Perhaps the most indefensible provision was an $86 billion bailout for unions’ private pension funds. This unprecedented handout could pave the way for a much more expensive bailout of public-sector pensions.
The American Rescue Plan Act creates a new federal grant program to support multiemployer pension funds. There are more than 1,400 of these retirement plans, which are jointly funded by unions and the private companies that contract with them through collective bargaining agreements. All told, this arrangement serves more than 10 million current and retired workers. Most of the funds are doing fine, but 124 of them are in “critical” financial condition, according to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), a federal entity created in the 1970s as a financial guarantor for multiemployer pension plans, which is itself on pace to be insolvent by 2027.
Unlike COVID-19, this crisis didn’t suddenly pop into existence. Democrats in Congress have been seeking federal aid for these retirement plans for years, while Republicans have been pushing for reforms in exchange for new loan or grant programs to prop up the pension system. The American Rescue Plan granted aid with no strings attached.
This story is from the June 2021 edition of Reason magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the June 2021 edition of Reason magazine.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
THE LIBERTARIAN MIND OF DAVID BOAZ
Threats to freedom, Trump vs. Biden, and the wins libertarians can’t seem to acknowledge
DARE TO Fail
THERE’S NO SUCH thing as a universal millennial experience, but DARE comes close.
CULTURE WARRIOR IN CHIEF
THE MODERN PRESIDENCY IS A DIVIDER, NOT A UNITER. IT HAS BECOME FAR TOO POWERFUL TO BE ANYTHING ELSE.
Progress, Rediscovered
A NEW MOVEMENT PROMOTING SCIENTIFIC, TECHNOLOGICAL, AND ECONOMIC SOLUTIONS TO HUMANITY’S PROBLEMS EMERGES.
'Smoking Opium Is Not Our Vice'
AMERICA’S FIRST DRUG WAR WAS DRIVEN BY XENOPHOBIA AGAINST CHINESE MIGRANTS.
HOW CAPITALISM BEAT COMMUNISM IN VIETNAM
IT ONLY TOOK A GENERATION TO GO FROM RATION CARDS TO EXPORTING ELECTRONICS.
50 Years of D&D: You Can't Copyright Fun
THIS YEAR MARKS the 50th anniversary of the original edition of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), the granddaddy of tabletop role-playing games and one of the urtexts of nerd culture.
The Pupil Panopticon
BIG BROTHER—and Parent, and Teacher— are watching.
Congress Could Swipe Your Credit Reward Points
A PLOT TO kill credit card reward points has bipartisan buy-in, with lawmakers framing the effort as an attempt to curb stillstubborn inflation.
Regulators Killed a Lifeline for Roombas
IN JANUARY 2024, Amazon terminated its agreement to acquire iRobot, the company that manufactures the Roomba robot vacuum.