“Protecting America’s Pensions”
-1200 K Street, NW; Washington, DC 20005-4026
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PBGC is a federal corporation created by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. It currently “protects” [read: "pilfers"] the pensions of more than 44 million American workers and retirees in more than 29,000 private single-employer and multiemployer defined benefit pension plans. PBGC receives no funds from general tax revenues. Operations are financed by insurance premiums set by Congress and paid by sponsors of defined benefit plans, investment income, assets from pension plans trusteed by PBGC, and recoveries from the companies formerly responsible for the plans.
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Pension Protection Agency Cited for Audit Failure, Misleading Congress
By John Solomon | May 03, 2010
A Litany of Problems
Getting its story straight with Congress is just one of PBGC’s problems … Please read more, at >>> http://www.publicintegrity.org/articles/entry/2061/
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Charles E.F. Millard – PBGC’s director from December 2007 through Jan. 20, 2009.
* http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2009/05/14/miller-will-probe-pension-agencys-ex-chief/ (yeah, assign one PBGC criminal to investigate another PBGC criminal - and then drop the investigation, etc.)
Prior to becoming PBGC Director, he was a managing director at Lehman Brothers and Prudential Securities as well as a Republican New York City Councilman and a member of Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s administration.
…he got “too cozy” with the Wall Street contractors from which he was taking bids on lucrative contracts. …PBGC executives in February 2008 gave the board a proposal to revise the corporation’s investment policy, moving billions of dollars out of fixed-income treasury securities and into marketable equities, real estate and private equity – basically, from investing in the government to investing in Wall Street. …The board unanimously approved the policy, and PBGC set about reinvesting its $48.4 billion portfolio, seeking bids from “strategic partners” on Wall Street who could manage parts of the fortune. Contracts awarded in October called for the purchase of nearly $2.5 billion in real estate and private equity; total fees for the three strategic partnership contracts, over a ten-year period, could top $100 million.
…Millard interposed himself in the bidding process…
“Phone records and emails show that the former Director was communicating directly with some bidders at the same time that he was actively evaluating their Strategic Partnership proposals, a clear violation of the prohibition of contact with potential offerors. Further, the former Director took an unprecedented role in the procurement process, to include serving on Technical Evaluation Panels (TEP) to formally assess some of the same Wall Street firms with whom he was in frequent contact; at a minimum, this violated the principle of separation of duties. However, it should be noted that our audit did not identify evidence of criminal activity on the part of any bidders.”
“The former Director was advised that his actions could cast doubt on the intergrity of the procurement process, but he did not heed these warnings.”
Millard denies he was manipulating the contracts in order to land a job with one of the contractors, the report says – but e-mails show a senior official at Goldman Sachs, which won a contract to invest $700 million of PBGC’s money, was actively helping Millard find a job.
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Bradley Belt – Executive Director, ca. 2006
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Governance
PBGC is headed by a Director who reports to a Board of Directors consisting of the Secretaries of Labor, Commerce and Treasury, with the Secretary of Labor as Chair.
The Corporation is aided by a seven-member Advisory Committee appointed by the President of the United States to represent the interests of labor, employers, and the general public. ERISA outlines several specific responsibilities for PBGC’s Advisory Committee, including advising on policies and procedures for PBGC’s investments, the trusteeship of terminated plans, and on other matters as determined by PBGC.
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Joshua Gotbaum – Director
…responsible for the agency’s management, personnel, organization, budget and investments.
Appointed Director by President Obama in July 2010 [during Congressional recess], Mr. Gotbaum has for three decades helped manage and advise public, private, and nonprofit institutions. From 2003 – 2005, he led and managed the successful reorganization of Hawaiian Airlines as its Chapter 11 trustee. When it emerged from Chapter 11, Hawaiian’s creditors were repaid in full, most of its employees received raises, and its defined benefit pension plan remained in place. In 2001 – 2002, he was the first CEO of The September 11th Fund, a charity with over $500 million in assets whose grants helped more than 100,000 people and businesses affected by the attacks.
For more than a decade, Mr. Gotbaum was an investment banker with Lazard in New York and London. He advised businesses, unions and governments on a diverse range of mergers, acquisitions and restructurings, in steel, transportation, and other industries. Most recently, he has been an operating partner at Blue Wolf Capital, helping investors acquire, restructure, and manage businesses.
Mr. Gotbaum also has extensive experience in government. During the Clinton administration, he was confirmed by the Senate three times, and served as Executive Associate Director and Controller in the Office of Management and Budget; Assistant Secretary of Treasury for Economic Policy; and Assistant Secretary of Defense. During the administration of President Carter, he served on the White House staff and in the Department of Energy.
Mr. Gotbaum holds degrees from Stanford, Harvard Law School, and from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He is married to Joyce Thornhill, a former banker, and is the father of 3 teenagers. In his spare time, he sings.
Past relationships: 2008 Obama-Biden transition team – member; Hawaiian Airlines – Chapter 11 trustee; Lazard Freres & Co. LLC – investment banker; September 11th Fund – CEO; U.S. Department of Defense – assistant secretary; U.S. Department of the Treasury – assistant secretary; U.S. Office of Management and Budget – executive associate director. Current: Blue Wolf Capital Management – operating partner; Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation – director nominee
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Rebecca Ann Batts – PBGC Inspector General
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Executives
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Vince Snowbarger - Deputy Director for Operations and currently serves as PBGC’s acting Chief Management Officer
As Deputy Director, he oversees the PBGC’s operations, with direct responsibility for the Office of Policy and External Affairs and its legislative, research and communications activities. Mr. Snowbarger joined the agency in 2002 after a career as an attorney, educator, and elected official in his native Kansas. From 1997 until 1999 he represented the Kansas Third Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Mr. Snowbarger is a graduate of Southern Nazarene University, and received his M.A. from the University of Illinois and his J. D. from the University of Kansas.
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Terrence M. Deneen – Chief Insurance Program Officer. He served as PBGC’s Principal Deputy General Counsel immediately prior to his current position. Mr. Deneen first worked at PBGC from 1978 to1981, when he participated in drafting the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act of 1980. He then served as Assistant General Counsel for one of the nation’s largest multiemployer pension plans, the UMWA Health and Retirement Funds, where he implemented and supervised the withdrawal liability program. He also engaged in a private law practice in which he concentrated on termination liability and fiduciary matters affecting pension plans. He rejoined PBGC in 1992. Mr. Deneen is a Charter Fellow of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel, and has lectured on employee benefits law at the University of Virginia and Georgetown University law schools. Mr. Deneen is a cum laude graduate of the University of Illinois’ College of Law. He also completed undergraduate and graduate work at Illinois, earning a B.A. in history with high honors and an MA in medieval history.
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Patricia Kelly - Chief Financial Officer. She joined the PBGC in November 2007 after serving in the same position at the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Prior to that, Ms. Kelly was the CFO and Budget Officer for the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation. During her federal career, she also worked at the Bureau of the Census where she was the Assistant Division Chief in the Decennial Census, the largest peacetime operation of the United States government. She earned an MBA from American University, and an MA and BA from Pennsylvania State University. Ms. Kelly also holds a CPA license and a Certified Government Financial Manager (CGFM) certification.
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Richard Macy - Chief Operating Officer and acting Chief Information Officer. He came to PBGC in July 2006 following more than 20 years with ADP Inc., a worldwide provider of employee administration services based in Roseland, N.J. His most recent post was vice president, support services, with ADP COBRA/FSA Services in Alpharetta, Ga., where he oversaw major corporate initiatives in reengineering and automating core business processes, conducting business profitability studies and establishing overseas operations. Mr. Macy began his career as a systems engineer and IT manager with Williams, Thacher & Rand, a New York City-based benefits consulting firm. He became president of the firm’s WTR Data Services unit before it was acquired by ADP. Mr. Macy is a mathematics graduate of Wesleyan University and holds a master’s degree in business administration from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business.
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Judith Starr - General Counsel. She came to PBGC in July 2005 from the Department of the Treasury, where she served as chief counsel of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network with responsibility for administering the Bank Secrecy Act. In that position, she oversaw the creation of information-sharing mechanisms among government entities and the financial services industry, and the expansion of suspicious-activity reporting and anti-money laundering requirements. Prior to that, she was assistant chief litigation counsel in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Enforcement. Ms. Starr also served as a special prosecutor for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. She has published a number of articles on both securities and bankruptcy law, and is a recipient of the SEC’s Stanley Sporkin Award for outstanding contributions to SEC enforcement. Ms. Starr began her legal career as a clerk to Judge William Schwarzer of the U.S. District Court for Northern California. Before entering government service, she was a commercial litigator in private practice in Los Angeles. Ms. Starr received her juris doctor from Harvard Law School, where she served as an editor of the Harvard Law Review, and her bachelor of arts from the College of William and Mary.
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Board of Directors
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Secretary of Labor - Hilda L. Solis – Chair
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Secretary of Commerce - Gary Locke
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Secretary of Treasury - Timothy F. Geithner
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Advisory Committee Members
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David M. Strauss of Bismarck, N.D., represents the interests of the general public and serves as chairman of the Advisory Committee. As PBGC executive director from 1997 to 2001, he presided over financial surpluses in both the single-employer and multiemployer insurance programs and put a high priority on the agency’s mission to promote defined benefit pension plans. As deputy chief of staff for Vice President Al Gore from 1994 to 1997, he advised the vice president on economic and domestic policy issues, including wage and workplace protection, retirement security, health care, and trade. Mr. Strauss graduated magna cum laude from Moorhead State College with a Bachelor of Science in political science and secondary education. He also earned a Bachelor of Arts in sociology. Mr. Strauss’s term expires on February 19, 2012.
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Jack Miller represents the interests of employees. He recently retired as senior advisor for General Motors Asset Management in New York, in which capacity he restructured GM’s $21 billion 401(k) plan. He was also responsible for the pension and 401(k) plan assets of GM’s external ERISA clients, GMAC Insurance assets, and VEBA healthcare assets. Mr. Miller previously served as vice president-relationship management at J.P. Morgan Investment Management in New York, corporate controller and chief investment officer for Philip Morris Companies, and director of benefit plan investments for Eli Lilly and Company. Mr. Miller holds an undergraduate degree in international relations from Princeton University and an MBA from the University of Michigan. Mr. Miller’s term expires on February 19, 2011.
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Dana M. Muir
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John J. Szczur represents the interests of employees. Mr. Szczur is director of investments for the Central Pension Fund of the International Union of Operating Engineers and Participating Employers in Washington. He has also served as a senior investment analyst for National Rural Electric Cooperative Association in Arlington, Va. Mr. Szczur has an undergraduate degree in business and economics from the University of Pittsburgh, an MBA from George Washington University and a master’s degree in real estate and urban development from American University. Mr. Szczur’s term expires on February 19, 2011.
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PBGC Departments
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The Office of Policy and External Affairs (OPEA) includes three departments — Communications and Public Affairs; Policy, Research and Analysis; and Legislative and Regulatory. OPEA oversees and directs outreach to PBGC external stakeholders, including the press; interacts with the Congress, Executive Branch agencies and industry and labor groups on ERISA and PBGC issues; and coordinates legal advice, analysis, research and recommendations for the development of policy, regulations and legislation. OPEA can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4010.
–The Communications and Public Affairs Department (CPAD)
Jeffrey Speicher - Acting Director
…CPAD is responsible for organizing, directing, and implementing a comprehensive external and internal communications program to enhance the knowledge and understanding of the PBGC mission, programs and services by the various publics it serves. Stakeholders include participants, the pension community (e.g., practitioners, plan sponsors, plan administrators), Congress and closely allied groups and organizations. CPAD can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4343.
–The Policy, Research and Analysis Department (PRAD)
David Gustafson - Director
–The Legislative and Regulatory Department (LRD)
John Hanley – Director
…monitors and provides legal advice on, and analysis and drafting of, legislative proposals and regulations related to ERISA and PBGC’s mission. The LRD can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4223.
–The office of the Chief Operating Officer (COO) oversees the Benefits Administration and Payment Department, which plans and directs PBGC’s benefits administration activities. The COO can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4010.
–The Benefits Administration and Payment Department (BAPD)
Bennie Hagans - Director
…manages the termination process for defined benefit plans, provides participant services (including calculation and payment of benefits) for PBGC-trusteed plans, provides actuarial support for PBGC, and carries out PBGC’s responsibilities under settlement agreements. When it is necessary to terminate a defined benefit pension plan, BAPD values plan assets and liabilities, and collects, evaluates, and performs participant and plan financial audits, making decisions on participant benefit entitlements and plan worth. BAPD can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4050.
–The office of the Chief Insurance Program Officer (CIPO) manages PBGC’s single-employer and multiemployer plan insurance programs; provides financial and actuarial analyses regarding, and negotiates with, underfunded plans to properly address PBGC’s and the insurance programs’ risk exposure; makes recommendations on initiating ERISA/bankruptcy legal actions and represents PBGC on those matters before courts and administrative tribunals; reviews and acts on reportable events; and recommends involuntary or voluntary plan terminations under the single-employer program. CIPO can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4020.
–The Office of the Chief Counsel (OCC)
Israel Goldowitz – Chief Counsel.
..provides comprehensive legal services relating to PBGC’s ERISA programs involving ongoing and terminated pension plans. The office represents PBGC in litigation in all courts relating to ERISA functions, represents PBGC in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings, provides legal advice and services to support negotiations and settlements, and makes recommendations concerning the initiation of litigation. OCC can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4020.
–The Department of Insurance Supervision and Compliance (DISC)
Joseph House – Director
…monitors the corporate events and transactions of defined benefit pension plan sponsors and provides financial and actuarial analyses to enable PBGC to mitigate risks to the insurance program and increase overall plan funding levels. In coordination with the Office of Chief Counsel, DISC determines and pursues recoveries of employer liability and unpaid employer contributions, makes recommendations to the Executive Director concerning the filing of liens, and makes recommendations to the Internal Revenue Service concerning conditions for granting waivers of minimum funding standards. DISC can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4070.
–The office of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) includes two PBGC departments – Financial Operations, and Contracts and Controls Review – that plan and oversee the Corporation’s financial and internal control and review functions. The CFO can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4170.
–The Financial Operations Department (FOD)
Theodore J. Winter, Jr. – Director
…establishes and maintains the Corporation’s financial and accounting systems, financial management policy, financial procedures, accounting operations, financial reporting and account analysis activities, the investment management program, the premium income program and the debt collection program. FOD can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4060.
–The Contracts and Controls Review Department (CCRD)
Martin Boehm -Director
…prepares reports regarding: (1) the effectiveness of PBGC internal controls, systems, and programs; (2) whether ongoing defined benefit pension plans are in compliance with PBGC regulations regarding premiums, participant notices, and funds advanced to multiemployer plans; and (3) whether contractors performing services for PBGC are in compliance with PBGC’s acquisition policies and contractual requirements. CCRD also serves as the agency liaison for audits conducted by PBGC’s Office of Inspector General and the Government Accountability Office and is responsible for administering PBGC’s Management Controls Program. CCRD can reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4161.
–The Corporate Investments Department
John Greenberg – Chief Investment Officer
provides investment management services for plans trusteed by the PBGC and for assets managed by the Corporation. The Corporate Investments Department can be reached during normal business hours at: 202-326-4000 x 4592
–The office of the Chief Management Officer (CMO) includes five PBGC departments that provide advice and service to other PBGC offices and staff in the management support areas of human resources, employee development, personnel security, facility services, emergency preparedness, procurement, budget, strategic planning, business reengineering and customer service feedback. The CMO can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4180.
–The Budget and Organizational Performance Department (BOPD)
Edgar Bennett - Director
…plans, administers, and reports on the corporation’s budget and organizational performance programs. BOPD represents PBGC across the executive and legislative branches on budget and organizational performance issues. BOPD manages the formulation and execution of the PBGC budget and establishes and implements policies, regulations, and guidelines related to organizational performance management. BOPD can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4120.
–The Human Resources Department (HRD)
Arrie Etheridge - Director
…provides PBGC managers with a team of leaders and professionals who can learn, contribute and grow to their fullest potential in support of the Corporation’s mission. HRD plans and administers the Corporation’s human resource management programs, including staffing, employee development and assistance, employee and labor relations, and personnel policy activities. The HR Business Center can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4110.
–The Facilities and Services Department (FASD)
Patricia Davis - Director
…plans and administers PBGC’s facility management, including its lease administration and space utilization programs; administration and office support; building safety and security, Continuity of Operations (COOP), and disaster preparedness and recovery programs. FASD also manages the Corporate library and coordinates reference and research resources within PBGC. FASD can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4150.
–The Procurement Department (PD)
Arthur S. Block - Acting Director
…is responsible for the acquisition of all goods and services used by the PBGC to accomplish its mission. The PD, which follows the procedures established in the Federal Acquisition Regulations in awarding and administering its contracts, ensures that the contracts are performed in accordance with the terms and conditions established during the award process. PD can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4160.
–The Chief Information Officer is responsible for the Corporation’s information technology program. CIO provides IT and electronic communications services and support to PBGC; plans for, directs and coordinates the allocation of corporate resources for IT services, support and related activities; delivers IT business solutions driven by customer requirements; operates, maintains and safeguards PBGC business and infrastructure systems; and oversees the acquisition of IT resources for PBGC. CIO can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4130.
–The Information Technology Infrastructure Operations Department (ITIOD)
Deborah Herald – Director
…manages the delivery of the infrastructure systems and services, measuring capabilities to ensure service levels are met; and ensure the delivery of a secure, cost effective and sustained level of availability, supporting overall business continuity. ITIOD can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4130.
–The Information Technology and Business Modernization Department (ITBMD)
Vidhya Shyamsunder - Director
…provides Information Technology (IT) business solutions and services in support of PBGC mission, goals, and objectives. ITBMD develops and manages an enterprise architecture describing the current and desired relationships among business and management processes and information technology, laying out a blueprint for incremental change to both business and technology; provides Capital Planning Investment Control (CPIC) planning, selection, investment control, management, and framework in which the corporation makes IT investment decisions. ITBMD can be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4130.
–The Office of the General Counsel (OGC) provides legal advice and counsel for the Executive Director and PBGC departments on general law matters and on pension law matters at the request of the Executive Director. OGC also decides administrative appeals of agency decisions concerning benefit coverage and other determinations and administers the disclosure and other requirements of the Freedom of Information and Privacy Acts. OGC may be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4400.
–The Equal Employment Opportunity Office (EEO)
Steve Weiss – Director
…provides support to the Corporation for integrating the full spirit of EEO requirements within the agency’s overall work environment, strategic mission and corporate initiatives and developing and maintaining a diverse, discrimination-free work environment. The EEO Office is committed to assisting the Corporation in ensuring it provides equal opportunities for all employees. The EEO Office provides oversight for PBGC’s Affirmative Employment, Special Emphasis and Diversity Programs, EEO Complaints Process and EEO Alternative Dispute Resolution Programs. The EEO office may be reached during normal business hours at 202-326-4000 ext 4363 or eeo@pbgc.gov.
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