Pension Policy Presentations

The Pension Rights Center's staff has given numerous speeches, presentations, and testimony on pension policy. Below are the most recent policy presentations on important issues in pension policy. You may need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader to view these presentations.

  • June 15, 2010: The Pension Rights Center and seven other organizations sent a group letter to members of the U.S. Senate, urging them to restore provisions to H.R. 4213 that would make 401(k) fees more transparent and straightforward.
  • June 8, 2010: The Pension Rights Center sent a letter to Senator Max Baucus and the rest of the U.S. Senate, expressing its strong support for provisions in H.R. 4213 that require better disclosure of 401(k) fees.
  • May 27, 2010: Pension Rights Center Senior Policy Adviser Norman Stein testified about safeguarding the financial health of multiemployer plans at a hearing before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
  • May 20, 2010: The Pension Rights Center sent a letter to Rep. George Miller and the rest of the House of Representatives, expressing its strong support for provisions in H.R. 4213 that require better disclosure of 401(k) fees.
  • May 13, 2010: The Pension Rights Center sent a letter to Senator Blanche Lincoln urging her to keep important protections for pension plans when they enter into swaps involving derivatives.
  • May 5, 2010: The Pension Rights Center submitted comments to the Department of Labor on proposed regulations for ensuring that investment advice is unbiased and free from conflict of interest.
  • May 3, 2010: The Pension Rights Center responded to the Request for Information on annuitization from the Labor and Treasury Departments. PRC was also a part of the Women's Pension Coalition response.
  • April 20, 2010: In a commentary for BNA Pension & Benefits Reporter, PRC Senior Policy Adviser Norman Stein and Executive Vice President and Policy Director Karen Friedman make a case for pension funding relief that protects workers and retirees.
  • March 16, 2010: PRC Executive Vice President and Policy Director Karen Friedman and Senior Policy Adviser Norman Stein sent a letter to the House Committee on Ways and Means, asking it to protect workers and retirees when marking up funding relief legislation.
  • March 5, 2010: PRC Executive Vice President and Policy Director Karen Friedman and Senior Policy Adviser Norman Stein sent a letter to the Chair and the Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee on strengthening protections for workers in pension funding relief legislation.

  • February 25, 2010: PRC Deputy Director John Hotz testified on the re-authorization of the Older American's Act at a listening session convened by the U.S. Administration on Aging.

  • December 7, 2009: PRC Director Karen Ferguson spoke at a policy forum on the future of defined benefit pension plans. The forum was sponsored by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation in celebration of the 35th anniversary of ERISA and the establishment of the PBGC.
  • November 18, 2009: PRC Director Karen Ferguson and Executive Vice President and Policy Director Karen Friedman wrote a letter in support of the Retirement Fairness Act of 2009 (H.R. 4126) introduced by Representative Lloyd Doggett.
  • October 29, 2009: PRC Executive Vice President and Policy Director Karen Friedman testified on behalf of the Pension Rights Center before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on providing pension funding relief to companies that continue their pension plans.
  • October 1, 2009: Senior Policy Advisor Norman Stein testified on behalf of the Pension Rights Center before the House Ways and Means Committee on providing pension funding relief to companies that continue their pension plans.
  • September 17, 2009: Senior Policy Advisor Norman Stein testified before the ERISA Advisory Council on various approaches to retirement security in the United States.

  • September 15, 2009: Staff Attorney Rebecca Davis and Policy Associate Jane Smith testified on disclosure issues before the ERISA Advisory Council.
  • September 10, 2009: Together with the National Women's Law Center, the PRC sent a letter to the Oklahoma state legislature expressing concerns about proposed legislation that would change the way Oklahoma state courts divide military pension benefits.
  • April 1, 2009: The PRC sent a letter to the Treasury Department requesting that it clarify that the new "Make Work Pay" tax credit should not change the amount of money pension plans withhold from pension checks for tax purposes.
  • February 2, 2009: In a letter to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, the PRC requested that OPM send notices to federal employees warning them that their spouses could be in danger of losing survivor benefits.
  • November 14, 2008: The PRC sent a letter to key members of Congress, asking them to protect workers’ interests when considering measures to provide pension funding relief.

  • September 24, 2008: Senior Policy Adviser Norman Stein submitted comments [PDF] on behalf of the Pension Rights Center to the IRS and the Department of Treasury on cash balance accruals. Earlier this year, the Center sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Paulson on this topic.
  • September 17, 2008: Board member Olena Berg Lacy testified [PDF] on the Center's behalf on improving the disclosure of 401(k) fees at a hearing before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. You can watch a video of the hearing on the Committee's web site (proceedings begin 18 minutes into the video).
  • July 16, 2008: The Pension Rights Center's statement [PDF] to the U.S. Senate's Special Committee on Aging for its hearing on "Saving Smartly for Retirement: Are Americans Being Encouraged to Break Open the Piggy Bank?"

  • June 5, 2008: Policy Director Karen Friedman's testimony [PDF] on the "Protecting Employees and Retirees in Business Bankruptcies Act of 2007" before the Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law of the House Committee on the Judiciary.

  • November 8, 2007: Professor Norman Stein's testimony [PDF] on behalf of the Conversation on Coverage (a PRC initiative) at a Congressional hearing on "Securing Retirement Coverage for Future Generations."