I again sent a letter to Senator Brown oh Ohio, this time I used my reverse ploy of how it affects the Local, State and the National economy. He replied this :See below
In October 2015, trustees from the Central States, Southeast and Southwest Areas Pension Plan (Central States) applied for permission from the U.S. Department of the Treasury to reduce benefits for active, inactive, and retired members of the plan. The application was made under the
Multiemployer Pension Reform Act (MPRA), which Congress passed in December 2014 and allows distressed pension plans to apply to the Treasury to make cuts to the pensions that retirees have earned.
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) believes pensions are a promise made to workers for a lifetime of hard labor. The majority of Ohioans in pension plans, like Central States, spent their working years sacrificing higher wages with the promise of secure retirement benefits. But now they’re being told those promises can’t be kept.
Sen. Brown voted against MPRA, and, last year, he cosponsored the Keep Our Pension Promises Act, which would provide the funds needed to rescue troubled pension plans like Central States. On Wednesday, Sen. Brown sent a letter to Kenneth Feinberg the Treasury Department’s Special Master for Implementation urging him to protect earned benefits for the 270,000 Central States retirees who could face cuts under MPRA.
Central States is one of a number of large, multiemployer pension plans facing insolvency. If Congress fails to act to put Central States back on firm financial footing, the plan — along with others — could bring down the entire multiemployer pension system.
When the big banks were in trouble, they were deemed “systemically important” and many in Congress rushed to their rescue. But now with Central States and other multiemployer pension plans facing the same fate, we’re being told that it’s “unrealistic” for Congress to help these retirees. That is unacceptable.
That’s why Sen. Brown is standing with seniors and union workers, and trying to prevent these cuts while working on a comprehensive solution to fix the root of the problem. He understands the economic reality, but also believes that Central States is obligated to live up to their commitments. It is the responsibility of elected officials to see that they do. In this financial market, government must hold firms accountable that gamble with retiree’s futures then ask them to pay the price. Our seniors deserve more.