More than half of us have socked away less than $25,000 for retirement, or about the price of a midsized car, according to a recent survey.</p><p>About 20 percent of households have $1,000 or less in the bank.</p><p> Statistics such as those easily explain why President Barack Obama over Labor Day weekend unveiled some new retirement savings initiatives that may help spur households to save more and spend less.</p><p> The savings steps include untangling red tape that hampers automatic enrollment of workers in company retirement plans, making it easier to buy U.S. savings bonds, and adding unused vacations and sick leave to retirement savings contributions. </p><p>At first glance, these steps and others offered by the Obama administration appear to be as modest as searching under sofa cushions for lost change.</p><p>But &ldquo;these are things that can be done now, without waiting for Congress to act on broader proposals that require passing new legislation,&rdquo; said Bill Sweetnam, an attorney and retirement planning specialist at the Groom Law Group in Washington, D.C.</p><p>&ldquo;They signal a priority,&rdquo; Sweetnam said.</p><p>Even the most modest of the new proposals that begin kicking in as early as next year will touch large numbers of people. </p><p>Many of the more than 100 million families who receive income tax refunds each year, for example, will be able to use part of that money to purchase U.S. savings bonds. </p><p>How? Just by checking off a box on their federal tax returns.</p><p>That represents potentially significant opportunities to save for low-or- moderate income families, &ldquo;because this is when they have money available from refunds,&rdquo; said Peter Tufano, a Harvard Business School professor who has been studying the concept at H&R Block and IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance centers.</p><p>More than 1,000 low-income taxpayers participated in a 2008 test of the concept. They bought more than $200,000 worth of bonds, even though nearly two-thirds had no other savings of any kind before that, reports Jeff Zinsmeyer, executive director of Doorways to Dreams, a Boston nonprofit organization seeking to promote savings in low-income communities.</p><p>Among those tested, the most typical saver was a 39-year-old woman at the head of a household, making less than $22,000 a year and trying to save for her or a child&rsquo;s education.</p><p>The Treasury Department estimates that as many as 78 million Americans, or almost half the nation&rsquo;s work force, aren&rsquo;t covered by savings or retirement plans at work, other than Social Security benefits. Ten percent of those without plans at work have opened IRA or other accounts on their own. </p><p>The changes that federal officials have begun making will make it easier for employers to automatically enroll employees in 401(k) or similar tax-favored retirement plans. There will also be an option to contribute unused paid vacation or sick time to employees&rsquo; accounts too. Employers will not be required to do either of those things if they don&rsquo;t want to, however. </p><p>Many, mostly larger, U.S. companies already have been automatically enrolling employees in 401(k) plans since that choice first became available in 2006, said Julie Welch, tax department head at Meara Welch Browne LLC in Kansas City. </p><p>Participation in 401(k) plans does jump &mdash; as much as 35 percent &mdash; when employers automatically enroll new workers, Welch said. Employees can opt out of the plan if they choose, but relatively few go to the extra trouble that is required, Welch said. </p><p>Gauging how well such plans work out for the workers is more complicated, she said. Being automatically enrolled is a good deal for those who then take the time to explore their plans&rsquo; investment choices and pick those that fit their financial goals.