Employer-sponsored defined benefit pension plans (DBPP) face unprecedented challenges in the midst of significant changes in our nation's retirement landscape. Many DBPP & the fed. agency that insures them, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC), have accumulated large & growing deficits that threaten their survival. Meanwhile, the percentage of Amer. workers covered by DBPP has been declining for 30 years, reflecting a movement toward defined contribution plans (e.g., 401(k) plans). To address these issues, a diverse group of knowledgeable individuals was convened -- incl. gov't. officials, researchers, accounting experts, actuaries, plan sponsor & employee group rep., & members of the investment community. Charts & tables.

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC) insures the retirement future of nearly 44 million people in more than 30,000 private-sector defined benefit pension plans. In July 2003, PBGC¿s single-employer pension insurance program was designated as ¿high risk,¿ meaning that it needed urgent attention and transformation. The program remains on the list today with a projected financial deficit of over $13 billion, as of Sept. 2007. Because Congress exercises oversight of PBGC, the author was asked to testify on: (1) the critical role PBGC plays in protecting the pension benefits of workers and how PBGC is funded; (2) the financial challenges facing PBGC; and (3) the PBGC¿s governance, oversight and management challenges. Tables.

This book provides background and analysis of the premiums charged by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), which is a government-owned corporation that was created in 1974 to protect the retirement income of participants in private-sector, defined benefit (DB) pension plans. When a company terminates a DB pension plan that does not have enough assets to pay 100% of the promised benefits, PBGC pays, in accordance with statute and up to a maximum yearly dollar amount, the benefits to participants in the terminated plan. In FY2012, 887,000 individuals received $5.5 billion in benefit payments from PBGC. An additional 614,000 workers will receive benefits when they retire. PBGC consists of two insurance programs: (1) a multiemployer pension program, which protects the benefits of 10.3 million participants in collectively bargained DB pensions in which several employers make contributions, and (2) a larger single-employer pension program, which protects the benefits of 33.4 million participants in DB pensions operated by one employer for its eligible employees.

This book provides background and analysis of the premiums charged by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), which is a government-owned corporation that was created in 1974 to protect the retirement income of participants in private-sector, defined benefit (DB) pension plans. When a company terminates a DB pension plan that does not have enough assets to pay 100% of the promised benefits, PBGC pays, in accordance with statute and up to a maximum yearly dollar amount, the benefits to participants in the terminated plan. In FY2012, 887,000 individuals received $5.5 billion in benefit payments from PBGC. An additional 614,000 workers will receive benefits when they retire. PBGC consists of two insurance programs: (1) a multi-employer pension program, which protects the benefits of 10.3 million participants in collectively bargained DB pensions in which several employers make contributions, and (2) a larger single-employer pension program, which protects the benefits of 33.4 million participants in DB pensions operated by one employer for its eligible employees.