The Enron bankruptcy scandal has done one thing for sure. It has heightened the debate and possibly could change the law as to who can give advice to workers concerning how they invest money in their 401(k) plans.

Currently, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act prohibits mutual funds, banks and insurance companies from providing investment advice to workers in retirement plans that such firms service.

Employers, however, can make arrangements for employees to get investment advice it just has to come from an independent third party.

According to various surveys, anywhere from 16 percent to 22 percent of companies already provide investment advice to their employees.

Financial companies running 401(k) plans want to offer specific advice to employees. After all, that’s one more revenue stream for them. The financial service companies say they have our best interests at heart. They claim they are worried we will make big mistakes like the many Enron employees who overloaded their retirement plans with company stock, only to see it become almost worthless after Enron filed for bankruptcy protection.

“Employees are hungry for investment advice regarding their 401(k) plans,” says ING Aetna Financial Services, a provider of retirement planning products and employee benefits services.

The company reports that more than 75 percent of the 546 full-time employees it polled would take advantage of retirement planning advice if their employers provided it.

So, for example, in addition to providing generic information about asset allocation or the importance of diversification, the 401(k) plan providers could advise employees about how much and what percentage of their money should go into a particular investment.

A scenario in which plan providers would pass out advice on their own products concerns some consumer advocates.

“There is great potential for a conflict of interest,” said John Hotz, deputy director of the Washington-based Pension Rights Center.

Among them: What’s to stop a 401(k) plan administrator from steering employees into investments with higher fees? What’s to stop a company from recommending that employees invest in a poorly performing fund just to boost that fund’s assets?

When the potential for profit is so great, so too is the potential for impropriety.

So what kind of safeguards can we expect if the law is changed?

A bill by Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, would lift the restrictions under current law and allow employers and 401(k) plan providers to offer specific advice as long as they gave full disclosure of fees and any conflicts of interest. But Hotz doesn’t like it.

“That’s not enough,” Hotz said. “There is no amount of notice that cures the taint.”

James Delaplane, vice president at the American Benefits Council, which represents the interest of employers, said the key was to structure the legislation to avoid any conflicts of interest.

“We ask a lot of 401(k) investors in the system,” Delaplane said. “We give them lots of choices but also lots of responsibility. They need to be well-educated and well-advised.”

Delaplane is absolutely right. Workers are placing their money in investments they have only a scant understanding of.

Surveys commissioned by financial firms and consumer advocacy groups show that many workers participating in 401(k) plans have just a basic knowledge of the various investment options, are extremely optimistic about the possible returns on those options and often fail to diversify based on their retirement goals.

The fact is, many employees do need investment advice. But the question is, who is best equipped to give it?