Pension provisions in H.R. 83, the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act of 2015 (the CR-Omnibus bill) appear to have generated significant concern, as well as a bit of confusion. These provisions do not apply to public sector plans, and pertain primarily to private sector multiemployer plans, which are maintained under one or more collective bargaining agreements to which more than one private employer contributes, and which are covered under a unique program within the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC).

Among other things, the CR-Omnibus bill includes measures allowing deeply troubled multi employer pension plans to make certain benefit adjustments that avoid plan termination and result in benefit levels above what is guaranteed by PBGC. Under current law, benefits are adjusted only after a plan becomes insolvent and the payments are made subject to PBGC maximum guarantees. While a large bipartisan coalition of employers and labor unions supported the changes, it also was opposed by some trade unions, the AARP and the Pension Rights Center.

It is important to keep the following in mind with regard to the multiemployer changes:

1. Only a "severely underfunded plan" would be permitted to propose adjusting vested benefits, and benefits could not be reduced to less than 110% of the benefit guaranteed by the PBGC.
2. In general, the approval of any proposed benefit adjustments by plan participants would be required before the cuts could take effect.
3. Disabled retirees and individuals age 80 and older would be exempt from any benefit reductions.