Some troubled pension plans now have the authority to drastically reduce the benefits of current and future retirees — something that hasn’t happened since Congress passed legislation protecting retirement benefits 40 years ago.
The power was included in the last-minute, $1.1 trillion budget compromise signed by President Barack Obama on Dec. 16.
It applies to multiemployer pension plans that are expected to run out of money in 15 or 20 years. Trustees of those plans can reduce benefits in order to avoid bankrupting the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp., the federal agency that insures pension benefits for about 41 million workers and retirees.