I don’t really understand how these are different from IRAs. Are there minimums (de jure or de facto) for IRAs?
For starters, people WITH IRA's would certainly NOT roll over into a "MyRA," as the government bon route pays practically nothing. There seems to be no comprehesible reason for switching to a MyRA if you have your money elsewhere. Even if your current IRA is poorly invested, a MyRA would probably be the last place you'd want to move it.
The MyRA to me, sounds more like an additional Social Security tax, especially if you sign up for automatic payroll deductions.
I haven't heard about the payment schedule, or any projected withdrawl restrictions on an MyRA account. I assume if you had one, the payout would be somehow prorated and paid out as an additional payment, once you reach retirement age. Whether or not you have control over the entire balance--to my knowledge--has not been mentioned.
Whether or not there are any special tax treatments is unclear. It's not clear whether the contributions are pre-tax, or whether the contributions reduce your adjusted income on which you pay taxes. Any interest (projected) paid on your MyRA balance would be tax-deferred.
I would also think that your MyRA asset would not be transferable to anyone other than a spouse, but that was not made clear. Liberals seem to detest any "wealth transfers" between generations of people, so I would think after your death, or the death of a spouse, the government keeps whatever's left.
Above everything else, I would consider that a MyRA is highly susceptible to “rules changes” along the way. Obama’s wont and habit it to ignore previous contracts and take what he wants when he wants it, with the demonization of those from whom he’s taking it, just in case he needs some LIVs to bark for him.
HF