Employees are once again ramping up their commitment to their 401(k) plans.

Just 2.4 percent of Defined Contribution plan participants stopped contributing in 2010, compared with 3.4 percent of participants in 2009, according to the ICI's latest quarterly study.

Although the SAVE (Small Businesses Add Value for Employees) Act introduced by Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) last year appears dead, one of the ideas contained within the bill has attracted attention. The legislation would have provided several incentives to encourage small employers to offer their workers retirement savings programs.

Nearly three-quarters - 72 percent - of businesses with fewer than 100 employees don't offer a retirement savings plan, a 2010 study by the SBA, "Small Business Retirement Plan Availability and Worker Participation," found. The study noted that the costs and regulatory requirements likely dissuaded many small employers from establishing retirement plans.