
Mark Allen and this is Late Night Health
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