Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is a non-profit corporation that guarantees continued payment of pension benefits for private-sector defined-benefit plans that have ended due to insufficient funds.

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is an independent federal agency overseen by the Department of Labor. Established by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, PBGC was formed to encourage the continuation and maintenance of private-sector defined-benefit pension plans, provide timely and uninterrupted payment of pension benefits, and keep pension insurance premiums at a minimum

Monies distributed by PBGC do not come from general tax revenues, but are instead funded by insurance premiums paid by employers through insured pension plans, the accrued interest on those premiums, and the assets of pension plans taken over by PBGC.

As of 2018, PBGC insures retirement incomes for nearly 24,000 defined-benefit plans, covering nearly 40 million U.S. workers. Thirty million workers are covered through the single-employer program, while an additional 10 million are covered through the multiemployer program, which is paid into by multiple unrelated employers, and is often established and maintained by collective bargaining process with multiple employers within a single industry.

The basic benefits covered by PBGC include early retirement benefits and a pension for workers reaching retirement age, as well as annuities for survivors of plan participants and, in some circumstances, disability benefits.

The maximum pension benefit guaranteed by PBGC adjusted yearly by law. In 2017, eligible participants retiring at age 65 could receive a maximum benefit of $5,369 per month, or $64,432 yearly. This cap is increased for those retiring after age 65, and is lower for those who retire earlier or when survivors benefits are being paid.

In 2016, PBGC paid for nearly 840,000 retirees in more than 4,700 pension plans unable to pay promised benefits, and was responsible for the current and future pensions of about 1.5 million people.

While private pensions have been offered by employers as a benefit to U.S. workers since the late 19th century, until 1974 there were few protections in place for those funds. Companies went bankrupt or were otherwise unable to pay out their promised benefits, leaving workers without recourse. In one famous case, the automaker Studebaker terminated its employee pension plan in 1963, leaving some 4,000 workers without retirement benefits.

In 1967, New York Senator Jacob Javits introduced federal legislation to protect private pension plans, and in 1974 the U.S. Congress passed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, which was signed into law by President Gerald Ford, formally establishing PBGC as the agency that would guarantee retirement benefits for millions of workers.