|
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Pension Premiums Raised in Budget Conference Report
The House-approved budget bill -- which the Senate will soon vote on -- contains a measure raising federal pension insurance premiums that employers pay to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation's (PBGC) single-employer insurance program. If the Senate passes this bill, the rates will increase from $19 to $30 per participant, starting in 2006. These rates have not increased since 1991. Managers of mulit-employer pension plans will also see rates rise from $2.60 to $8.00 per participant. These rates have not increased since 1988.
These pension provisions, which could very well be superseded next year by the enactment of comprehensive pension legislation, will save an estimated $417 million in 2006 and $3.56 billion over five years. The measures were designed to force companies to both keep enough money in their pension funds to be able to meet their obligations to retirees, and to contribute more to the floundering PBGC, which is the government's pension insurance fund.
Posted by Becky Lewis
|