I
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2562
To promote accuracy in the determination of amounts of private pension
plan benefits and contributions.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
SEPTEMBER 26, 1997
Mr. ANDREWS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and the Workforce
A BILL
To promote accuracy in the determination of amounts of
private pension plan benefits and contributions.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Pension Beneficiary
Rights Act of 1997’’.
SEC. 2. ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION OF PENSION
BENEFIT CLAIMS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 503 of the Employee Re-
tirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1133)
is amended—
(1) by adding at the end of the heading the fol-
lowing: ‘‘AND ARBITRATION OF PENSION CLAIMS’’;
(2) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ after ‘‘SEC. 503.’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section:
‘‘(b)(1) Any claim of a participant or beneficiary
against an employee pension benefit plan with respect to
benefits under such plan remaining unresolved, after op-
portunity for review provided under subsection (a) has
been exercised, may be resolved through arbitration, upon
the request of the participant or beneficiary which is filed
with the Secretary, in such form and manner as shall be
prescribed by regulation and within the 60-day period
after the participant or beneficiary has received written
notice from the plan of the completion of such review. The
filing of a request for arbitration under this section with
respect to any claim shall constitute a waiver of any right
to review of such claim other than as provided in this sub-
section.
‘‘(2) An arbitration proceeding under this subsection
shall be conducted in accordance with fair and equitable
procedures to be prescribed by the Secretary. Individuals
serving as arbitrators under this section shall be selected
by the Secretary from employees of the Department of
Labor or, to the extent considered by the Secretary more
cost-effective, from individuals whose services are acquired
from other sources. If the parties have not provided by
agreement for the costs of the arbitration, including arbi-
trator’s fees, the arbitrator shall assess such fees, in an
amount for each party not to exceed $500. The arbitrator
may also award to prevailing participants and bene-
ficiaries reasonable attorney’s fees and pre-judgment in-
terest on unpaid benefits. The award may require payment
of punitive damages by any party if the arbitrator finds
that any failure by the party with respect to unpaid bene-
fits constitutes willful misconduct.
‘‘(3) Any arbitration proceedings under this sub-
section shall, to the extent consistent with this title, be
conducted in the same manner, subject to the same limita-
tions, carried out with the same powers (including sub-
pena power), and enforced in the United States courts as
an arbitration proceeding carried out under title 9, United
States Code, as if such arbitration had been entered into
by the parties by mutual agreement. Any arbitration
award which is not appealed under paragraph (4) may be
reviewed only pursuant to sections 9 through 13 of such
title 9.
‘‘(4)(A) Upon completion of the arbitration proceed-
ings in favor of one of the parties, a party aggrieved by
the arbitrator’s award may bring an action in an appro-
priate United States district court to vacate or modify the
award. Any action under this paragraph must be brought
no later than 30 days after the date of the issuance of
the arbitrator’s award, and in such action, the findings
of fact shall be subject to de novo review.
‘‘(B) The district courts of the United States shall
have exclusive jurisdiction of an action under this para-
graph without regard to the amount in controversy.
‘‘(C) An action under this section may be brought
in the district where the plan is administered or where
a defendant resides or does business, and process may be
served in any district where a defendant resides, does busi-
ness, or may be found.
‘‘(D) In any action under this paragraph, the court
may award all or a portion of the costs and expenses in-
curred in connection with such action, including reason-
able attorney’s fees, to a prevailing participant or bene-
ficiary.
‘‘(E) A copy of the complaint in any action under
this paragraph shall be served upon the Secretary by cer-
tified mail. The Secretary may intervene in any such ac-
tion.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The item relating
to section 503 in the table of contents in section 1 of such
Act is amended to read as follows:
‘‘Sec. 503. Claims procedure and arbitration of pension claims.’’.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply with respect to claims arising on
or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 3. PRE-JUDGMENT INTEREST ON UNPAID BENEFITS;
PUNITIVE 
DAMAGES 
FOR 
WILLFUL 
MIS-
CONDUCT.
(a) 
PRE-JUDGMENT
INTEREST.—Section
502(a)(1)(B) of the Employee Retirement Income Secu-
rity Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1132(a)(1)(B)) is amended
by inserting ‘‘(together with reasonable pre-judgment in-
terest on unpaid pension plan benefits)’’ after ‘‘to recover
benefits due to him under the terms of his plan’’.
(b) ATTORNEY FEES AND COSTS OF ACTION.—Sec-
tion 502(g) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 1132(g)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or (3)’’
after ‘‘paragraph (2)’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
‘‘(3) In any action or settlement proceeding under
this title with respect to an employee pension benefit plan
brought by a participant or beneficiary under such plan
in which the participant or beneficiary prevails or substan-
tially prevails, the participant or beneficiary shall be enti-
tled to reasonable attorney’s fees, reasonable expert wit-
ness fees, and other reasonable costs relating to the action.
Fees to which the participant or beneficiary is entitled
under the paragraph shall be at generally prevailing hour-
ly rates.’’.
(c) 
PUNITIVE
DAMAGES
FOR
WILLFUL
MIS-
CONDUCT.—Section 502(c) of such Act (29 U.S.C.
1132(c)) is amended—
(1) by redesignating paragraph (6) as para-
graph (7); and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the follow-
ing new paragraph:
‘‘(6) In any case in which any party consisting of the
plan sponsor, the plan administrator, or any other fidu-
ciary of a pension plan knowingly and willfully acts or fails
to act for the purpose of depriving a participant or bene-
ficiary of the full and timely payment of a benefit under
the plan in violation of the terms of the plan or this title,
such party may, in the court’s discretion, be jointly and
severally liable to such participant or beneficiary, in any
action brought under subsection (a)(1)(B), for punitive
damages in addition to any other remedy available to such
participant or beneficiary.’’.
(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply with respect to causes of action
arising on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 4. ANNUAL REPORTS TO PARTICIPANTS AND BENE-
FICIARIES IN UNDERSTANDABLE LANGUAGE.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 104(b) of the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C.
1024(b)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(b)(1) Within 210 days after the close of each plan
year, the administrator shall furnish to each participant,
and to each beneficiary receiving benefits under the plan—
‘‘(A) a copy of the statements and schedules,
for such plan, described in subparagraphs (A) and
(B) of section 103(b)(3);
‘‘(B) a report containing—
‘‘(i) a description of all investments and
assets of the plan, including their value;
‘‘(ii) the names and positions of all of the
trustees of the plan, and the time remaining be-
fore the expiration of their term;
‘‘(iii) a description of the method of trustee
selection;
‘‘(iv) a description of any changes in in-
vestment policy of the plan during the fiscal
year; and
‘‘(v) an evaluation of the long-term sol-
vency of the plan, including the number of par-
ticipants and beneficiaries and a summary of
their benefits, and a projection of the amount
of benefits expected to be paid for the fifth,
tenth, and fifteenth plan year following the date
of the publication of the report;
‘‘(C) any other material (including the percent-
age determined under section 103(d)(11)) as is nec-
essary to fairly summarize the latest annual report;
and
‘‘(D) information on where participants and
beneficiary may receive assistance with respect to
the plan.
Such information shall be written and calculated to be un-
derstood by the average plan participant, and shall be suf-
ficiently accurate and comprehensive to reasonably apprise
such participants and beneficiaries of their rights and obli-
gations under the plan.
‘‘(2) The administrator shall make copies of the plan
description and the latest annual report and the bargain-
ing agreement, trust agreement, contract, or other instru-
ments under which the plan was established or is operated
available for examination by any plan participant or bene-
ficiary in the principal office of the administrator and in
such other places as may be necessary to make available
all pertinent information to all participants (including
such places as the Secretary may prescribe by regula-
tions).
‘‘(3) The administrator shall, upon written request
of any participant or beneficiary, furnish a copy of the
latest annual report, any terminal report, the bargaining
agreement, trust agreement, contract, or other instru-
ments under which the plan is established or operated.
The administrator may make a reasonable charge to cover
the cost of furnishing such complete copies. The Secretary
may by regulation prescribe the maximum amount which
will constitute a reasonable charge under the preceding
sentence.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—
(1) Section 101(a) of such Act (29 U.S.C.
1021(a)) is amended to read as follows—
‘‘SEC. 101. (a) The administrator of each employee
benefit plan shall cause to be furnished in accordance with
section 104(b) to each participant covered under the plan
and to each beneficiary who is receiving benefits under the
plan the information described in sections 104(b)(1) and
105(a) and (c).’’.
(2) Section 101(b) of such Act (29 U.S.C.
1021(b)) is amended by striking paragraph (1) and
redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5), as
paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and (4), respectively.
(3) Section 102(a)(1) of such Act (29 U.S.C.
1022(a)(1)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘SEC. 102. (a)(1) A report shall be furnished to par-
ticipants and beneficiaries as provided in section 104(b).’’.
(4) Section 102(b) of such Act (29 U.S.C.
1022(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘and summary plan
description’’ and inserting ‘‘report’’.
(5) Section 103(a)(3)(A) of such Act (29
U.S.C. 1023 (a)(3)(A)) is amended in the second
sentence by striking ‘‘104(b)(3)’’ and inserting
‘‘104(b)(1) (A) and (C)’’.
(6) Section 104(a)(1)(C) of such Act (29
U.S.C. 1024(a)(1)(C)) is amended to read as fol-
lows:
‘‘(C) a copy of the materials required to be fur-
nished to participants and beneficiaries pursuant to
subsection (b)(1) of this section; and’’.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply with respect to plan years begin-
ning on or after January 1, 1998.
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