[United States Government Manual] [June 01, 2006] [Pages 499-502] [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; 800-400-7242. Internet, www.pbgc.gov. Board of Directors: Chairman (Secretary of Labor) Elaine L. Chao Members: (Secretary of the Treasury) John W. Snow (Secretary of Commerce) Carlos M. Gutierrez Officials: Executive Director Vince K. Snowbarger, Acting Office of Risk Assessment Justen Carter, Acting Chief Technology Officer Rick Hartt Chief Administrative Officer Stephen E. Barber Director, Budget Department Henry R. Thompson Director, Facilities and Services Patricia Davis Department Director, Human Resources Department Michele Pilipovich Director, Procurement Department Robert W. Herting Director, Strategic Planning and Wilmer Graham Evaluation Department [[Page 500]] Chief Operating Officer William Hulteng, Acting Director, Benefits Administration Bennie L. Hagans and Payment Department Director, Insurance Program Terrence M. Deneen Department Chief Financial Officer James Gerber Director, Contracts and Controls Martin Boehm Review Department Director, Financial Operations Theodore J. Winter, Department Jr. General Counsel Judith Starr Deputy Executive Director, Office of Policy and Vincent K. Snowbarger External Affairs Director, Communications and Public Randy Clerihue Affairs Department Director, Legislative and Regulatory John Hanley Department Director, Policy, Research, and Dave Gustafson, Acting Analysis Department Inspector General Robert L. Emmons ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation protects the pension benefits of more than 44 million Americans who participate in defined-benefit pension plans sponsored by private-sector employees. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) 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 investment issues. Activities Coverage The Corporation insures most private-sector defined benefit pension plans, which 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 44 million workers and retirees participate in more than 30,300 covered plans. Single-Employer Insurance Under the single-employer program, the Corporation guarantees payment of basic 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 $3,971.59 per month for a 65-year-old individual in a pension plan that terminates in 2006. The law also sets other restrictions on PBGC's gaurantee, including limits on the insured amount of recent benefit increases. In certain cases, the Corporation may also pay some benefits above the guaranteed amount depending on the funding level of the plan and amounts recovered from employers. A plan sponsor may terminate a single-employer plan in a standard termination if the plan has sufficient assets to purchase private annuities to cover all benefit liabilities. If a plan does not have sufficient assets, the sponsor may seek to transfer the pension liabilities to the PBGC by demonstrating that it meets the legal criteria for a distress termination. 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 [[Page 501]] benefit liabilities may terminate in a standard termination. The Corporation also may institute termination of underfunded plans in certain specified circumstances. Multiemployer Insurance Under title IV, as 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 provides financial assistance to multiemployer 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 $8 for plan years beginning after September 26, 1988. The basic premium for all single-employer plans is $30 per participant per year. Underfunded single-employer plans must also pay an additional premium equal to $9 per $1,000 of unfunded vested benefits. A termination premium of $1,250 per participant per year applies to certain distress and involuntary plan terminations occurring on or after January 1, 2006, payable for 3 years after the termination. Sources of Information Access to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation is available through the Internet at www.pbgc.gov. TTY/TDD users may call the Federal Relay Service toll free at 800- 877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-326-4000. For further information, contact the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20005-4026. Phone, 202- 326-4000 or 800-400-7242. Internet, www.pbgc.gov. [[Page 502]] [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T206692.056 ------------------------------------------------------------------------