Biden’s COVID-Relief Bill Is a Big F**king Deal
More than 1 million unionized workers who were poised to lose their pensions will now receive 100 percent of their promised retirement benefits for at least the next 30 years.
The pension funds had been in trouble for a variety of reasons — from too-small payments, to shrinking union contractors and union members, to the effects of the Great Recession and of course the pandemic. The bottom line was that workers who didn’t cause the problem would suffer.
The New York Times gave some more detail:
Rescue Package Includes $86 Billion Bailout for Failing Pensions
Tucked inside the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill that cleared the Senate on Saturday is an $86 billion aid package that has nothing to do with the pandemic.
Rather, the $86 billion is a taxpayer bailout for about 185 union pension plans that are so close to collapse that without the rescue, more than a million retired truck drivers, retail clerks, builders and others could be forced to forgo retirement income.
In 2022 Biden released nearly $36B of this money to aid pensions of union workers. According to AP:
President Joe Biden’s administration on Thursday announced the infusion of nearly $36 billion to shore up a financially troubled union pension plan, preventing severe cuts to the retirement incomes of about 350,000 Teamster workers and retirees across the United States.
“It’s about everything you worked for,” Biden said, with union officials standing behind him. “It’s about finding a dignified retirement.”
The money for the Central States Pension Fund is the largest amount of federal aid provided for a pension plan, the Biden administration said. It comes from the American Rescue Plan, a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package that he signed into law in 2021.
“This matters,” Biden said. “This matters for workers . . . This matters for their spouses, this matters for their mothers and fathers who they’re taking care of . . . It matters for the country.”
In 2023 the assistance remained on track.
Federal Government Announces Billions in Relief to Pension Funds
On June 29, 2023, the Biden administration announced that the National Integrated Group pension plan will receive more than $887 million from the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), guaranteeing benefits for thousands who work in or have retired from manufacturing jobs, including United Auto Workers retirees. The plan was expected to run out of money in 2034, forcing retirees to lose 15% of their benefits.
The Butch Lewis Act is being implemented as intended and saving thousands of union workers’ pensions. The implementation is helping plans avoid insolvency through at least 2051. Plans in distress and receiving assistance could increase contribution rates beyond current levels to remain solvent past 2051.
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation noted last summer that in total, “As of June 29, 2023, PBGC has approved about $49.7 billion in SFA to plans that cover over 687,000 workers, retirees, and beneficiaries.”
Pensions are not just useful for union members. They set the precedent of a dignified and peaceful retirement that other companies need to match to be competitive.
Is there still more work to be done? 100%! Lots more work. But Biden has done so much more than many people guessed could be done. He deserves a lot of credit. AND he deserves to be re-elected.
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These posts are written by Goodnewsroundup (Goodie),
edited by Matilda Briggs, supported by 2thanks and WolverineForTJatAW,
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