Resources for Central States Pension Fund Retirees

This page is intended to serve as a resource hub for retirees who are subject to cuts as a result of the Central States Pension Fund’s application to the U.S. Department of the Treasury to reduce retiree benefits. This page will be updated on an ongoing basis.

On May 6, 2016, the U.S. Treasury Department rejected the Central States Pension Fund’s application to reduce retiree benefits.

U.S. Treasury Department rejects Central States Pension Fund's application to cut retiree pensions

• Pension Rights Center press release
• Treasury Department letter to the Central States Pension Fund
• Treasury Department letter to Congress

Central States Pension Fund Rescue Fund website

• http://www.cspensionrescue.com: This website is produced by the Central States Pension Fund and includes information it has posted about the proposed benefit cuts.
• Summary of proposed cuts
• Frequently Asked Questions [PDF]
• Frequently Asked Questions #2 (posted on November 10, 2015) [PDF]
• Fequently Asked Questions #3 (posted on December 17, 2015) [PDF]
• List of “orphan” companies: This is a list of companies that left the Central States Fund without paying full “withdrawal liability.”

The Central States Pension Fund Application for MPRA Benefit Suspension

• Full application  
• Details of proposed benefit suspensions
• Factors demonstrating that benefit suspensions are distributed equitably
• Measures taken to avoid insolvency  
• Proposed ballot
• Excerpts from Central States 2013 Form 5500, Annual Financial Report

Comments on CSPF application to reduce benefits

• The Treasury Department requested that individuals affected by the announcement of CSPF retiree benefit cuts submit public comment. 
• Important points to make in comments submitted to the Treasury Department
• View the comments that have been submitted to the Treasury Department regarding the CSPF application to reduce benefits
• Comments submitted by CSPF Retiree Representative, Susan Mauren
• Comments submitted by the Pension Rights Center
• Responsive comments submitted by the Central States Pension Fund 
• Comments submitted by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in response to the Central States Pension Fund's responsive comments 
• Comments submitted by the Pension Rights Center in response to the Central States Pension Fund's responsive comments
  
• 1982 Department of Labor Consent Decree relating to Central States Pension Fund
• The Role of the Department of Labor and the Central States Pension Fund

Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014

• Text of the “suspension of benefits” provisions of the Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014
• Pension Rights Center summary of the MPRA pension cutback provisions

Final Regulations

• Treasury Department’s FINAL regulation on suspension of benefits under MPRA

Pending legislation

• Keep Our Pension Promises Act of 2015 (S. 1631 and H.R. 2844)
  • Legislative summary
  • How the Keep Our Pension Promises Act Would Save the Central States Pension Fund
  • Tax Loopholes That Would Be Closed by the Keep Our Pension Promises Act of 2015
  • Why the Keep Our Pension Promises Act Must be Passed
• Pension Accountability Act of 2015 (S. 2147 and H.R. 4029)
  • Legislative summary

People to contact

• Susan Mauren, Retiree Representative to the Central States Pension Fund
  
  Susan Mauren
  P.O. Box 15670, 
  Minneapolis, MN 55402
  Email: CentralStatesRetireeRep@losgs.com
  Call Center: 1-855-465-6747. The hours of the Call Center are 9 AM to 2PM Eastern, Monday through Saturday. The call center is solely for Central States participants.

• View a list of communications Susan Mauren has made on behalf of Central States retirees.

• Kenneth Feinberg has been appointed by the Treasury Department as the Special Master to oversee the implementation of the Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014. Contact him to let him know of any concerns you may have about the law. Read a blog post by Kenneth Feinberg.
  
  Kenneth R. Feinberg
  Special Master
  United States Department of the Treasury
  Office of Benefits Tax Counsel
  1500 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Room 1224
  Washington, DC 20220
  Phone number: (202) 622-1534
  E-mail: mprainfo@treasury.gov

• Members of Congress. Find your elected officials

Events

• Retiree rally: On April 14, 2016 retirees from around the country held a rally in Washington, D.C.. Read our blog entry about the rally. 
• Weekly conference calls: The U.S. Department of the Treasury held weekly conference calls every Monday to provide additional opportunities for plan participants to provide feedback on the Central States Pension Fund application.
• Public sessions: The U.S. Department of the Treasury held public sessions in regions that would be most impacted by any benefit reductions permitted by the Central States Pension Fund. 
  • There are no upcoming public sessions.
  • Public sessions were held in the following locations:
    
    • Kansas City, Missouri (February 16, 2016)
    • Minneapolis, Minnesota (February 9, 2016) 
    • Detroit, Michigan (February 8, 2016)
    • Indianapolis, Indiana (January 21, 2016)
    • Peoria, Illinois (January 14, 2016)
    • Greensboro, North Carolina (January 11, 2016)
    • Milwaukee, Wisconsin (December 9, 2015)
    • Columbus, Ohio (December 8, 2015)

Retiree groups

• Retirees who are in the Central States Pension Fund have created Facebook pages to communicate with each other to share strategy and keep informed about potential MPRA cuts. Find retiree groups here: http://www.mycspensionhandsoff.com/.

Economic impact statements

The Central States Pension Fund prepared economic impact statements showing the value of the pension income it provides to beneficiaries and the communities in which they live. Working with retirees, the Center has obtained these statements for all 50 states and the District of Columbia and posted them here.

As these impact statements demonstrate, pensions from the Central States Pension Fund are of critical importance not only to retirees and their families, but to the communities where they live and spend their money. If the Fund cuts benefits, as it proposes to do, the effects on small businesses, on property values, on state and local taxes, and on governmental services, will be devastating.  

Click the name of each state to below to read its economic impact statement. 

Alabama | Alaska | Arizona | Arkansas | California | Colorado | Connecticut | Delaware | District of Columbia | Florida | Georgia | Hawaii | Idaho | Illinois | Indiana | Iowa | Kansas | Kentucky | Louisiana | Maine | Maryland | Massachusetts | Michigan | Minnesota | Mississippi | Missouri | Montana | Nebraska | Nevada | New Hampshire | New Jersey | New Mexico | New York | North Carolina | North Dakota | Ohio | Oklahoma | Oregon | Pennsylvania | Puerto Rico  | Rhode Island | South Carolina | South Dakota | Tennessee | Texas | Utah | Vermont | Virginia | Washington | West Virginia | Wisconsin | Wyoming 

Pension Rights Center fact sheets

• List of multiemployer pension plans that have filed critical and declining status notices with the U.S. Department of Labor
• List of plans that have applied to cut benefits under the Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014
• Facts About Multiemployer Pension Plan Funding
• List of multiemployer pension plans in "critical and declining" status

Pension Rights Center story bank

• Add your voice to the story bank
• Read the stories

Calculate your benefits

• Use the Pension Rights Center calculator to determine how much your pension benefit could be cut as a result of the Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014.

Pension Rights Center statements on retiree cutbacks

• Read Pension Rights Center news releases, statements, blog entries and comments on the topic of the Central States Pension Fund application to reduce retiree benefits.

Media

• News articles about multiemployer pension plan cutbacks

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