Sponsors (41)
The bill restores lost pension benefits for many retirees—providing higher monthly payments and retroactive lump sums—while ensuring funding via Treasury appropriations, but shifts the cost to taxpayers and leaves some groups excluded and facing administrative or tax-compliance complications.
Retirees and PBGC participants will receive higher ongoing monthly PBGC payments equal to their full vested plan benefits, increasing regular retirement income for affected beneficiaries.
Retirees who previously lost pension payments will receive lump‑sum retroactive payments that restore their full vested benefits, delivering immediate back pay to affected individuals.
Establishes a dedicated Treasury trust fund and appropriates amounts to ensure PBGC can make the increased and retroactive payments and cover administrative costs, improving payment certainty.
Taxpayers will bear the cost of retroactive payments and the higher ongoing PBGC obligations through appropriations to the Treasury general fund, increasing federal outlays.
Some former employees covered by 1999 GM union top‑up agreements are excluded from the benefit increases, leaving that group without the same retroactive relief.
Despite a 180‑day payment deadline, coordination among PBGC, Treasury, and Labor could still produce administrative delays or disputes that require resources and may delay payments to retirees.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Raises PBGC guarantees to equal full vested plan benefits for eligible single‑employer plan participants and requires PBGC to recalc and pay past‑due shortfalls.
Introduced February 13, 2025 by Michael R. Turner · Last progress February 13, 2025
Increases the amount PBGC guarantees for eligible participants and beneficiaries in certain single-employer pension plan terminations so that guaranteed monthly benefits equal each participant’s full vested plan benefit. PBGC must recalculate past determinations and pay lump-sum past‑due amounts within 180 days of enactment, working with the Treasury and Labor Secretaries. The change preserves prior asset allocations and recoveries except as modified, defines who is eligible (limited to certain participants and beneficiaries in pay status or eligible for future payments as of enactment, with some exclusions), and specifies how to compute the shortfall payments and which prior payments count against the new guarantee.