[United States Government Manual]
[May 31, 1996]
[Pages 646-649]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION

1200 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20005
Phone, 202-326-4000
Board of Directors:                                

Chairman (Secretary of Labor)                    Robert B. Reich
Members:                                           
  (Secretary of the Treasury)                    Robert E. Rubin
  (Secretary of Commerce)                        Michael Kantor

Officials:                                         

Executive Director                               Martin Slate
Deputy Executive Director and Chief Negotiator   Nell Hennessy
Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating    Joseph H. Grant
    Officer
Deputy Executive Director and Chief Financial    N. Anthony Calhoun
    Officer
Deputy Executive Director and Chief Management   John Seal
    Officer
Assistant Executive Director for Legislative     Judy Schub
    and Congressional Affairs
  Director, Budget Department                    Henry R. Thompson
  Director, Communications and                   Judith Welles
      Public Affairs Department
  Director, Contracts and Controls               Dale Williams
      Review Department
  Director, Corporate Finance and                Andrea E. Schneider
      Negotiations Department
  Director, Corporate Policy and                 Stuart A. Sirkin
      Research Department
  Director, Facilities and Services              Janet A. Smith
      Department
  Director, Financial Operations                 Hazel Broadnax
      Department
  General Counsel                                James J. Keightley
  Director, Human Resources                      Sharon Barbee-Fletcher
      Department
  Director, Information Resources                Cris Birch
      Management Department
  Inspector General                              Wayne Robert Poll
  Director, Insurance Operations                 Bennie L. Hagans
      Department
  Director, Participant and                      Harriet D. Verburg
      Employer Appeals Department
  Director, Procurement Department               Robert W. Herting

[[Page 647]]

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation guarantees payment of 
nonforfeitable pension benefits in covered private-sector defined 
benefit pension plans.

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation is a self-financing, wholly 
owned Government corporation subject to the Government Corporation 
Control Act (31 U.S.C. 9101-9109). The Corporation, established by Title 
IV of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 
1301-1461), is governed by a Board of Directors consisting of the 
Secretaries of Labor, Commerce, and the Treasury. The Secretary of Labor 
is Chairman of the Board. A seven-member Advisory Committee, composed of 
two labor, two business, and three public members appointed by the 
President, advises the agency on various matters.

Activities

Coverage  The Corporation insures most private-sector defined benefit 
pension plans that provide a pension benefit based on factors such as 
age, years of service, and salary.
    The Corporation administers two insurance programs separately 
covering single-employer and multiemployer plans. More than 42 million 
workers participate in approximately 55,000 covered plans.
Single-Employer Insurance  Under the single-employer program, the 
Corporation guarantees payment of certain pension benefits if an insured 
plan terminates without sufficient assets to pay those benefits. 
However, the law limits the total monthly benefit that the agency may 
guarantee for one individual to $2,642.05 per month, at age 65, for a 
plan terminating during 1995, and sets other restrictions on PBGC's 
guarantee. The Corporation may also pay some benefits above the 
guaranteed amount depending on amounts recovered from the employer 
responsible for the plan.
    A plan administrator may terminate a single-employer plan in a 
``standard'' or ``distress'' termination if certain procedural and legal 
requirements are met. In either termination, the plan administrator must 
inform participants in writing at least 60 days prior to the date the 
administrator proposes to terminate the plan. Only a plan which has 
sufficient assets to pay all benefit liabilities may terminate in a 
standard termination. The Corporation also may institute termination 
proceedings in certain specified circumstances.
Multiemployer Insurance  Under title IV, as originally enacted, the 
Corporation guaranteed nonforfeitable benefits for multiemployer plans 
in a similar fashion as for single-employer plans. However, the 
multiemployer program was revised in 1980 by the Multiemployer Pension 
Plan Amendments Act (29 U.S.C. 1001 note) which changed the insurable 
event from plan termination to plan insolvency. The Corporation now 
provides financial assistance to plans that are unable to pay 
nonforfeitable benefits. The plans are obligated to repay such 
assistance. The act also made employers withdrawing from a plan liable 
to the plan for a portion of its unfunded vested benefits.
Premium Collections  All defined benefit pension plans insured by PBGC 
are required to pay premiums to the Corporation according to rates set 
by Congress. The annual premium per plan participant for multiemployer 
pension plans is $2.60 for plan years beginning after September 26, 
1988. The basic premium for all single-employer plans is $19 per 
participant per year. Underfunded single-employer plans must also pay an 
additional premium equal to $9 per $1,000 of unfunded vested benefits, 
subject to a cap that will be phased out by the end of 1997.

Sources of Information

The Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation provides information 
electronically through the Internet, at http://www.pbgc.gov/.

[[Page 648]]

  
  
  
  


  
  
  
  

[[Page 649]]

For further information, contact the Pension Benefit Guaranty 
Corporation, 1200 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20005-4026. Phone, 202-
326-4000.

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