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Statement of Sen. Tom Harkin on Multiemployer Pension Cuts Proposed by the House of Representatives

"Unfortunately, the approach put forth by the House ... is not balanced and fails to fix the multiemployer system. It is focused almost purely on cutting retiree benefits. More than one million people could see their pensions cut. Meanwhile, it leaves PBGC woefully underfunded, pushing out insolvency by just two years. The approach fails to include any of the proposals to allow innovative, hybrid plan designs for the future."

The Retirement Crisis and a Plan to Solve It: Introducing 'USA Retirement Funds' (PDF)

"By ensuring that every American has access to a retirement plan at work and making participation automatic, we can drastically reduce the retirement income deficit and promote retirement security.... Because USA Retirement Funds would be licensed and overseen by a board of trustees, employers would not have any fiduciary responsibilities in selecting, administering, or managing the funds. Employers' only obligation with regard to the USA Retirement Funds would be to automatically enroll employees, ensure that employee contributions are processed, and make modest contributions.... USA Retirement Funds are intended to supplement, not supplant, DC Plans. Employers could certainly offer both a USA Retirement Fund and a DC Plan for their employees."