Pete Stark: “I rise today to oppose H.R. 1000, the Pension Security Act of 2003. This bill does protect pensions--for CEOs and…”

“I rise today to oppose H.R. 1000, the Pension Security Act of 2003. This bill does protect pensions--for CEOs and business owners. This bill doesn't do a thing to secure pensions for the rank and file worker. The bill actually hurts the average worker by weakening the non-discrimination rules that require employers to give the rank and file adequate pensions if they give lucrative pensions to those at the top. H.R. 1000 further hurts the average worker by eroding the conflicted advice rules which currently prohibits consultants from profiting from the investments they recommend to employees. It seems that my Republican colleagues have selective memory when it comes to the scandals of Enron and other corporations who led their employees into retirement pension devastation just last year. The bill before us today does nothing more than promote the behaviors of the greedy corporate executives at the peril of the average workers' retirement savings. Current rules, enacted in 1986 to protect the average worker from getting left out of the tax-preferred retirement vehicles used by the top brass, require the pension plans to meet very specific tests for the balance between benefits for lower paid and higher paid workers. Today's bill seeks to delegate a significant amount of discretion to the Treasury Department concerning these so-called ``non- discrimination'' rules governing pension plans.”