The SEC and the Department of Labor want to make electronic delivery the default for key investor documents and disclosures, even when you never chose that.

Digital delivery is already an option for anyone who wants it. These proposals would let brokerage firms, fund companies, banks, retirement plan administrators, and group health plans stop sending paper unless you take extra steps to get it back.

Millions of people rely on paper because they do not have reliable internet or a computer, or they have difficulty managing these documents on a screen. That includes seniors, rural residents, low-income families, and people with disabilities. Nearly 28 percent of people in rural areas and more than 23 percent of people on Tribal lands still lack fixed broadband.

Electronic delivery creates additional risks even for people with reliable internet. Important notices can disappear into spam folders, while emails directing investors to click a link and log in may be indistinguishable from phishing scams they have been warned to avoid. And when an investor dies or becomes incapacitated, loved ones may be locked out of the person’s email account and left without the paper statements that could help them identify accounts, locate assets, and settle their affairs.

The documents at stake are 401(k), IRA, pension, and mutual fund statements, fee disclosures, and shareholder reports – If the paper stops, people miss the fee, the cut, and the deadline.

Nearly 80% of consumers say they want the right to decide how they receive financial and service communications. These rules take that choice and hand it to the sender.

Tell the SEC and the Department of Labor to keep these documents in people's hands. Keep paper as the default, preserve affirmative consent for electronic delivery, and stop Wall Street from limiting access to investment and health plan disclosures.