29 U.S.C. § 1001: Congressional findings and declaration of policy

The Congress finds that the growth in size, scope, and numbers of employee benefit plans in recent years has been rapid and substantial; that the operational scope and economic impact of such plans is increasingly interstate; that the continued well-being and security of millions of employees and their dependents are directly affected by these plans; that they are affected with a national public interest; that they have become an important factor affecting the stability of employment and the successful development of industrial relations; that they have become an important factor in commerce because of the interstate character of their activities, and of the activities of their participants, and the employers, employee organizations, and other entities by which they are established or maintained; that a large volume of the activities of such plans are carried on by means of the mails and instrumentalities of interstate commerce; that owing to the lack of employee information and adequate safeguards concerning their operation, it is desirable in the interests of employees and their beneficiaries, and to provide for the general welfare and the free flow of commerce, that disclosure be made and safeguards be provided with respect to the establishment, operation, and administration of such plans; that they substantially affect the revenues of the United States because they are afforded preferential Federal tax treatment; that despite the enormous growth in such plans many employees with long years of employment are losing anticipated retirement benefits owing to the lack of vesting provisions in such plans; that owing to the inadequacy of current minimum standards, the soundness and stability of plans with respect to adequate funds to pay promised benefits may be endangered; that owing to the termination of plans before requisite funds have been accumulated, employees and their beneficiaries have been deprived of anticipated benefits; and that it is therefore desirable in the interests of employees and their beneficiaries, for the protection of the revenue of the United States, and to provide for the free flow of commerce, that minimum standards be provided assuring the equitable character of such plans and their financial soundness. It is hereby declared to be the policy of this chapter to protect interstate commerce and the interests of participants in employee benefit plans and their beneficiaries, by requiring the disclosure and reporting to participants and beneficiaries of financial and other information with respect thereto, by establishing standards of conduct, responsibility, and obligation for fiduciaries of employee benefit plans, and by providing for appropriate remedies, sanctions, and ready access to the Federal courts. It is hereby further declared to be the policy of this chapter to protect interstate commerce, the Federal taxing power, and the interests of participants in private pension plans and their beneficiaries by improving the equitable character and the soundness of such plans by requiring them to vest the accrued benefits of employees with significant periods of service, to meet minimum standards of funding, and by requiring plan termination insurance. Except as otherwise provided in this section or section 303, the amendments made by this Act [see Short Title of 1984 Amendments note below] shall apply to plan years beginning after December 31, 1984 . the date on which the last of the collective bargaining agreements relating to the plan terminates (determined without regard to any extension thereof agreed to after the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ]), or July 1, 1988 . The amendments made by section 207 [amending sections 402 and 6652 of Title 26, Internal Revenue Code] shall apply to distributions after December 31, 1984 . Except as provided in paragraph (2), the amendments made by section 301 [amending section 1054 of this title and sections 401 and 411 of Title 26] shall apply to plan amendments made after July 30, 1984 . between employee representatives and 1 or more employers, and successor agreements to 1 or more collective bargaining agreements which terminate after July 30, 1984 , and before January 1, 1985 , The amendments made by sections 102(b) and 202(b) [amending section 1053 of this title and section 411 of Title 26 , Internal Revenue Code] shall apply in the case of participants who have at least 1 hour of service under the plan on or after the first day of the first plan year to which the amendments made by this Act [see Short Title of 1984 Amendments note below] apply. If, as of the day before the first day of the first plan year to which the amendments made by this Act apply, section 202(a) or (b) or 203(b) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 [section 1052(a) or (b) or section 1053(b) of this title ] or section 410(a) or 411(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 [section 410(a) or section 411(a) of Title 26 ] (as in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ]) would not require any service to be taken into account, nothing in the amendments made by subsections (c) and (d) of section 102 of this Act [amending sections 1052 and 1053 of this title] and subsections (c) and (d) of section 202 of this Act [amending sections 410 and 411 of Title 26] shall be construed as requiring such service to be taken into account under such section 202(a) or (b), 203(b), 410(a), or 411(a); as the case may be. The amendments made by sections 102(e) and 202(e) [amending sections 1052 to 1054 of this title and sections 410 and 411 of Title 26] shall apply in the case of absences from work which begin on or after the first day of the first plan year to which the amendments made by this Act apply. the date on which such plan is first otherwise amended after the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ], or the beginning of the first plan year beginning after December 31, 1986 . The amendments made by sections 103 and 203 [amending section 1055 of this title and section 401 of Title 26 and enacting section 417 of Title 26 ] shall apply only in the case of participants who have at least 1 hour of service under the plan on or after the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ] or have at least 1 hour of paid leave on or after such date of enactment. who has at least 1 hour of service under the plan on or after the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ] or has at least 1 hour of paid leave on or after such date of enactment, who dies before the annuity starting date, and who dies on or after the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ] and before the first day of the first plan year to which the amendments made by this Act apply, Any election after December 31, 1984 , and before the first day of the first plan year to which the amendments made by this Act apply not to take a joint and survivor annuity shall not be effective unless the requirements of section 205(c)(2) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 [ section 1055(c)(2) of this title ] (as amended by section 103 of this Act) and section 417(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 [ section 417(a)(2) of Title 26 ] (as added by section 203 of this Act) are met with respect to such election. In the case of a participant described in paragraph (2), death benefits (other than a qualified joint and survivor annuity or a qualified preretirement survivor annuity) payable to any beneficiary shall be reduced by the amount payable to the surviving spouse of such participant by reason of paragraph (2). The reduction under the preceding sentence shall be made on the basis of the respective present values (as of the date of the participant’s death) of such death benefits and the amount so payable to the surviving spouse. In the case of any participant described in paragraph (2), the surviving spouse of such participant may waive the provisions of paragraph (2). Such waiver shall be made on or before the close of the second plan year to which the amendments made by section 103 of this Act [amending section 1055 of this title ] apply. Such a waiver shall not be treated as a transfer of property for purposes of chapter 12 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and shall not be treated as an assignment or alienation for purposes of section 401(a)(13) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 [ section 401(a)(13) of Title 26 ] or section 206(d) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 [ section 1056 of this title ]. shall treat such order as a qualified domestic relations order if such administrator is paying benefits pursuant to such order on such date, and may treat any other such order entered before such date as a qualified domestic relations order even if such order does not meet the requirements of such amendments. a participant had at least 1 hour of service under the plan on or after September 2, 1974 , section 205 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 [ section 1055 of this title ] and section 401(a)(11) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 [ section 401(a)(11) of Title 26 ] (as in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ]) would not (but for this paragraph) apply to such participant, the amendments made by sections 103 and 203 [amending section 1055 of this title and section 401 of Title 26 and enacting section 417 of Title 26 ] of this Act do not apply to such participant, and as of the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ], the participant’s annuity starting date has not occurred and the participant is alive, a participant had at least 1 hour of service in any plan year beginning on or after January 1, 1976 , the amendments made by sections 103 and 203 [amending section 1055 of this title and section 401 of Title 26 and enacting section 417 of Title 26 ] would not (but for this paragraph) apply to such participant, when such participant separated from service, such participant had at least 10 years of service under the plan and had a nonforfeitable right to all (or any portion) of such participant’s accrued benefit derived from employer contributions, and as of the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ], such participant’s annuity starting date has not occurred and such participant is alive, beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act [ Aug. 23, 1984 ], and ending on the earlier of the participant’s annuity starting date or the date of the participant’s death. Every plan shall give notice of the provisions of this subsection at such time or times and in such manner or manners as the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe. If any plan fails to meet the requirements of clause (i), such plan shall pay a civil penalty to the Secretary of the Treasury equal to $1 per participant for each day during the period beginning with the first day on which such failure occurs and ending on the day before notice is given by the plan; except that the amount of such penalty imposed on any plan shall not exceed $2,500. The Secretary of Labor shall take such steps (by public announcements and otherwise) as may be necessary or appropriate to bring to public attention the provisions of this subsection. is pursuant to a resolution directing the termination of such plan which was adopted by the Board of Directors of a corporation on July 17, 1984 , and occurred on November 30, 1984 .” Defined benefit pension plans are a cost-effective way for cooperative associations and charities to provide their employees with economic security in retirement. 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. The pension funding rules should encourage cooperative associations and charities to continue to provide their employees with pension benefits.”