1.
Office of pension participant advocacy
(a)
Title III of the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
D
Office of Pension Participant Advocacy
3051.
Office of Pension Participant Advocacy
(a)
(1)
There is established in the
Department of Labor an office to be known as the Office of Pension
Participant Advocacy
.
(2)
Pension Participant Advocate
The Office of Pension
Participant Advocacy shall be under the supervision and direction of an
official to be known as the Pension Participant Advocate
who
shall—
(A)
have demonstrated
experience in the area of pension participant assistance, and
(B)
be selected by the
Secretary after consultation with pension participant advocacy
organizations.
The Pension Participant Advocate
shall report directly to the Secretary and shall be entitled to compensation at
the same rate as the highest rate of basic pay established for the Senior
Executive Service under section 5382 of title 5, United States Code.
(b)
It shall be the function of
the Office of Pension Participant Advocacy to—
(1)
evaluate the efforts of the
Federal Government, business, and financial, professional, retiree, labor,
women’s, and other appropriate organizations in assisting and protecting
pension plan participants, including—
(A)
serving as a focal point
for, and actively seeking out, the receipt of information with respect to the
policies and activities of the Federal Government, business, and such
organizations which affect such participants,
(B)
identifying significant
problems for pension plan participants and the capabilities of the Federal
Government, business, and such organizations to address such problems,
and
(C)
developing proposals for
changes in such policies and activities to correct such problems, and
communicating such changes to the appropriate officials,
(2)
promote the expansion of
pension plan coverage and the receipt of promised benefits by increasing the
awareness of the general public of the value of pension plans and by protecting
the rights of pension plan participants, including—
(A)
enlisting the cooperation
of the public and private sectors in disseminating information, and
(B)
forming private-public
partnerships and other efforts to assist pension plan participants in receiving
their benefits,
(3)
advocate for the full
attainment of the rights of pension plan participants, including by making
pension plan sponsors and fiduciaries aware of their responsibilities,
(4)
give priority to the
special needs of low and moderate income participants, and
(5)
develop needed information
with respect to pension plans, including information on the types of existing
pension plans, levels of employer and employee contributions, vesting status,
accumulated benefits, benefits received, and forms of benefits.
(c)
(1)
Not later than December 31
of each calendar year, the Pension Participant Advocate shall report to the
Committees on Education and the Workforce and Ways and Means of the House of
Representatives and the Committees on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
and Finance of the Senate on its activities during the fiscal year ending in
the calendar year. Such report shall—
(A)
identify significant
problems the Advocate has identified,
(B)
include specific
legislative and regulatory changes to address the problems, and
(C)
identify any actions taken
to correct problems identified in any previous report.
The Pension Participant Advocate
shall submit a copy of such report to the Secretary and any other appropriate
official at the same time it is submitted to the committees of Congress.
(2)
The Pension Participant
Advocate shall report to the Secretary or any other appropriate official any
time the Advocate identifies a problem which may be corrected by the Secretary
or such official.
(3)
Reports to be submitted directly
The report required under
paragraph (1) shall be provided directly to the committees of Congress without
any prior review or comment by any person other than the Secretary or any other
Federal officer or employee.
(d)
(1)
Subject to such
confidentiality requirements as may be appropriate, the Secretary and other
Federal officials shall, upon request, provide such information (including plan
documents) as may be necessary to enable the Pension Participant Advocate to
carry out the Advocate’s responsibilities under this section.
(2)
The Pension Participant
Advocate may represent the views and interests of pension plan participants
before any Federal agency, including, upon request of a participant, in any
proceeding involving the participant.
(3)
In carrying out
responsibilities under subsection (b)(5), the Pension Participant Advocate may,
in addition to any other authority provided by law—
(A)
contract with any person to
acquire statistical information with respect to pension plan participants,
and
(B)
conduct direct surveys of
pension plan participants.
.
(b)
The table of contents for
title III of such Act is amended by adding at the end the following:
Subtitle D—Office of Pension
Participant Advocacy
3051. Office of Pension
Participant
Advocacy
.
(c)
The amendment made by this
section shall take effect on January 1, 2006.