    [United States Government Manual]
    [June 01, 1999]
    [Pages 651-653]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

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    PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION

    1200 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20005

    Phone, 202-326-4000; 800-400-4272 (toll-free). Internet, http://
    www.pbgc.gov/.
    Board of Directors:

    Chairman (Secretary of Labor)                     Alexis M. Herman
    Members:
        (Secretary of the Treasury)                   Robert E. Rubin
        (Secretary of Commerce)                       William M. Daley

    Officials:

    Executive Director                                David M. Strauss
        Director, Corporate Finance and               Andrea E. Schneider
                Negotiations Department
    Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating     Joseph H. Grant
            Officer
        General Counsel                               James J. Keightley
        Director, Corporate Policy and                Stuart A. Sirkin
                Research Department
        Director, Insurance Operations                Bennie L. Hagans
                Department
    Deputy Executive Director and Chief Financial     N. Anthony Calhoun
            Officer
        Director, Contracts and Controls              (vacancy)
                Review Department
        Director, Financial Operations                Edward Knapp
                Department
        Director, Information Resources               Cris Birch
                Management Department
    Deputy Executive Director and Chief Management    John Seal
            Officer
        Director of Strategic Planning                Kathleen Blunt
        Director, Budget Department                   Henry R. Thompson
        Director, Facilities and Services             Janet A. Smith
                Department
        Director, Human Resources Department          Sharon Barbee-Fletcher
        Director, Procurement Department              Robert W. Herting
        Director, Participant and Employer            Harriet D. Verburg
                Appeals Department
    Assistant Executive Director for Legislative and  Judy Schub
            Congressional Affairs
    Senior Adviser                                    Monica Healy
    Director, Communications and Public Affairs       Judith Welles
            Department
    Inspector General                                 Wayne Robert Poll

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    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

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    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 45,000 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 $3,051.14 per month, at age 65, for a
    plan terminating during 1998, and sets other restrictions on PBGC's
    guarantee. The Corporation may also pay some benefits above the
    guaranteed amount depending on amounts recovered from employers.
        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 that 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.

    Sources of Information

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

    For further information, contact the Pension Benefit Guaranty
    Corporation, 1200 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20005-4026. Phone, 202-
    326-4000; or 800-400-4272 (toll-free). TTY/TDD users, call the Federal
    Relay Service toll-free at 800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-
    326-4000. Internet, http://www.pbgc.gov/.