Ultimately, the Butch Lewis Act, enacted as part of President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan, will stop cuts to the retirement benefits of 2 million workers and retirees across the country, according to the Biden administration.
The wellbeing of up to 1.3 million union members is at stake.
Federal officials have floated a number of proposals for dealing with the dilemma of underfunded multi-employer pension plans. Most have one thing in common: they punish the innocent victims. The contrast with the bailout of bankers is striking.
Congress must decide whether to rescue these funds with low-cost loans, force them to cut benefit payments or let the funds go bankrupt and wipe out retirees’ entire pensions.
In 2006, Congress passed the "Pension Protection Act", which had a devastating effect on single-employer defined benefit pension plans. Now Congress is looking to do the same to multi-employer pension plans.
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