U.S. Department of Labor

Employee Benefits Security 

Administration

November 2016
Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Table of Contents.......................................................................................................................... ii

TAB 1: AGENCY ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW .......................................................................... 1

Mission........................................................................................................................................ 1

Authorizing Legislation .............................................................................................................. 1

Organizational Structure ............................................................................................................. 1

Organizational Changes During the Past Eight Years................................................................ 5

Key Leaders................................................................................................................................ 5

TAB 2: 30/60/90 DAYS – STATE OF PLAY...................................................................................... 6

Key Meetings, Decisions and Announcements .......................................................................... 6

Key Agency Stakeholders........................................................................................................... 8

TAB 3: INITIATIVES ..................................................................................................................... 11

Policy and Regulatory Issues.................................................................................................... 11

Major Grants and Contracts...................................................................................................... 12

Enforcement.............................................................................................................................. 13

Audits and Reports.................................................................................................................... 16

Management.............................................................................................................................. 18

Calendar.................................................................................................................................... 19

TAB 4: BUDGET ........................................................................................................................... 22

TAB 5: AGENCY PERFORMANCE................................................................................................. 26
TAB 1: Agency Organizational Overview

1

TAB 1: AGENCY ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW

Mission

The mission of the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is to assure the security 

of the retirement, health and other workplace-related benefits of America’s workers and their 

families. The Agency accomplishes this mission by developing effective regulations; assisting 

and educating workers, plan sponsors, fiduciaries and service providers; and vigorously 

enforcing the law.

EBSA helps to secure the pensions, health, and other employee benefits for more than 143 

million people, and to support the growth of our private benefit system. EBSA’s authority 

extends to an estimated 681,000 private retirement plans, 2.3 million health plans and a similar 

number of other employee welfare plans which together hold $8.7 trillion in assets. 

Authorizing Legislation

EBSA is responsible for the administration, regulation, and enforcement of Title I of the 

Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), Pub. L. 93–406, 88 Stat. 832, 29 

U.S.C. § 1001 et seq. Title I of ERISA establishes standards of fiduciary conduct for persons 

who are responsible for the administration and management of benefit plans. Under ERISA, 

fiduciaries are required to discharge their duties solely in the interest of plan participants and for 

the exclusive purpose of providing benefits and defraying reasonable expenses of plan 

administration. ERISA also establishes standards for the reporting of plan-related financial and 

benefit information to the Department, and the disclosure of essential plan-related information to 

participants and beneficiaries. 

EBSA is also responsible for administering provisions of law governing fiduciary conduct for the 

Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) under the Federal Employees’ Retirement System Act of 1986 

(FERSA), Pub. L. 99-335, 100 Stat. 514, 5 U.S.C. § 8401 et seq. Accordingly, EBSA has 

established an audit program to ensure that TSP assets have been properly safeguarded and that 

appropriate steps have been taken by TSP fiduciaries to comply with FERSA. The TSP is the 

primary retirement component for nearly all federal government employees. In January 2018, it 

is expected that over one million military accounts will be added as a part of the military’s new 

blended retirement system. Since its inception, the TSP has grown into the largest defined 

contribution pension plan in the world with assets in excess of $480 billion. With the magnitude 

and complexity of its operations, the TSP essentially functions as a very large financial 

institution.

Organizational Structure

EBSA employs a comprehensive, integrated approach encompassing programs for enforcement, 

compliance assistance, interpretive guidance, legislation, and research to protect and advance the 

retirement security and health of our nation’s workers and retirees. The Agency is committed to 

promoting policies that improve health benefits, encourage retirement savings, and protect 
TAB 1: Agency Organizational Overview

2

employer-sponsored benefits. EBSA’s economic research program continues to study economic 

issues affecting all programs. EBSA assists plan fiduciaries and others in understanding their 

obligations under ERISA by providing interpretive guidance and making related materials 

available through the Agency’s website and publications, training programs, and more. The 

Agency is also committed to helping workers and retirees understand their benefits and receive 

the benefits they have earned. 

The Assistant Secretary, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy (non-career), and Deputy 

Assistant Secretary for Program Operations (career) are advised by nine National Office 

Directors. The Agency administers its enforcement and outreach, education and assistance 

programs via ten regional and three district offices comprised of Investigators, Benefits Advisors 

and support staff. 

Office staffing by budget activity follows. EBSA has no key vacancies at this time.

Budget Activity* FY 2016 Enacted 

FTE Level

Enforcement and Participant Assistance 830

Policy and Compliance Assistance 93

Executive Leadership, Program Oversight 

and Administration 26

National Office 247

Field Offices 702

 Benefits Advisors 124

 Investigators 532

 Others 46

* The FY 2017 President’s Budget proposes consolidation of these budget activities.
TAB 1: Agency Organizational Overview

3

Organizational Chart

Assistant Secretary

Phyllis C. Borzi (Non-Career PAS)

Deputy Assistant Secretary for 

Program Operations

Timothy Hauser (Career SES)

Deputy Assistant Secretary for 

Policy

Judy Mares (Non-Career SES)

Office of Technology and 

Information Services

Dianne Schweizer (Career SES)

Office of Program Planning, 

Evaluation and Management

Joel Lovelace (Career SES)

Office of Outreach, Education 

& Assistance

Mark Connor (Career SES)

Office of the Chief Accountant

Ian Dingwall (Career SES)

Office of Exemption 

Determinations

Lyssa Hall (Career SES)

Office of Enforcement

Mabel Capolongo (Career SES)

Office of Health Plan 

Standards, and Compliance 

Assistance

Amy Turner (Career SES)

Office of Policy and Research

Joseph Piacentini (Career SES)

Office of Regulations and 

Interpretations

Joe Canary (Career SES)

Regional Offices

Boston – Susan Hensley (Career SES) Chicago – Jeffrey Monhart (Career SES)

New York – Jonathan Kay (Career SES) Kansas City – James Purcell (Career SES)

Philadelphia – Michael Schloss (Career SES) Dallas – Deborah Perry

Atlanta – Isabel Colon (Career SES) Los Angeles – Crisanta Johnson

Cincinnati – Joe Rivers (Career SES) San Francisco – Jean Ackerman (Career SES)
TAB 1: Agency Organizational Overview

4

Workforce At-A-Glance
TAB 1: Agency Organizational Overview

5

Organizational Changes During the Past Eight Years

No major changes to report.

Key Leaders 

National Office

• Phyllis Borzi, Assistant Secretary

• Judy Mares, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy

• Timothy Hauser, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Program Operations

• Lyssa Hall, Director, Office of Exemption Determinations

• Mabel Capolongo, Director, Office of Enforcement

• Joseph Piacentini, Director, Office of Policy and Research

• Amy Turner, Director, Office of Health Plan Standards and Compliance Assistance

• Joe Canary, Director, Office of Regulations and Interpretations

• Ian Dingwall, Chief Accountant

• Diane Schweizer, Director, Office of Technology and Information Services

• Mark Connor, Director, Office of Outreach, Education, and Assistance

• Joel Lovelace, Director, Office of Program Planning, Evaluation and Management

Regional Offices

• Isabel Colon, Director, Atlanta Regional Office

• Susan Hensley, Director, Boston Regional Office

• Jeffrey Monhart, Director, Chicago Regional Office

• Joe Rivers, Director, Cincinnati Regional Office

• Deborah Perry, Director, Dallas Regional Office

• James Purcell, Director, Kansas City Regional Office

• Crisanta Johnson, Director, Los Angeles Regional Office

• Jonathan Kay, Director, New York Regional Office

• Michael Schloss, Director, Philadelphia Regional Office

• Jean Ackerman, Director, San Francisco Regional Office
TAB 2: 30/60/90 Days – State of Play

6

TAB 2: 30/60/90 DAYS – STATE OF PLAY 

Key Meetings, Decisions and Announcements

By end of December 2016

• ERISA Advisory Council. ERISA provides for the establishment of an Advisory Council on 

Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans. The duties of the ERISA Advisory Council are 

to advise the Secretary of Labor and submit recommendations regarding the Secretary’s 

functions under ERISA. The ERISA Advisory Council consists of 15 members appointed by 

the Secretary. 

o By the end of December 2016, the five 2017 ERISA Advisory Council appointees 

will be announced, notified and sworn in (they have already been selected and 

approved by Secretary Perez), notified and sworn in.

By end of January 2017

• The Secretary will receive an invitation to attend the first 2017 meeting of the ERISA 

Advisory Council on March 22, 2017 (alternate date: April 5, 2017). Typically the 

Secretary attends the first meeting, welcomes the new members and greets the continuing 

members. Photographs are taken of the Secretary (or his/her designate) presenting the 

Certificates of Appointment to the new Council members. At this first meeting, the Council 

(after consultation with EBSA) selects the topics for study for the 2017 year.

By end of March 2017

• Self-Insured Plans Report to Congress. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires the Secretary 

of Labor to provide Congress with an annual report containing general information on selfinsured employee health plans and financial information regarding employers that sponsor such 

plans. The next report is due March 23, 2017. EBSA will begin the clearance process for the 

report in February.

• Social Security and Medicare Trustees Reports. The Board of Trustees of the Social Security 

and Medicare Trust Funds is composed of the Secretary of the Treasury, who is the Managing 

Trustee; the Secretary of Labor; the Secretary of Health and Human Services; the 

Commissioner of Social Security; and two public representatives appointed by the President and 

confirmed by the Senate. The 2017 Social Security and Medicare Trustees Reports are due for 

release on March 28, 2017. The Social Security Act specifies the reports are to be released by 

April 1 of each year; however, that deadline has not been met in recent years. 

• Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) Board Meeting. The Board of Directors of the 

PBGC is made up of the Secretary of Labor, who is the Chair, the Secretary of the Treasury, 

and the Secretary of Commerce. The Secretary of Labor has traditionally designated the 

Assistant Secretary of Labor for EBSA as Board Representative. The Board is responsible for 

establishing and overseeing policies of the PBGC. The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st 

Century Act (MAP-21) requires the Board to meet a minimum of four times per year and for the 

minutes of the meeting to be made public. The Secretary of Labor will call a meeting for the 

quarter before March 31, 2017. 
TAB 2: 30/60/90 Days – State of Play

7

By end of April 2017 

• ACA Regulations and Subregulatory Guidance. The ACA reformed the health market and 

created significant new consumer protections, including new protections for workers 

participating in ERISA-covered plans regulated by the Department of Labor. Much of EBSA’s 

ACA work is performed jointly with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and 

Treasury/Internal Revenue Service (IRS). EBSA anticipates that ACA work will continue 

through 2017, and that the three agencies will continue to identify areas for additional guidance. 

The following are some of the notable issues that involve the tri-department team as well as 

issues within the jurisdiction of IRS or HHS that have potential impact for group health plans 

regulated by EBSA:

o Contraceptive Services: The ACA requires non-grandfathered group health plans and health 

insurance issuers in the group and individual markets to cover certain recommended 

preventive services without cost sharing. Under these requirements, women’s contraceptive 

health services, as specified in guidelines supported by the Health Resources and Services 

Administration (HRSA), must be covered without cost sharing. 

o Wellness Programs: Many employers offer wellness programs as a means of improving 

employee health and containing costs. When these programs use financial incentives for 

participation, they have to careful to avoid discriminating against individuals on the basis of 

health care factors. The programs should be aimed at improving health outcomes, not 

shifting health expenses to employees. Accordingly, EBSA, HHS, and IRS issued 

regulations (tri-department wellness rules) that explain how employers can design wellness 

programs that comply with the ACA rules prohibiting plans or insurance companies from 

discriminating against individuals on the basis of health status factors. In addition, the 

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), in consultation with HHS, DOL and 

Treasury, issued final regulations that give guidance on how employers can design wellness 

programs that do not violate the Americans with Disabilities Act or the Genetic Information 

Nondiscrimination Act. 

o Student Health Insurance Plans: EBSA, HHS, and IRS have granted enforcement relief from 

certain requirements of the ACA for premium reduction arrangements offered to students by 

universities. In some circumstances, for example where certain students also may be 

considered employees of the university, these premium reduction arrangements may meet 

the definition of “employer payment plans,” which are considered group health plans and 

are subject to the market requirements of the ACA, including prohibitions on lifetime and 

annual dollar limits and requirement to cover certain preventive services. The enforcement 

relief gives these schools additional time to adopt a suitable alternative or make other 

arrangements to come into compliance with the ACA. 

o “Cadillac” Tax: To slow the rate of growth of health care costs and finance the expansion of 

health coverage, the ACA added a new section to the Internal Revenue Code to impose an 

excise tax on high-cost health plans starting January 1, 2018. Under the budget deal reached 

in the fall of 2015, the imposition of this tax was delayed and now does not start until 2020. 

This provision is often called the “Cadillac” tax because it targets plans that provide 

employees the most generous level of benefits, have low deductibles and little cost-sharing. 

• Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA). Since passage of 

MHPAEA, DOL, within the scope of its authority, has enforced the law, assisted consumers, 

and sought to clarify the responsibility of group health plans and health insurance issuers 
TAB 2: 30/60/90 Days – State of Play

8 

providing mental coverage to ensure that coverage complies with MHPAEA. EBSA 

participated in a task force created by presidential memorandum that made several 

recommendations to improve understanding and compliance with the law based on input from 

interested stakeholders. Legislation may be forthcoming related to this matter, and EBSA 

anticipates there will be an ongoing need for additional guidance, as well as enhanced 

enforcement efforts. 

• Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board Appointments. The Board consists of five 

members appointed by the President. Three of the five members are currently serving on 

“expired” terms. Current members include:

o Dana Bilyeu: confirmed on November 18, 2011, for a term expiring October 11, 2015 

o William Jasien: confirmed on June 27, 2013, for a term expiring October 11, 2015 

o Ronald McCray: confirmed on November 18, 2011, for a term expiring September 25, 2016 

o Michael Kennedy: confirmed on March 27, 2015, for a term expiring September 25, 2018 

o David Jones: confirmed on March 27, 2015, for a term expiring October 11, 2018 

 

Key Agency Stakeholders

EBSA stakeholders that should be engaged by the Secretary in the first 90 days 

• AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, social welfare organization with a membership of nearly 

38 million. They engage with EBSA on a range of issues of interest to their members, 

including the conflict of interest rule, lifetime income, state retirement initiatives, ACA 

implementation, wellness, e-disclosure, and other regulatory initiatives. 

• American Benefits Council (ABC) is a national trade association for companies concerned 

about federal legislation and regulations affecting all aspects of the employee benefits 

system. The Council’s members represent the entire spectrum of the private employee 

benefits community and either sponsor directly or administer retirement and health plans 

covering more than 100 million Americans. They engage with EBSA on a range of issues 

of interest to their members, including the conflict of interest rule, ACA implementation and 

employer responsibility, mental health parity, e-disclosure, employer reporting and 

disclosure requirements, and other regulatory initiatives. 

• The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC) is a national trade association advocating solely for 

the employee benefit and compensation interests of the country's largest employers. They 

engage with EBSA on health and retirement issues, including reporting requirements, 

HIPAA, mental health, wellness programs, the conflict of interest rule, and other issues of 

importance to their members.

• The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business organization representing 

the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions. They 

engage with EBSA on a range of issues of interest to their members, including the conflict 

(b) (5)
TAB 2: 30/60/90 Days – State of Play

9

of interest rule, retirement security, health care, reporting requirements, and other regulatory 

initiatives.

• The American Council of Life Insurers is a Washington, D.C.-based trade association with 

approximately 280 member companies operating in the United States and abroad. They 

engage with EBSA around issues of interest to their members, including life insurance, 

annuities, retirement plans, long-term care and disability income insurance, and reinsurance.

• The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association is a national federation of 36 independent, 

community-based and locally operated Blue Cross® and Blue Shield® companies. They 

engage with EBSA around health care issues.

• America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) is the national trade association representing the 

health insurance and managed care community. AHIP’s members provide health and 

supplemental benefits through employer-sponsored coverage, the individual insurance 

market, and public programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. They engage with EBSA on

health care issues.

• Certified Financial Planner Board (CFP Board) is a non-profit organization whose mission 

is to benefit the public interest by fostering professional standards in personal financial 

planning through its setting and enforcement of the education, examination, experience, 

ethics and other requirements for CFP® certification. CFP professionals voluntarily agree to 

comply with CFP Board’s rigorous standards and subject themselves to disciplinary 

oversight of CFP Board. The Board works with its certificants to assist them in ensuring 

they are in compliance with DOL’s fiduciary rules and other regulatory requirements.

• Americans for Financial Reform is a nonpartisan and nonprofit coalition of more than 200 

civil rights, consumer, labor, business, investor, faith-based, and civic and community 

groups. They engage with EBSA around the conflict of interest rule, financial literacy, and 

investment issues.

• Better Markets is a non-profit, non-partisan, and independent organization founded in the 

wake of the 2008 financial crisis to promote the public interest in the financial markets, 

support the financial reform of Wall Street and make our financial system work for all 

Americans again. They engage with EBSA around the conflict of interest rule, fiduciary 

duties, and investment issues.

• AFL-CIO is the umbrella federation for U.S. unions, with 56 unions representing 12.5 

million working men and women. They engage with EBSA on a range of issues of interest 

to their members, including the regulation of apprenticeship and training programs, the 

conflict of interest rule, multiemployer plans, modernization of the Form 5500, ACA 

implementation, and other regulatory initiatives.

• American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) is the nation’s 

largest and fastest growing public services employees union with more than 1.6 million 

working and retired members. They engage with EBSA on a range of issues of interest to 
TAB 2: 30/60/90 Days – State of Play

10

their members, including the conflict of interest rule, ACA implementation, and other 

regulatory initiatives.

• Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is a labor union with 2 million members, 

many in health care, public services, and property services. They engage with EBSA 

around health care and the conflict of interest rule as well as issues with multiemployer 

plans, state initiatives, , and other regulatory initiatives.

• The Consumer Federation of America (CFA) is an association of non-profit consumer 

organizations that was established in 1968 to advance the consumer interest through 

research, advocacy, and education. Today, nearly 300 of these groups participate in the 

federation and govern it through their representatives on the organization’s Board of 

Directors. CFA engages with EBSA around financial literacy, the conflict of interest rule, 

and other regulatory issues.

• The National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans (NCCMP) is an 

organization of national, regional and local multiemployer pension and health and welfare 

plans, International and Local Unions, national and local employer associations, individual 

local employers, and multiemployer fund professionals. They engage with EBSA around 

multiemployer plan issues, particularly composite plan legislation, health care issues and 

other regulatory issues, including those relating to the Pension Benefit Guaranty 

Corporation (PBGC)..
TAB 3: Initiatives

11

TAB 3: INITIATIVES

Policy and Regulatory Issues 

EBSA works to promote policies that account for the evolving employee benefits landscape. In the 

decades since the enactment of ERISA in 1974, there has been a dramatic shift in the retirement 

savings marketplace from employer-sponsored defined benefit plans to participant-directed 401(k) 

plans, coupled with the widespread growth in assets in Individual Retirement Accounts and 

Annuities (IRAs). EBSA’s regulatory agenda fulfills its mission to protect, educate, and empower 

retirement investors as they face important choices in saving for retirement in their IRAs and 

employee benefit plans. As a result of its recent rule expanding the number of advisers treated as 

plan and IRA fiduciaries, EBSA also plays an increasingly important role in ensuring that 

retirement investors receive unbiased investment recommendations that are in their best interest. 

EBSA’s initiatives also help promote additional savings options. One-third of American workers 

do not have access to a retirement savings plan through their employers. Workers without access to 

a plan at work rarely save for retirement: fewer than 10 percent of workers without access to a 

workplace plan contribute to a retirement savings account on their own. To increase access, many 

states have been exploring options for creating retirement accounts for workers in the private sector 

who do not otherwise have access to a workplace retirement plan. EBSA has finalized regulations 

and guidance to provide a path forward for state retirement savings programs consistent with 

ERISA, and has proposed similar regulations for political subdivisions of states, such as cities and 

counties that meet specified criteria. 

Multiemployer defined benefit plans provide retirement security to more than 10 million 

participants and their beneficiaries through 1,400 plans. Tens of thousands of employers, including 

many small businesses, provide lifetime retirement benefits for their employees by participating in 

multiemployer pension plans. The PBGC estimates that plans covering about 10% to 15% of the 10 

million multiemployer participants are at risk of running out of money over the next 20 years. The 

multiemployer insurance program needs reform that addresses the problems affecting plans and also 

makes PBGC’s multiemployer fund a reliable backstop for years to come. In 2016, the PBGC 

Board released a letter with PBGC’s FY 2015 Projections Report urging changes to the 

multiemployer program to improve its solvency.

In the health plan context, workers rely heavily on the promises made by their employers to provide 

health insurance. For example, workers participating in their employer’s group health plan expect 

to be covered by health insurance in the event of sickness or accident and their health claims to be 

paid appropriately. If an employer withholds premiums from workers’ paychecks, but fails to 

forward the premiums to the insurance company, workers may suffer significant financial harm due 

to unpaid medical bills.

Under ACA, 20 million Americans have gained health coverage and the nation’s uninsured rate is 

now below 10 percent for the first time ever. The ACA assigned the Department significant new 

responsibilities. EBSA continues to develop, implement, and enforce the ACA market reform 

regulations in conjunction with the Departments of Treasury and HHS. EBSA will also continue to 

implement and enforce MHPAEA, which also assigned the Department significant responsibilities. 
TAB 3: Initiatives

12

MHPAEA requires parity for plans’ mental health coverage in the sense that the financial 

requirements and treatment limitations for mental health and substance use disorder benefits can be 

no more restrictive than those applied to medical/surgical benefits.

On March 29, 2016, the President signed a Presidential Memorandum creating a Mental Health and 

Substance Use Disorder Parity Task Force. The Task Force focused key federal agencies, including 

EBSA, on the work of ensuring that Americans receive the coverage and treatment that they need. 

The objectives of the Task Force were to (1) increase awareness of the protections that mental 

health and substance use disorder parity provides; (2) improve understanding of the requirements of 

mental health and substance use disorder parity among key audiences including health plans, 

insurers and state regulators; and (3) increased the support, resources, and tools available to ensure

coverage is in compliance with mental health and substance use disorder parity. The Task Force

presented its findings and recommendations in a report to the President on October 27, 2016. In 

accordance with several of the recommended actions, EBSA in collaboration with the Departments 

of HHS and Treasury, issued several guidance documents to improve understanding and enhance 

compliance with the law, including an additional set of FAQs on ACA and MHPAEA 

implementation, a disclosure guide for consumers, and a compliance assistance materials index. A 

commitment was also made to annually release information on investigations involving MHPAEA.

See Tab 2 for a listing of major policy decisions leadership will be facing and ongoing regulatory 

action with impending deadlines in the first three months.

Major Grants and Contracts

• ERISA Filing Acceptance System (EFAST). The Form 5500 Annual Return/Report is the 

primary source of information about the operation, funding, and invested assets of pension, 

health and other employee benefit plans to a wide audience that includes plan participants and 

beneficiaries, the federal government, Congress, and researchers and others in the private sector. 

The EFAST contract and associated operations have served the partner agencies (EBSA, IRS, 

and PBGC) well for a number of years, processing Form 5500 submissions and providing 

support to filing stakeholders. The EFAST operations contract is scheduled to expire in 2020, 

however, and a new contract is needed to continue Form 5500 operations throughout and 

beyond 2020. EBSA is leading a re-compete of this contract which will require one-time FY 

2018 resources above steady-state levels. This major effort will incorporate Form 5500 21st 

century modernization and improvement requirements based on proposed rulemaking. These 

form revisions seek to align the collected data with market developments and changes in the 

laws covering employee benefit plans.

• Economic Research. Since 2010, EBSA has awarded between $5 and $10 million of its 

economic research budget for academic research to inform future projects related to employee 

benefits. Some of these projects have spanned several years. Over the last five years, EBSA 

has shifted some of its research resources from more academic research, to topics more focused 

on program and regulatory support. Due to more austere budgets and increased unfunded (but 

mandatory) budget items, EBSA has had to cut its research budget nearly $3 million from FY 

2015. 
TAB 3: Initiatives

13

For FY2017, EBSA anticipates the following research projects:

o Form 5500 analysis including appendices to the Self-Insured Report to Congress, the 

Pension Plan Bulletin and other reports.

o Imputed health insurance coverage data and tables based on the March Current Population 

Survey.

o Support for EBSA’s Office of Enforcement including statistical sampling, data analysis, risk 

modeling, and targeting methods.

o Providing a dynamic income simulation model to the public as well as funding retirement 

research.

o Analyzing issues implementing MHPAEA in the employer-sponsored health insurance 

market.

o Data subscriptions for financial data, bankruptcy data, Form 5500 data, hedge fund data, and 

data on federal and state laws.

Enforcement 

In carrying out its enforcement responsibilities, EBSA uses a number of different approaches to 

ensure employee benefits are protected, including national/regional enforcement priorities and 

projects, voluntary compliance programs, civil/criminal litigation, and research-based analysis. 

EBSA regularly works in coordination with other federal and state enforcement agencies, including 

the Department’s Office of Inspector General, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the 

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 

(CFPB), PBGC, HHS, IRS, DOJ, the federal banking agencies, state insurance commissioners, and 

state attorneys general. 

Protecting workers’ benefits is a cornerstone of EBSA’s work. The primary objectives of EBSA’s

enforcement program are to improve ERISA compliance by recovering losses and unjust profits as 

a result of misconduct by plan fiduciaries and service providers; and to increase the deterrent impact 

of the Agency’s enforcement efforts on employee benefit plans, participants and beneficiaries. 

EBSA accomplishes this through its conduct of civil and criminal investigations. The Agency

focuses its enforcement resources on National Enforcement Projects, Major Case and Employee 

Contributions priorities, and regional projects. The current five National Enforcement Projects 

include:

• The Contributory Plans Criminal Project (CPCP) targets the abuse of contributory plans and 

protects the most vulnerable populations by investigating potentially criminal violations and 

referring appropriate cases for prosecution. The project encompasses a range of criminal actors 

and crimes, including employers, third party administrators (TPAs) and plan employees who 

embezzle funds from payroll contributions or participant accounts.

• The Health Benefits Security Project (HBSP) focuses on group health plans and their service 

providers, and seeks to obtain significant monetary recoveries and global corrections of 

problematic practices or plan terms that violate ERISA. Such issues include undisclosed TPA 

fees and improper claims processing. EBSA seeks to identify and correct substantive violations 

related to the denial of promised benefits, which require the re-adjudication of claims. EBSA 

also conducts investigations that focus on claims procedure violations.
TAB 3: Initiatives

14

• Rapid ERISA Action Team (REACT) provides an expedited response to protect the rights and 

benefits of plan participants when the plan sponsor faces severe financial hardship or 

bankruptcy. Too often, companies facing dire financial circumstances lose sight of their 

obligations as plan sponsors and fiduciaries, or even view the plans’ assets as a tempting target 

for theft or abuse.

• The Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) project investigates transactions that present the 

potential for fiduciary self-dealing and conflicts of interest. In particular, the project focuses on 

transactions involving the purchase of employer stock for inflated prices based on unreliable or 

biased appraisals, a chronic area of abuse. Every year, EBSA recovers tens of millions of 

dollars (or more) based on such faulty appraisals, restoring the lost assets directly to 

participants’ retirement accounts. 

• The Plan Investment Conflicts (PIC) project continues EBSA enforcement efforts to promote 

clear disclosure by service providers of direct and indirect compensation and mitigates fiduciary 

service provider self-dealing.

EBSA’s two enforcement priorities include the Major Case Enforcement Priority and the Employee 

Contributions Initiative. Under the Major Case Priority, EBSA focuses its enforcement resources 

on areas that have the greatest impact on the protection of plan assets and participants’ benefits by 

strategically dedicating more investigative resources on professional fiduciaries and service 

providers with responsibility for large amounts of plan assets or the administration of benefits for a 

large number of plan participants. Consistent with EBSA’s history of protecting employee 

contributions to 401(k), health plans, and other contributory plans, EBSA also has a national 

enforcement priority aimed at the wrongful diversion of employee contributions by employers, a 

problem that is particularly prevalent in the small plan universe. 

EBSA has had considerable success protecting employee benefits through both civil and criminal 

enforcement actions. EBSA’s efforts in both areas achieved total monetary results in FY 2015 of 

over $696 million and $8.1 billion since the beginning of FY 2009, which includes technical 

prohibited transactions and plan assets protected. When only including results from investigations 

that directly impacted plans, participants, and beneficiaries, EBSA has returned more than $1.7 

billion to participants, beneficiaries, and plans. EBSA’s criminal enforcement program has referred 

1,660 criminal cases for prosecution, leading to the indictments of 712 individuals.

EBSA’s Benefits Advisors also provide assistance, education, and outreach for workers, retirees, 

and their employers. Since the beginning of FY 2009 through the end of FY 2015, Benefits 

Advisors have used informal complaint resolution to help more than 906,000 participants recover 

more than $2 billion out of the $8.1 billion that EBSA achieved in monetary results. Benefits 

Advisors have also conducted more than 12,500 education, outreach, and compliance assistance

events for over 900,000 people.

In addition, EBSA regards voluntary compliance programs as essential to its mission of 

safeguarding the security of pension and welfare benefits. Recognizing the need for a formal, broad 

means for plan officials to correct possible fiduciary breaches, the Agency developed the Voluntary 

Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP), which became effective on April 14, 2000, and the 
TAB 3: Initiatives

15

Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program (DFVCP), which became effective on April 27, 

1995. The VFCP describes nineteen financial transactions that, based on EBSA’s enforcement 

experience, may readily be self-identified and corrected by plan officials and their advisors without 

discussion with EBSA. The process involves an application by plan officials to an EBSA field 

office, where staff examines the application and issue a no-action letter if the applicant satisfies the 

conditions of the VFCP. In FY 2015, EBSA received 1,478 applications for the VFCP and results 

totaling $14.3 million related to program corrections. Since its creation, the DFVCP has assisted 

tens of thousands of plans to correct un-filed or late Form 5500s. Well over 20,000 filings are 

submitted to the program each year, avoiding both the Department’s larger late and non-filer 

penalties and also similar penalties from the IRS. To use the program, filers electronically file their 

5500s and submit reduced penalty payments to the Department. DFVCP penalties are based on the 

plan size and number of filings, but are never more than $4,000 per plan. In FY 2015, the DFVCP 

received nearly 23,000 filings and almost $23 million.

The Abandoned Plan Program (APP) facilitates the termination of, and distribution of benefits 

from, individual account pension plans that have been abandoned by their sponsoring employers.

The program was established pursuant to three final regulations and a related class exemption and is 

administered by EBSA national and regional offices. The APP regulations establish a procedure for 

certain financial institutions holding the assets of abandoned individual account plans (QTAs) to 

terminate the plans and distribute benefits to participants and beneficiaries, with limited liability.

The APP regulations provide a fiduciary safe harbor for making distributions from terminated plans 

on behalf of participants and beneficiaries who fail to make an election regarding the form of 

benefit distribution and establish a simplified method of filing a terminal report for abandoned 

plans. Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2006-06 provides conditional relief from prohibited 

transaction restrictions for: (1) a QTA that selects and pays itself to provide services in connection 

with the termination; (2) certain services rendered prior to becoming a QTA; (3) a QTA that selects 

and pays itself in connection with rollovers from abandoned plans to individual retirement plans 

maintained by the QTA; and (4) a QTA that pays itself investment fees as a result of the investment 

of the individual retirement plan’s assets in a proprietary investment product. During FY 2015, 

EBSA received 590 applications from QTAs and closed 207 applications with terminations 

approved, with 205 plans making distributions of $13.8 million directly to participants pursuant to 

termination. In 2012, the Department announced a proposed rule and related class exemption 

amendments that will make the APP available to Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustees. The amendments 

are designed to help workers and retirees of bankrupt companies gain access to their retirement 

money timely and efficiently.

EBSA also has a greatly expanded need for complex economic and statistical enforcement support, 

as it focuses on major cases and complex transactions. IT innovations and expansion of available 

data and applications allow increased use of quantitative analysis, risk analysis, monitoring and 

targeting. The agency’s large and complex cases often involve data analysis and/or statistical 

sampling. EBSA is in the process of hiring additional staff with appropriate skills and education to 

work closely with the national and regional offices to provide general enforcement support.
TAB 3: Initiatives

16

Audits and Reports

EBSA Reports Issued in the Past 2 Years 

• Assessing the Quality of Employee Benefit Plan Audits (May 2015). As discussed in the report, 

EBSA concluded that 39% of independent audits of employee benefit plans are not performed 

in accordance with professional and regulatory standards. Recommendations to improve work 

in this area included legislative changes, enhanced enforcement, and increased education of 

benefit plan fiduciaries and service providers. 

OIG Audits Completed in the Past 3 Years 

• Small Pension Plans Receiving Audit Waivers Need More Frequent Review, Report No. 05-15-

002-12-121 (March 31, 2015) 

• Limited-Scope Audits Provide Inadequate Protections to Retirement Plan Participants, Report 

No. 05-14-005-12-121 (September 30, 2014) 

• EBSA Could Improve Its Usage of Form 5500 Data, Report No. 05-14-003-12-121 (March 31, 

2014) 

• EBSA Needs to Provide Additional Guidance and Oversight to ERISA Plans Holding Hard-toValue Alternative Investments, Report No. 09-13-001-12-121 (September 30, 2013) 

Ongoing OIG Audits 

Audit/Report 

Name Status Summary

Preventing 

Improper Denials 

of Health Benefit 

Claims

Notification letter received: 9-30-14

Entrance conference held: 11-12-14 

Interim/Follow-up meeting held: 4-01-16 

Exit conference held: 7-09-15 

Draft report received: 9-01-16 

Comments on draft report due/sent: 9-22-

16 

Final report received:

Response to final report due/sent:

OIG initiated the audit to review 

EBSA’s process for collecting 

and evaluating information 

about the denial of participant 

benefit claims and how it 

utilizes this information to 

protect plan participants from 

wrongful denials. 

 

 

(b) (5)
TAB 3: Initiatives

17

GAO High Priority Recommendations

• Area 2: Better protections for retirees. Two priority recommendations concerning protections 

for retirees remain open from last year, with no change in their status. One of these 

recommendations calls for the Department to consider making regulatory changes or provide 

guidance to address issues regarding the fiduciary status of certain managed account providers.

The other recommendation calls for the Department to consider establishing a national pension 

registry to help ensure individuals do not lose access to the multiple 401(k) plan accounts they 

may have accumulated over the course of their working lives.

DOL’s Response: EBSA’s mission is carried out through an integrated program of regulation; 

compliance assistance and education; civil and criminal enforcement; and research and analysis. 

More, however, can always be done. Concerning GAO’s first recommendation, the fiduciary 

status of managed account providers does not differ on the basis of whether the managed 

account is the plan’s default investment option or whether the participant affirmatively chooses 

it, however, the Department agrees that it should consider whether regulatory changes or other 

guidance is needed to address the fiduciary status of managed account providers in the various 

settings described in the GAO report. With regard to the proposal to establishing a national 

pension registry, EBSA advised GAO that the agency shares its concern about the persistence of 

missing participant issues and the need for a comprehensive solution. EBSA also explained to 

GAO, however, that it does not have the legal authority necessary to establish and provide 

funding for such a registry. In its final report, GAO agreed that the Department did not have the 

authority to establish the registry, and suggested that that the Pension Benefit Guaranty 

Corporation (PBGC) initiative could address some of the issues identified in GAO’s report. 

Nonetheless, it retained its recommendation that the Department should convene a taskforce 

that could include industry professionals, plan sponsor representatives, consumer 

representatives, and relevant federal government stakeholders, such as representatives from 

SSA, PBGC, and IRS, who could identify areas to be addressed through the regulatory process, 

as well as those that may require legislative action. The Department disagrees with the 

recommendation in light of the PBGC’s initiative, the Department’s limited authority, and 

resource constraints. 

• Solvency of the Pension Benefits Guaranty Corporation. Significant positive steps have been 

taken by Congress and the PBGC to strengthen the agency over the past two years through 

various program reforms and premium increases. However, GAO still has concerns related to 

the multiemployer program and challenges related to PBGC’s funding structure and governance 

GAO made four recommendations to Congress that involves authorizing a redesign of PBGS’s 

single employer program premium structure to better align rates with sponsor risk; adopting 

additional changes to PBGC’s governance structure-in particular, expanding the composition of 

its board of directors; strengthening funding requirements for plan sponsors as the economy 

improves; and working with PBGC to develop a strategy for funding PBGC claims over the 

long term, as defined benefit pension system continues to decline.

DOL’s Response: The PBGC Board agrees that the agency faces significant long-term 

challenges with its single-employer program and an immediate and critical challenge with its 

multiemployer program. The PBGC Board agrees that Congress should consider proposals to 

improve the long-term financial stability of both insurance programs. See the Board’s letter to 

the President of the Senate - http://www.pbgc.gov/documents/TransmittalLetters.pdf. The 
TAB 3: Initiatives

18

Administration’s Fiscal Year 2017 budget proposed to give the PBGC Board the authority to 

adjust premiums and directed the PBGC Board to raise $15 billion in additional premium 

revenue from the multiemployer program. This level of multiemployer premium revenue would 

nearly eliminate the risk of the multiemployer program becoming insolvent within 20 years. 

The PBGC Board also considered various alternative governance structures, but declined to 

pursue such governance issues in the absence of legislation. The PBGC Board was also actively 

involved in PBGC’s establishment of an Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) function and the 

hiring of a Risk Management Officer. The ERM function will help guide PBGC in recognizing 

risks and determining appropriate ways to mitigate such risks. 

Management 

Budget Activity Consolidation

Through the FY 2017 budget submission, EBSA proposed to consolidate budget activities for 

Enforcement and Participant Assistance, Policy and Compliance Assistance, and Executive 

Leadership, Program Oversight and Administration into a single budget activity for Employee 

Benefits Security Programs. The proposed consolidation merely seeks a technical adjustment (TA) 

authorizing the obligation of resources for the single budget activity “Employee Benefits Security 

Programs” at any appropriated level for FY 2017 and beyond. The use of a single consolidated 

budget activity would enable EBSA to allocate resources in the most efficient way possible, and 

based solely on how it can most effectively deploy its scarce resources. If, for example, the Agency 

determined that it could more efficiently and effectively discharge its responsibilities by devoting 

more resources to one activity, rather than another, it could do so, without regard to arbitrary 

distinctions between categories of “activities.” Without such a change, the Agency’s decisions on 

how to spend its resources can be driven by anachronistic division of tasks and functions into 

different “activities,” rather than on how best to manage its limited resources to serve the public 

interest. It is especially important that the Agency be given the flexibility necessary to manage its 

assets as efficiently as possible given the size of its task, the limits of its budget, and its critical 

responsibility to be a prudent steward of taxpayer funds.

Expert Witness Program Administration

The pursuit of complex ERISA litigation by the Department would not be possible without 

employing qualified experts. The existing budget, procurement, and litigation environment has 

made it exceedingly difficult to effectively administer EBSA’s expert witness program. The risks 

and uncertainties of the annual appropriations cycle are a poor match for the demands imposed by 

complex multi-year litigation. Accordingly, in recent years, EBSA has proposed a permanent 

change to appropriations language to support the acquisition and administration of expert witness 

contracts for enforcement litigation. Under EBSA’s proposal, it would receive multi-year funding 

that would enable it to continue to use resources budgeted for expert litigation over a multi-year 

period. The ability to secure and use expert funds for a protracted period would mitigate the risk 

associated with the loss of funds due to lack of appropriations, contract structure, or settlement. 
TAB 3: Initiatives

19

Calendar

Regular meetings, regulatory deadlines and other events of importance to EBSA include: 

Semiannual Regulatory Agenda

Twice each year, the Department publishes a semiannual regulatory agenda under the direction of 

Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The spring agenda likely will be published sometime in 

late April or early May of 2017. 

Meetings

• PBGC Board Quarterly Meetings. The PBGC Board of Directors is made up of the Secretary of 

Labor, who is the Chair, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Secretary of Commerce. The 

Secretary has designated the Assistant Secretary of Labor for EBSA as Board Representative. 

The Board is responsible for establishing and overseeing policies of the PBGC. MAP-21 

requires the Board to meet a minimum of four times per year with at least two members present. 

At least one meeting must be a joint meeting with the PBGC Advisory Committee. The Board 

meeting minutes are posted on PBGC’s website.

• Board of Trustees Semiannual Meetings. The Board of Trustees of the Social Security and 

Medicare Trust Funds is composed of the Secretary of the Treasury, who is the Managing 

Trustee; the Secretary of Labor; the Secretary of Health and Human Services; the 

Commissioner of Social Security; and two public representatives appointed by the President and 

confirmed by the Senate. The Secretary of Labor has designated the Assistant Secretary of 

Labor for EBSA as his or her representative when the Secretary is not available. The Board is 

responsible for holding the Trust Funds and reporting to Congress on the operation and status of 

the Trust Funds annually and whenever the Board is of the opinion that the amount of the Trust 

Funds is unduly small. According to the Social Security Act, the Board of Trustees shall meet 

not less frequently than once each calendar year. However, the by-laws of the Board state that 

the Trustees shall meet in person not less frequently than twice each calendar year. The 

meetings are typically in the spring and fall.

EBSA Reports

• Self-Insured Plans Report to Congress. The next report is due March 23, 2017. ACA requires the 

Secretary to provide Congress with an annual report containing general information on self-insured 

employee health benefit plans and financial information regarding employers that sponsor such 

plans. 

• Mental Health Parity and Addictions Equity Report to Congress. The next report is due January 

1, 2018. MHPAEA requires the Secretary of Labor to provide a biennial report to Congress on 

compliance of group health plans (and health insurance coverage offered in connection with 

such plans) with the requirements of the federal mental health and substance use disorder parity 

provisions (the Secretary of Labor has also voluntarily committed to annually releasing 

information on investigations involving MHPAEA). 
TAB 3: Initiatives

20

ERISA Advisory Council Reports provided to the Secretary

• The Secretary will receive two reports by the 2016 ERISA Advisory Council with an EBSA 

cover memo, if not completed before the Inauguration, on the topics of (1) Cybersecurity 

Considerations for Benefit Plans and (2) Participant Plan Transfers and Account Consolidation 

for the Advancement of Lifetime Plan Participation. Once the reports and cover memo are 

received, the Office of the Secretary gives the approval to post the reports on the EBSA website 

and send copies to the Library of Congress. 

PBGC Reports cleared by the PBGC Board of Directors or Board Representatives as permitted 

under the PBGC bylaws

• Annual Report and Projections Report. The Annual Report is due on November 15 every year. 

The Projections Report, which is part of the Annual Report, is released as soon as practicable 

after the close of the fiscal year. ERISA requires the PBGC to transmit to the President and the 

Congress a report including financial statements setting forth the finances of the corporation at 

the end of the fiscal year and the result of its operations (including the source and application of 

its funds) for the fiscal year. The report also includes an actuarial evaluation of the expected 

operations and status of the funds established under ERISA section 4005 for the next five years 

(including a detailed statement of the actuarial assumptions and methods used in making such 

evaluation), which PBGC refers to as the Projections Report. 

• ERISA Section 4010 Report. The next 4010 Report is expected to be issued in 2016. The 

Pension Protection Act of 2006 requires the PBGC to provide an annual report to Congress of a 

summary in the aggregate of the information submitted by single-employer plan sponsors under 

ERISA section 4010. Certain single employer plan sponsors and members of their control 

groups that have a plan that is less than 80% funded, or missed contributions from which a lien 

arises under the tax code, or obtained a funding waiver in excess of $1,000,000 must submit 

information, including (1) the amount of benefit liabilities under the plan determined using the 

assumptions used by the corporation in determining liabilities; (2) the funding target of the plan 

determined as if the plan has been in at-risk status for at least 5 plan years; and (3) the funding 

target attainment percentage of the plan. 

• Five-Year Report on Multiemployer Pension Plans. The next report is due in 2020. The 

Multiemployer Plan Amendments Act of 1980 (MPPAA) requires, at least every fifth year since 

the enactment of MPPAA, PBGC to report to Congress on PBGC’s review of its multiemployer 

insurance program, to determine the premiums needed to maintain the current guarantee levels 

and whether the guarantee levels may be increased without increasing the premiums. 

PBGC Reports provided to the PBGC Board of Directors

• PBGC Participant and Plan Sponsor Report. The next report is due December 31, 2016. MAP21 requires the Participant and Plan Sponsor Advocate to report annually to PBGC’s 

committees of jurisdiction on the activities of the Office of the Participant and Plan Sponsor 

Advocate during the fiscal year ending during such calendar year. 

• PBGC Inspector General Semiannual Report to Congress. The next reports are due October 31, 

2016 and April 30, 2017. Under 1988 amendments to the Inspector General Act of 1978, the 

Inspector General is required to prepare semiannual reports summarizing the activities of PBGC 
TAB 3: Initiatives

21

during the immediately preceding six-month periods ending March 31 and September 30. Such 

reports include: a description of significant problems, abuses, and deficiencies relating to the 

administration of programs and operations of such establishment disclosed by such activities 

during the reporting period; and a description of the recommendations for corrective action 

made by the Office. The reports are furnished to the PBGC Board not later than April 30 and 

October 31 of each year and are transmitted by the Board to Congress within thirty days after 

receipt of the report. The Inspector General report must be accompanied by, among other things,

any comments the Board determines appropriate, and statistical tables regarding disallowed 

costs, audit reports, and management decisions and actions regarding issues raised in such 

reports. 

Social Security and Medicare Reports

• The Annual Report of the Board of Trustees of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance 

and Federal Disability Insurance Trust Funds. The next report is due April 1, 2017. Under the 

Social Security Act, the Board of Trustees reports annually to Congress on the operation and 

status of the Trust Funds during the preceding fiscal year and on their expected operation and 

status during the next ensuing five fiscal years. 

• The Annual Report of the Board of Trustees of the Federal Hospital Insurance and Federal 

Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Funds. The next report is due April 1, 2017. The 

Board of Trustees reports annually to Congress on the operation and status of the Trust Fund during 

the preceding fiscal year and on its expected operation and status during the current fiscal year and 

the next two fiscal years. 
TAB 4: Budget

22

TAB 4: BUDGET

BUDGET AUTHORITY AND FTE SUMMARY

(Dollars in millions)

FY 2013

Enacted

FY 2014

Enacted

FY 2015

Enacted

FY 2016

Enacted

FY 2017

Request

Budget Authority $173.5 $178.5 $181.0 $181.0 $205.8

FTE 977 963 962 944 965

At-A-Glance

• The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) is funded by an annual discretionary 

appropriation. EBSA protects the retirement and health benefit security of workers, retirees, 

and their families through an integrated program of regulation, compliance assistance and 

education, civil and criminal enforcement, research, and analysis.

• EBSA utilizes an aggressive outreach, education, and participant assistance program to inform 

the public of their rights and benefits as well as to educate the regulated community regarding 

their responsibilities and obligations under the law. 

• EBSA component programs utilize a number of different approaches to ensuring employee 

benefits are protected, including national/regional enforcement priorities and projects, voluntary 

compliance programs, civil/criminal litigation, and research based analysis. 

• EBSA strives to deploy its scarce investigative and other resources in a way that maximizes the 

agency’s impact on the vast universe of regulated plans and service providers. Although EBSA 

is responsible for the security and integrity of more than 3 million plans providing benefits to 

more than 143 million workers, it has only 962 FTEs total (less than half of whom are 

investigators). Accordingly, the agency focuses on investigations, litigation, research and 

regulatory activities that are likely to have a positive impact that far outstrips the resources 

expended. 

• EBSA has proposed to consolidate budget activities for Enforcement and Participant Assistance, 

Policy and Compliance Assistance, and Executive Leadership, Program Oversight and 

Administration. The prior specification of three budget activities failed to recognize the 

interconnected nature of work performed within program components and unduly restricted the 

Agency’s ability to rationally allocate tasks and resources between categories. The consolidated 

budget activity will ensure optimal allocation of resources between related program components 

based on an ongoing assessment of the best means to promote agency goals and outcomes. 

• EBSA’s approach to promoting benefits security is developed and implemented in response to 

public concerns, experience with civil and criminal investigations, participant inquiries, 

research, and trends and vulnerabilities identified in the private sector. 

Budget and FTE Trends

• From the FY 2010 appropriation through FY 2012 appropriation, EBSA budget resources 

increased nearly 28 percent (from $143,419,000 to $183,153,000) and financed an additional 

168 FTE (a 20 percent FTE increase). These resources enhanced employee benefits security, 

enforcement program support and health care reform. 
TAB 4: Budget

23

• However, beginning in FY 2013, program increases were not appropriated by Congress for 

employee benefits security programs. In fact, FTE levels have declined three percent (977 FTE 

to 949 FTE) from FY 2013 to date. This has occurred because of reduced funding (a 

$9,214,000 sequester reduction) and absorption of increased costs per FTE. 

• Through one-time, re-programming authority, EBSA was able to mitigate the adverse impact of 

sequestration for employees nationwide. EBSA was still required to significantly reduce 

resources for enforcement and regulatory programs that directly protect employee benefits for 

America’s workers, retirees and their families. 

Upcoming Issues

ERISA Filing and Acceptance System (EFAST)

EFAST is a multi-agency program that currently enables three sponsoring agencies – The 

Department of Labor (DOL), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and Pension Benefit Guaranty 

Corporation (PBGC) – to perform their missions under the three Titles of ERISA, the Pension 

Protection Act (PPA), the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and other statutes. EFAST uses an 

outsourced performance-based operations contract to ensure the successful collection, processing, 

and distribution of ERISA filing information and support of filing stakeholders. The current EFAST 

operations contract is scheduled to expire in 2020. 

 

Expert Witness Program Administration

The pursuit of complex ERISA litigation by the Department would not be possible without 

employing qualified experts. The existing budget, procurement, and litigation environment has 

made it exceedingly difficult to effectively administer EBSA’s expert witness program. The risks 

and uncertainties of the annual appropriations cycle are a poor match for the demands imposed by 

complex multi-year litigation. Accordingly, in recent years, EBSA has proposed a permanent 

change to appropriations language to support the acquisition and administration of expert witness 

contracts for enforcement litigation. Under EBSA’s proposal, it would receive multi-year funding 

that would enable it to continue to use resources budgeted for expert litigation over a multi-year 

period. The ability to secure and use expert funds for a protracted period would mitigate the risk 

associated with the loss of funds due to lack of appropriations, contract structure, or settlement. 

Budget Activity Consolidation (Technical Account Restructuring)

Through the FY 2017 budget submission, EBSA has already proposed to consolidate budget 

activities for Enforcement and Participant Assistance, Policy and Compliance Assistance, and 

Executive Leadership, Program Oversight and Administration into a single budget activity for 

Employee Benefits Security Programs. 

(b) (5)

(b) (5)
TAB 4: Budget

24

FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017

PB

Request $147.9 $156.1 $162.0 $197.5 $183.2 $179.1 $188.4 $207.5 $205.8

Enacted $143.4 $154.9 $154.6 $183.2 $173.6 $178.5 $181.0 $181.0

$0

$50

$100

$150

$200

$250

EBSA

Request vs. Enacted, FY 2009-FY 2016

(Dollars in millions)

FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016

Enacted $143.4 $154.9 $154.6 $183.2 $173.6 $178.5 $181.0 $181.0

Inflation Adjusted $143.4 $145.8 $150.4 $153.5 $155.7 $158.3 $158.4 $158.4

$0

$50

$100

$150

$200

EBSA

FY 2009 Inflation Adjusted BA vs. FY 2009-FY 2016 

Enacted BA

(Dollars in millions)
TAB 4: Budget

25

FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017

PB

Authorized 835 910 910 1,003 993 985 963 949 965

Actuals 816 878 913 931 977 963 962 944

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

EBSA

Authorized FTE vs. Actuals, FY 2009-2017
TAB 5: Agency Performance

26

TAB 5: AGENCY PERFORMANCE

During the last three years, EBSA has 

strategically changed its performance 

measures to emphasize the overall impact 

of its investigations instead of the number 

of cases processed. 

EBSA’s workload measures and performance metrics are designed to increase the number of 

workers impacted by its investigations by incentivizing larger and more complex cases. Since FY 

2014, when the agency implemented the Major Case priority, time spent on major cases has risen 

sharply. 

As shown on the following page, this approach also improved monetary recoveries. 

13%

18%

20%

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 Q3 YTD

Total Investigative Staff Time Spent on Major Cases

Total Investigative Staff Time Spent on Major Cases

$209.2

$265.2 $252.3

$0.0

$50.0

$100.0

$150.0

$200.0

$250.0

$300.0

FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 Q3 YTD

Total Monetary Results (Millions of Dollars)

Total Monetary Results

Performance Goal EBSA 4.2 – Improve health 

benefits and retirement security for all workers.
TAB 5: Agency Performance

27

In FY 2015, EBSA implemented three timeliness measures in order to promptly detect, pursue and 

correct violations, and to be aggressive in pursuing tips and complaints from the public. 

• Civil Non-Major Case Timeliness is measured as the Percent of Non-Major Civil Cases 

Closed or Referred for Litigation in the fiscal year within 30 Months of Case Opening. 

• EBSA also tracks a category of civil cases separately, which often are processed more 

swiftly, in the measure Percent of Delinquent Employee Contribution, Abandoned Plan, 

Bonding, Health-Part 7 Violation, and other Reporting and Disclosure Non-Fiduciary 

Breach Cases Closed or Referred for Litigation in the fiscal year within 18 Months of 

Case Opening. 

• Criminal Case Timeliness is measured as Percent of Criminal Cases Closed or Referred 

for Litigation in the fiscal year within 18 Months of Case Opening. 

Timeliness measure results were on track over the last two fiscal years. However, there are 

opportunities for further improvements to occur as the majority of remaining open cases from prior 

years, when performance measures focused on the number of case closings, are resolved.

EBSA expects to receive approximately 225,000 inquiries in FY 2017. The Agency’s Benefits 

Advisors will assist these participants and beneficiaries in understanding their rights, 

responsibilities and benefits under ERISA; intervene on their behalf with plan sponsors in order to 

assist them in obtaining the health and retirement benefits to which they are entitled; and provide 

outstanding customer service. EBSA plans to continue measuring the level of customer satisfaction 

with the participant assistance program in FY 2017.