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ROLL BACK ESG TO INCREASE RETIREMENT EARNINGS ACT Speaker: Congressman Dan Kildee Publication: Congressional Record Date: 18 September 2024 Subjects: American Government  , Labor
Topic: Delphi [Non-automotive content removed.] |
Mr. KILDEE. Madam Speaker, the bill before us is really nothing more than a distraction, a distraction from the real issues facing American seniors and retirees. What seniors want is their government to lower the cost of everyday necessities like groceries, gas, water, and electric bills. They want their hard-earned savings protected. They don't want Congress dictating to them where and how to invest for their retirement.
If Republicans were truly serious about protecting American retirees, they would be working to restore the pensions of Americans who have lost their retirements, their pensions or seen them cut, like the thousands of Delphi salaried retirees across the country.
Americans who work their whole lives should not have to worry if they will be able to retire in dignity, but when General Motors filed for bankruptcy during the Great Recession, the U.S. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, the PBGC, unfairly cut retirement benefits by as much as 70 percent for more than 20,000 Delphi salaried retirees.
These cuts have been devastating for these retirees. We have heard stories from Delphi salaried retirees facing extreme hardship, even forgoing medical treatment because their pensions were slashed so much.
Under the past administration, the former President made a promise that he would fix this issue. He did not. He didn't even try.
Last Congress, under the leadership of Speaker Pelosi and Democrats, this body passed my legislation, the Susan Muffley Act, to be clear, in a bipartisan fashion, to restore the pensions of thousands of Delphi workers--as I said, a bipartisan bill that would restore those pensions. We had 218 Democrats, 36 Republican Members of this body voting for it.
These men and women worked hard. They followed the rules, and then they got the rug pulled from under them. When the government rescued GM and left these workers behind, their families were left hanging, and that was wrong.
At the appropriate time, I will offer a motion to recommit this bill back to committee. If the House rules had permitted, I would have offered the motion with an important amendment to the bill. My amendment would substitute this legislation with the Susan Muffley Act, my bipartisan legislation that would right the wrong for the Delphi salaried retirees, restoring their pension benefits that they were expected to receive before the bankruptcy.
Again, this bill is a commonsense, bipartisan bill that has already passed the House of Representatives in a bipartisan fashion. I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment immediately prior to the vote on the motion to recommit.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Tenney). Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Michigan?
There was no objection.
Mr. KILDEE. Madam Speaker, in closing I will just say this: I hope my colleagues join me. This is something we ought to be able to do together. We ought to solve this problem in a bipartisan fashion. I ask you to join me in voting for the motion to recommit to right this historic wrong for the Delphi salaried retirees.
Motion to Recommit
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the motion to
recommit.
The Clerk read as follows:
Mr. Kildee of Michigan moves to recommit the bill H.R. 5339
to the Committee on Education and the Workforce.
The material previously referred to by Mr. Kildee is as follows:
Mr. Kildee moves to recommit the bill H.R. 5339 to the
Committee on Education and the Workforce with instructions to
report the same back to the House forthwith, with the
following amendment:
Page 1, strike line 1 and all that follows and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Susan Muffley Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. GUARANTEED BENEFIT CALCULATION FOR CERTAIN PLANS.
(a) In General.--
(1) Increase to full vested plan benefit.--
(A) In general.--For purposes of determining what benefits
are guaranteed under section 4022 of the Employee Retirement
Income Security Act of 1974 (in this section referred to as
``ERISA'') with respect to an eligible participant or
beneficiary under a covered plan specified in paragraph (4)
in connection with the termination of such plan, the amount
of monthly benefits shall be equal to the full vested plan
benefit with respect to the participant.
(B) No effect on previous determinations.--Nothing in this
Act shall be construed to change the allocation of assets and
recoveries under sections 4044(a) and 4022(c) of ERISA as
previously determined by the Pension Benefit Guaranty
Corporation (in the section referred to as the
``corporation'') for the covered plans specified in paragraph
(4), and the corporation's applicable rules, practices, and
policies on benefits payable in terminated single-employer
plans shall, except as otherwise provided in this section,
continue to apply with respect to such covered plans.
(2) Recalculation of certain benefits.--
(A) In general.--In any case in which the amount of monthly
benefits with respect to an eligible participant or
beneficiary described in paragraph (1) was calculated prior
to the date of enactment of this Act, the corporation shall
recalculate such amount pursuant to paragraph (1), and shall
adjust any subsequent payments of such monthly benefits
accordingly, as soon as practicable after such date.
(B) Lump-sum payments of past-due benefits.--Not later than
180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the
corporation, in consultation with the Secretary of the
Treasury and the Secretary of Labor, shall make a lump-sum
payment to each eligible participant or beneficiary whose
guaranteed benefits are recalculated under subparagraph (A)
in an amount equal to--
(i) in the case of an eligible participant, the excess of--
(I) the total of the full vested plan benefits of the
participant for all months for which such guaranteed benefits
were paid prior to such recalculation, over
(II) the sum of any applicable payments made to the
eligible participant; and
(ii) in the case of an eligible beneficiary, the sum of--
(I) the amount that would be determined under clause (i)
with respect to the participant of which the eligible
beneficiary is a beneficiary if such participant were still
in pay status; plus
(II) the excess of--
(aa) the total of the full vested plan benefits of the
eligible beneficiary for all months for which such guaranteed
benefits were paid prior to such recalculation, over
(bb) the sum of any applicable payments made to the
eligible beneficiary.
Notwithstanding the previous sentence, the corporation shall
increase each lump-sum payment made under this subparagraph
to account for foregone interest in an amount determined by
the corporation designed to reflect a 6 percent annual
interest rate on each past-due amount attributable to the
underpayment of guaranteed benefits for each month prior to
such recalculation.
[[Page H5350]]
(C) Eligible participants and beneficiaries.--
(i) In general.--For purposes of this section, an eligible
participant or beneficiary is a participant or beneficiary
who--
(I) as of the date of the enactment of this Act, is in pay
status under a covered plan or is eligible for future
payments under such plan;
(II) has received or will receive applicable payments in
connection with such plan (within the meaning of clause (ii))
that does not exceed the full vested plan benefits of such
participant or beneficiary; and
(III) is not covered by the 1999 agreements between General
Motors and various unions providing a top-up benefit to
certain hourly employees who were transferred from the
General Motors Hourly-Rate Employees Pension Plan to the
Delphi Hourly-Rate Employees Pension Plan.
(ii) Applicable payments.--For purposes of this paragraph,
applicable payments to a participant or beneficiary in
connection with a plan consist of the following:
(I) Payments under the plan equal to the normal benefit
guarantee of the participant or beneficiary.
(II) Payments to the participant or beneficiary made
pursuant to section 4022(c) or otherwise received from the
corporation in connection with the termination of the plan.
(3) Definitions.--For purposes of this subsection--
(A) Full vested plan benefit.--The term ``full vested plan
benefit'' means the amount of monthly benefits that would be
guaranteed under section 4022 of ERISA as of the date of plan
termination with respect to an eligible participant or
beneficiary if such section were applied without regard to
the phase-in limit in subsection (b)(1) of such Act and the
maximum guaranteed benefit limitation in subsection (b)(3) of
such Act (including the accrued-at-normal limitation).
(B) Normal benefit guarantee.--The term ``normal benefit
guarantee'' means the amount of monthly benefits guaranteed
under such section with respect to an eligible participant or
beneficiary without regard to this Act.
(4) Covered plans.--The covered plans specified in this
paragraph are the following:
(A) The Delphi Hourly-Rate Employees Pension Plan.
(B) The Delphi Retirement Program for Salaried Employees.
(C) The PHI Non-Bargaining Retirement Plan.
(D) The ASEC Manufacturing Retirement Program.
(E) The PHI Bargaining Retirement Plan.
(F) The Delphi Mechatronic Systems Retirement Program.
(5) Treatment of pbgc determinations.--Any determination
made by the corporation under this section concerning a
recalculation of benefits or lump-sum payment of past-due
benefits shall be subject to administrative review by the
corporation. Any new determination made by the corporation
under this section shall be governed by the same
administrative review process as any other benefit
determination by the corporation.
(b) Trust Fund for Payment of Increased Benefits.--
(1) Establishment.--There is established in the Treasury of
the United States a trust fund to be known as the ``Delphi
Full Vested Plan Benefit Trust Fund'' (hereafter in this
subsection referred to as the ``Fund''), consisting of such
amounts as may be appropriated or credited to the Fund as
provided in this section.
(2) Funding.--There is appropriated from the general fund
such amounts as are necessary for the costs of the payment of
the portion of monthly benefits guaranteed to a participant
or beneficiary pursuant to subsection (a) and for necessary
administrative and operating expenses of the corporation
relating to such payment. The Fund shall be credited with
amounts from time to time as the Secretary of the Treasury,
in conjunction with the Director of the corporation,
determines appropriate, from the general fund of the
Treasury.
(3) Expenditures from fund.--Amounts in the Fund shall be
available for the payment of the portion of monthly benefits
guaranteed to a participant or beneficiary pursuant to
subsection (a) and for necessary administrative and operating
expenses of the corporation relating to such payment.
(c) Regulations.--The corporation, in consultation with the
Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Labor, may
issue such regulations as necessary to carry out this
section.
(d) Tax Treatment of Lump-Sum Payments.--
(1) In general.--Unless the taxpayer elects (at such time
and in such manner as the Secretary may provide) to have this
paragraph not apply with respect to any lump-sum payment
under subsection (a)(2)(B), the amount of such payment shall
be included in the taxpayer's gross income ratably over the
3-taxable-year period beginning with the taxable year in
which such payment is received.
(2) Special rules related to death.--
(A) In general.--If the taxpayer dies before the end of the
3-taxable-year period described in paragraph (1), any amount
to which paragraph (1) applies which has not been included in
gross income for a taxable year ending before the taxable
year in which such death occurs shall be included in gross
income for such taxable year.
(B) Special election for surviving spouses of eligible
participants.--If--
(i) a taxpayer with respect to whom paragraph (1) applies
dies,
(ii) such taxpayer is an eligible participant,
(iii) the surviving spouse of such eligible participant is
entitled to a survivor benefit from the corporation with
respect to such eligible participant, and
(iv) such surviving spouse elects (at such time and in such
manner as the Secretary may provide) the application of this
subparagraph,
subparagraph (A) shall not apply and any amount which would
have (but for such taxpayer's death) been included in the
gross income of such taxpayer under paragraph (1) for any
taxable year beginning after the date of such death shall be
included in the gross income of such surviving spouse for the
taxable year of such surviving spouse ending with or within
such taxable year of the taxpayer.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 2(b) of rule XIX, the
previous question is ordered on the motion to recommit.
The question is on the motion to recommit.
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that
the noes appeared to have it.
Mr. KILDEE. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this question will be postponed.