Don't break faith with workers on multiemployer pension plans: Marcy Kaptur and James P. Hoffa (Opinion)

Downtown Cleveland Hilton topping out ceremony

Iron workers prepare to raise the final steel beam for the podium area of the Hilton hotel under construction in downtown Cleveland, OH.

(Marvin Fong/The Plain Dealer)

Democratic U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur of Toledo

On Labor Day 1974, President Gerald Ford signed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) into law. That law, more than a decade in the making, protected trillions of dollars in earned retirement pension benefits and enacted minimum protection standards on retirement pension plans for American workers.

This year, as we celebrate its 41st anniversary, ERISA's pension protections are crumbling. A few weeks ago, the U.S. Treasury Department held a hearing in Washington, D.C., on finalizing a rule that opens the door to significant pension cuts including for current retirees.

More than 100 retirees traveled to Washington, D.C., at their own expense to protest, and dozens spoke out against the rule at the hearing. If that rule is finalized, it would be the first time since President Ford signed ERISA into law that pension retirement security is compromised.

James P. Hoffa is general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters

This pressing threat to workers' and retirees' pension plans emerged late last year when a last-minute provision was added to the eleventh-hour "Cromnibus" bill, a bill that needed to pass to prevent a shutdown of the federal government. That provision opened the door for multiemployer pension plans to cut benefits for retirees, putting the earned benefits of roughly 1.5 million employees and retirees at risk. But it's not too late for Congress to stop the clock and do the right thing for current and future retirees.

Congress needs to pass the Keep Our Pension Promises Act, or KOPPA (H.R. 2844/S.1631), legislation proposed by Rep. Marcy Kaptur of Ohio and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont that would ensure a secure retirement for millions of Americans. This legislation would restore anti-cutback rules for current retirees, shore up at-risk multiemployer pension plans by closing two tax loopholes used mostly by wealthy estates, and use the proceeds to set up a special fund for "orphaned" participants whose employers are no longer in operation.

ERISA has a longstanding prohibition against cuts to private pension benefits for retired workers, a prohibition in imminent danger of being dissolved. Eliminating that protection sets a dangerous precedent that could pave the way for future cuts to state and local pension plans, possibly even extending to single-employer pension plans and Social Security. Cutting earned pensions would also move many seniors from a safety-net system supported mostly by employers to one funded entirely by taxpayers.

KOPPA was introduced to fix the troubled pension system without cutting earned benefits, reversing last year's last-minute misstep. It restores anti-cutback rules so that retirees in financially troubled multiemployer pension plans are protected from having their earned benefits cut. And it ensures that the safety-net system supported mostly by employers does not shift to one funded entirely by taxpayers.

KOPPA also strengthens and secures existing plans by creating a partition around those participants and retirees whose employers have left pension plans due to bankruptcy or closure. This will protect and provide relief to participating employers from having to cover the benefits of these "orphan" participants and retirees.

In order to shore up the long-term sustainability of the existing federal pension insurance program, KOPPA creates a $30 billion legacy fund over 10 years, paid for by closing two tax loopholes used almost exclusively by the super-rich to avoid paying taxes.

KOPPA prioritizes the increased security of all pensions. It is the only proposal that stops the countdown clock for retirees and keeps us from going over the pension cliff.  Unless Congress moves forward with KOPPA or similar legislation, the clock will tick down for those retirees who rely on earned pension benefits to support themselves and their loved ones in retirement.

The futures of some 1.5 million workers who are enrolled in about 200 retirement plans nationwide are at risk, and potentially many more in the future, if we do not act. We must take action now and stand up to these cuts. We owe it to hardworking Americans who have earned the ability to retire with dignity. We must stand up to these cuts and restore ERISA's protections before time runs out.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur of Toledo represents the 9th Congressional District, which includes parts of Cleveland. James P. Hoffa is general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.

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