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Contents

Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act

Act Details

Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act was a proposal (now, a piece of legislation) introduced on 2014-03-18 in the House of Commons and Senate respectively of the 113 United States Congress by Susan Brooks in relation with: Accounting and auditing, Administrative law and regulatory procedures, Department of the Treasury, Employee benefits and pensions, Employment discrimination and employee rights, Labor and employment, Social work, volunteer service, charitable organizations.

Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act became law (1) in the United States on 2014-04-07. It was referred to the following Committee(s): (2)

House Education and the Workforce (HSED)
House Ways and Means (HSWM)

Sponsor

Susan Brooks, Representative from Indiana, district 5

The proposal had the following cosponsors:

Ron Kind, Democrat, Representative, from Wisconsin, district 3

Act Overview

Number: 4275 (3)
Official Title as Introduced: To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for cooperative and small employer charity pension plans (4)
Short Title: Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act
Date First Introduced: 2014-03-18
Sponsor Name: Ron Kind
Assignment Process: See Committe Assignments (5)
Latest Major Activity/Action: Enacted
Date Enacted (signed, in general (6), by President): 2014-04-07
Type: hr (7)
Main Topic: Labor and employment
Related Bills: (8)
Summary of Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act: Govtrack. Authored by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress.
Primary Source: Congress Website

Text of the Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act

Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act – (Sec. 2) Declares that: (1) defined benefit pension plans are a cost-effective way for cooperative associations and charities to provide their employees with economic security in retirement (2) many cooperative associations and charitable organizations are only able to provide their employees with defined benefit pension plans because those organizations are able to pool their resources using the multiple employer plan structure and (3) the pension funding rules should encourage cooperative associations and charities to continue to provide their employees with pension benefits.

(Sec. 3) Makes this Act generally applicable to years beginning after December 31 2013.

Title I: Amendments to Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and Other Provisions – (Sec. 101) Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to define a “cooperative and small employer charity pension plan” (CSEC pension plan) for purposes of this Act as an employee pension benefit plan that is a defined benefit pension plan: (1) to which certain provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 apply; or (2) that as of June 25 2010 was maintained by more than one employer all of whom were tax-exempt charitable organizations.

(Sec. 102) Establishes minimum funding standards for CSEC pension plans. Allows a CSEC plan that uses a funding method that requires contributions in all years to maintain an alternative minimum funding standard account for any plan year.

Permits the Secretary of the Treasury to extend an amortization of any unfunded liability of a CSEC pension plan for up to 10 years if the Secretary determines that: (1) such extension would carry out the purposes of this Act and would provide adequate protection for plan participants and their beneficiaries and (2) failure to permit such extension would result in a substantial risk to the voluntary continuation of the plan or a substantial curtailment of pension benefit levels or employee compensation.

Sets forth rules for valuation of CSEC pension plan assets allowable contributions and plan liquidity. Imposes a lien in favor of a CSEC plan for failure to make required contributions.

Authorizes the Secretary to prescribe mortality tables to determine current liability of CSEC plans.

Requires a CSEC plan sponsor to establish a written funding restoration plan within 180 days after receipt of a certification from the plan actuary that the plan is in funding restoration status for a plan year.

(Sec. 103) Allows a CSEC plan sponsor to elect not to treat such plan as a CSEC plan in plan years beginning after 2013.

Amends the Pension Protection Act of 2006 to allow a pension plan sponsor an election to cease treating a plan as an eligible charity plan for plan years beginning after 2013.

(Sec. 104) Requires notices to participants in a CSEC plan to include: (1) a statement that different rules apply to CSEC plans than apply to single-employer plans; (2) for the first two years beginning after December 31 2013 a statement that as a result of changes made by this Act the contributions to the plan may have changed; and (3) a statement that a CSEC plan is in funding restoration status. Authorizes the Secretary”u00a0of”u00a0Labor”u00a0to modify the model notice required by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 to include such statements.

Requires the annual report for employee benefit plans required by ERISA to include a list of participating employers and a good faith estimate of the percentage of total contributions made by such employers during the plan year.

(Sec. 105) Requires the Participant and Plan Sponsor Advocate established by ERISA to make itself available to assist CSEC plan sponsors and participants.

Title II: Amendments to Internal Revenue Code of 1986 – Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to CSEC plans to set forth rules for such plans similar to those rules added to ERISA in title I of this Act.

Bill Notes

[Note 1] An Act (like Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act) or a resolution cannot become a law in the United States until it has been approved (passed) in identical form by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, as well as signed by the President (but see (5)). If the two bodys of the Congress versions of a bill are not identical, one of the bodies might decide to take a further vote to adopt the bill (see more about the Congress process here). An Act may be pass in identical form with or without amendments and with or without conference. (see more about Enrollment).
[Note 2] Proposals are referred to committees for preliminary consideration, then debated, amended, and passed (or rejected) by the full House or Senate. To prevent endless shuttling of bills between the House and Senate, bills like Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act are referred to joint committees made up of members of both houses.
[Note 3] For more information regarding this legislative proposal, go to THOMAS, select “Bill Number,” search on (Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act)
[Note 4] To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for cooperative and small employer charity pension plans. The current official title of a bill is always present, assigned at introduction (for example, in this case, on 2014-03-18) and can be revised any time. This type of titles are sentences.
[Note 5] The Act is referred to the appropriate committee by the Speaker of any of the two Houses. Bills are placed on the calendar of the committee to which they have been assigned. See Assignment Process.
[Note 6] Regarding exceptions to President´s approval, a bill that is not signed (returned unsigned) by the President can still become law if at lest two thirds of each of the two bodys of the Congress votes to pass it, which is an infrequent case. See also Presidential Veto.
[Note 7] Legislative Proposal types can be: hr, hres, hjres, hconres, s, sres, sjres, sconres. An Act originating in the Senate is designated by the letter “S”, and a bill originating from the House of Representatives begins with “H.R.”, followed, in both cases, by its individual number which it retains throughout all its parliamentary process.
[Note 8] For information regarding related bill/s to Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act, go to THOMAS.

Analysis

No analysis (criticism, advocacy, etc.) about Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act submitted yet.

Accounting and auditing
Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Department of the Treasury
Employee benefits and pensions
Employment discrimination and employee rights
Labor and employment
Social work, volunteer service, charitable organizations

Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act