[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 65 (Thursday, May 12, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2955-S2956]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. AKAKA (for himself, Mr. Harkin, and Mr. Durbin):
  S. 998. A bill to amend title IV of the Employee Retirement Income 
Security Act of 1974 to require the Pension Benefit Guaranty 
Corporation, in the case of airline pilots who are required by 
regulation to retire at age 60, to compute the actuarial value of 
monthly benefits in the form of a life annuity commencing at age 60; to 
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Pension Benefit 
Guaranty Corporation Pilots Equitable Treatment Act to ensure fair 
treatment of commercial airline pilot retirees. Joining me in this 
effort are Senators Harkin and Durbin, as well as Representative George 
Miller, who is introducing the companion bill in the House of 
Representatives today.
  The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, PBGC, is the Federal agency 
that assumes responsibility for pension plans that are terminated 
because they do not have enough money to pay all benefits. PBGC's 
insurance program pays monthly benefits to the retirees that the 
pension plan provided, up to the limits set by law. PBGC requires 
individuals to retire at age 65 to receive the maximum retirement 
benefit. For years, this law was in conflict with the Federal Aviation 
Administration, FAA, requirement that pilots retire by age 60. For 
commercial airline pilots caught between these conflicting policies, 
their retirement benefits were significantly reduced.
  Congress partially addressed this issue with the passage of the Fair 
Treatment of Experienced Pilots Act, which was signed into law on 
December

[[Page S2956]]

13, 2007. The Act increased the FAA mandatory retirement age for pilots 
to age 65. However, the change did nothing to help those pilots who had 
already retired. As such, pilots who retired while the FAA age 60 rule 
was in effect are still denied the maximum pension benefit administered 
by the PBGC and are unable to rejoin the workforce as pilots.
  The conflicting FAA and PBGC requirements have had a substantial 
adverse effect on thousands of retired pilots. In general, these pilots 
have had their maximum retirement benefit reduced by one-third. For 
example, the maximum benefit from the PBGC for someone that retired at 
age 65 in 2006 is $47,659 a year. For those who retired at age 60 of 
that same year, the maximum is $30,978. Our legislation ends this 
unfair penalty. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation Pilots 
Equitable Treatment Act would direct the PBGC to calculate pension 
benefits based on retirement eligibility beginning at age 60 instead of 
age 65 for retired pilots whose pensions are affected by the 
discrepancy between the FAA and PBGC retirement requirements. We must 
pass this bill to provide some relief for pilots from Aloha Airlines, 
Delta, TWA, United Airlines, and US Airways, as well as other pilots 
who have had their pensions terminated and taken over by the PBGC and 
suffer from this wrongly imposed penalty.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill so that we can finally 
correct this wrong.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                 S. 998

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Pension Benefit Guaranty 
     Corporation Pilots Equitable Treatment Act''.

     SEC. 2. AGE REQUIREMENT FOR AIRLINE PILOTS.

       (a) Single-Employer Plan Benefits Guaranteed.--Section 
     4022(b)(3) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 
     1974 (29 U.S.C. 1322(b)(3)) is amended by inserting at the 
     end the following: ``If, at the time of termination of a plan 
     under this title, or at the time of freezing benefit accruals 
     under a plan pursuant to subsections (a)(1) and (b) of 
     section 402 of the Pension Protection Act of 2006, 
     regulations prescribed by the Federal Aviation Administration 
     required an individual to separate from service as a 
     commercial airline pilot after attaining any age before age 
     65, this paragraph shall be applied to an individual who is a 
     participant in the plan by reason of such service by 
     substituting such age for age 65. The calculation of benefit 
     liabilities and unfunded benefit liabilities under this 
     section, and the allocation of assets under section 4044, 
     shall not reflect any additional benefits the corporation 
     must guarantee due to the application of the preceding 
     sentence.''.
       (b) Aggregate Limit on Benefits Guaranteed; Criteria 
     Applicable.--Section 4022B(a) of the Employee Retirement 
     Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1322b(a)) is amended 
     by adding at the end the following: ``If, at the time of 
     termination of a plan under this title, or at the time of 
     freezing benefit accrual under a plan pursuant to subsections 
     (a)(1) and (b) of section 402 of the Pension Protection Act 
     of 2006, regulations prescribed by the Federal Aviation 
     Administration required an individual to separate from 
     service as a commercial airline pilot after attaining any age 
     before age 65, this subsection shall be applied to an 
     individual who is a participant in the plan by reason of such 
     service by substituting such age for age 65.''.

     SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       The amendments made by this Act shall apply to benefits 
     payable on or after the date of enactment of this Act.
                                 ______