29 U.S.C. § 1302 : US Code - Section 1302: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation

Search 29 U.S.C. § 1302 : US Code - Section 1302: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation

(a) Establishment within Department of Labor
There is established within the Department of Labor a body
corporate to be known as the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
In carrying out its functions under this subchapter, the
corporation shall be administered by the chairman of the board of
directors in accordance with policies established by the board. The
purposes of this subchapter, which are to be carried out by the
corporation, are -
(1) to encourage the continuation and maintenance of voluntary
private pension plans for the benefit of their participants,
(2) to provide for the timely and uninterrupted payment of
pension benefits to participants and beneficiaries under plans to
which this subchapter applies, and
(3) to maintain premiums established by the corporation under
section 1306 of this title at the lowest level consistent with
carrying out its obligations under this subchapter.
(b) Powers of corporation
To carry out the purposes of this subchapter, the corporation has
the powers conferred on a nonprofit corporation under the District
of Columbia Nonprofit Corporation Act and, in addition to any
specific power granted to the corporation elsewhere in this
subchapter or under that Act, the corporation has the power -
(1) to sue and be sued, complain and defend, in its corporate
name and through its own counsel, in any court, State or Federal;
(2) to adopt, alter, and use a corporate seal, which shall be
judicially noticed;
(3) to adopt, amend, and repeal, by the board of directors,
bylaws, rules, and regulations relating to the conduct of its
business and the exercise of all other rights and powers granted
to it by this chapter and such other bylaws, rules, and
regulations as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this
subchapter;
(4) to conduct its business (including the carrying on of
operations and the maintenance of offices) and to exercise all
other rights and powers granted to it by this chapter in any
State or other jurisdiction without regard to qualification,
licensing, or other requirements imposed by law in such State or
other jurisdiction;
(5) to lease, purchase, accept gifts or donations of, or
otherwise to acquire, to own, hold, improve, use, or otherwise
deal in or with, and to sell, convey, mortgage, pledge, lease,
exchange, or otherwise dispose of, any property, real, personal,
or mixed, or any interest therein wherever situated;
(6) to appoint and fix the compensation of such officers,
attorneys, employees, and agents as may be required, to determine
their qualifications, to define their duties, and, to the extent
desired by the corporation, require bonds for them and fix the
penalty thereof, and to appoint and fix the compensation of
experts and consultants in accordance with the provisions of
section 3109 of title 5;
(7) to utilize the personnel and facilities of any other agency
or department of the United States Government, with or without
reimbursement, with the consent of the head of such agency or
department; and
(8) to enter into contracts, to execute instruments, to incur
liabilities, and to do any and all other acts and things as may
be necessary or incidental to the conduct of its business and the
exercise of all other rights and powers granted to the
corporation by this chapter.
(c) Omitted
(d) Board of directors; compensation; reimbursement for expenses
The board of directors of the corporation consists of the
Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Labor, and the
Secretary of Commerce. Members of the Board shall serve without
compensation, but shall be reimbursed for travel, subsistence, and
other necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their
duties as members of the board. The Secretary of Labor is the
chairman of the board of directors.
(e) Meetings
The board of directors shall meet at the call of its chairman, or
as otherwise provided by the bylaws of the corporation.
(f) Adoption of bylaws; amendment, alteration; publication in the
Federal Register
As soon as practicable, but not later than 180 days after
September 2, 1974, the board of directors shall adopt initial
bylaws and rules relating to the conduct of the business of the
corporation. Thereafter, the board of directors may alter,
supplement, or repeal any existing bylaw or rule, and may adopt
additional bylaws and rules from time to time as may be necessary.
The chairman of the board shall cause a copy of the bylaws of the
corporation to be published in the Federal Register not less often
than once each year.
(g) Exemption from taxation
(1) The corporation, its property, its franchise, capital,
reserves, surplus, and its income (including, but not limited to,
any income of any fund established under section 1305 of this
title), shall be exempt from all taxation now or hereafter imposed
by the United States (other than taxes imposed under chapter 21 of
title 26, relating to Federal Insurance Contributions Act [26
U.S.C. 3101 et seq.], and chapter 23 of title 26, relating to
Federal Unemployment Tax Act [26 U.S.C. 3301 et seq.]), or by any
State or local taxing authority, except that any real property and
any tangible personal property (other than cash and securities) of
the corporation shall be subject to State and local taxation to the
same extent according to its value as other real and tangible
personal property is taxed.
(2) The receipts and disbursements of the corporation in the
discharge of its functions shall be included in the totals of the
budget of the United States Government. The United States is not
liable for any obligation or liability incurred by the corporation.
(3) Omitted.
(h) Advisory committee to corporation
(1) There is established an advisory committee to the
corporation, for the purpose of advising the corporation as to its
policies and procedures relating to (A) the appointment of trustees
in termination proceedings, (B) investment of moneys, (C) whether
plans being terminated should be liquidated immediately or
continued in operation under a trustee, and (D) such other issues
as the corporation may request from time to time. The advisory
committee may also recommend persons for appointment as trustees in
termination proceedings, make recommendations with respect to the
investment of moneys in the funds, and advise the corporation as to
whether a plan subject to being terminated should be liquidated
immediately or continued in operation under a trustee.
(2) The advisory committee consists of seven members appointed,
from among individuals recommended by the board of directors, by
the President. Of the seven members, two shall represent the
interests of employee organizations, two shall represent the
interests of employers who maintain pension plans, and three shall
represent the interests of the general public. The President shall
designate one member as chairman at the time of the appointment of
that member.
(3) Members shall serve for terms of 3 years each, except that,
of the members first appointed, one of the members representing the
interests of employee organizations, one of the members
representing the interests of employers, and one of the members
representing the interests of the general public shall be appointed
for terms of 2 years each, one of the members representing the
interests of the general public shall be appointed for a term of 1
year, and the other members shall be appointed to full 3-year
terms. The advisory committee shall meet at least six times each
year and at such other times as may be determined by the chairman
or requested by any three members of the advisory committee.
(4) Members shall be chosen on the basis of their experience with
employee organizations, with employers who maintain pension plans,
with the administration of pension plans, or otherwise on account
of outstanding demonstrated ability in related fields. Of the
members serving on the advisory committee at any time, no more than
four shall be affiliated with the same political party.
(5) An individual appointed to fill a vacancy occurring other
than by the expiration of a term of office shall be appointed only
for the unexpired term of the member he succeeds. Any vacancy
occurring in the office of a member of the advisory committee shall
be filled in the manner in which that office was originally filled.
(6) The advisory committee shall appoint and fix the compensation
of such employees as it determines necessary to discharge its
duties, including experts and consultants in accordance with the
provisions of section 3109 of title 5. The corporation shall
furnish to the advisory committee such professional, secretarial,
and other services as the committee may request.
(7) Members of the advisory committee shall, for each day
(including traveltime) during which they are attending meetings or
conferences of the committee or otherwise engaged in the business
of the committee, be compensated at a rate fixed by the corporation
which is not in excess of the daily equivalent of the annual rate
of basic pay in effect for grade GS-18 of the General Schedule, and
while away from their homes or regular places of business they may
be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of
subsistence, as authorized by section 5703 of title 5.
(8) The Federal Advisory Committee Act does not apply to the
advisory committee established by this subsection.
(i) Special rules regarding disasters, etc.
In the case of a pension or other employee benefit plan, or any
sponsor, administrator, participant, beneficiary, or other person
with respect to such plan, affected by a Presidentially declared
disaster (as defined in section 1033(h)(3) of title 26) or a
terroristic or military action (as defined in section 692(c)(2) of
such title), the corporation may, notwithstanding any other
provision of law, prescribe, by notice or otherwise, a period of up
to 1 year which may be disregarded in determining the date by which
any action is required or permitted to be completed under this
chapter. No plan shall be treated as failing to be operated in
accordance with the terms of the plan solely as the result of
disregarding any period by reason of the preceding sentence.