SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) over 51 million American workers, rep-
resenting about half of the private-sector workforce,
do not have an employer-provided pension;
(2) 600,000 private pension plans are spon-
sored by firms with less than 100 employees;
(3) 32 million Americans working for small
businesses do not have employer-provided pensions;
(4) over $3,500,000,000,000 is invested in the
private pension system;
(5) approximately $400,000,000,000 is invested
in pension plans serving companies with less than
100 employees;
(6) billions of dollars in small pension plans are
potentially at risk because they are held by unregu-
lated persons;
(7) public confidence in the private pension sys-
tem is eroded when workers and their families lose
their retirement assets due to fraud, embezzlement,
or mismanagement;
(8) it is a goal of the Congress to improve pri-
vate pension security for employees of small busi-
nesses;
(9) it is a goal and the responsibility of the
Congress to protect the assets of small plans, not
only for the benefit of workers and their families,
but also to increase public confidence in the private
pension system, thereby encouraging greater partici-
pation in the system; and
(10) protection of the assets of small pension
plans must be balanced against regulatory burdens
which can discourage small businesses from offering
pension plans.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to provide an enhanced level of protection
for the assets of small pension plans;
(2) to give the employees and owners of small
businesses the tools to ensure that their retirement
assets are being handled in a secure fashion;
(3) to increase public confidence in the private
pension system;
(4) to ensure that the employees of small busi-
nesses know how to obtain accurate information
about their pension plan assets; and
(5) to provide clear, enforceable standards gov-
erning 
disclosure 
of 
financial 
information 
by
custodians of small pension plans to workers and
their families.
SEC. 3. REQUIREMENTS FOR SMALL PENSION PLANS RE-
LATING TO HOLDERS OF PLAN ASSETS AND
ANNUAL ASSET STATEMENTS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (2) of section 104(a)
of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974
(29 U.S.C. 1024(a)(2)) is amended—
(1) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as sub-
paragraph (C); and
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol-
lowing new subparagraph:
‘‘(B) Subparagraph (A) shall apply in connection
with any annual report otherwise required to be filed by
the administrator of any such plan only if—
‘‘(i) the assets of the plan are held by an en-
tity—
‘‘(I) in a manner permitted in section
403(b), or
‘‘(II) which is a bank or other person who
is approved by the Secretary of the Treasury
pursuant to section 408(a)(2) of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, and
‘‘(ii) under the terms of the plan, such entity is
required to provide to each participant and bene-
ficiary, upon request, a written statement setting
forth a listing of the assets of the plan held by such
entity and the value of such assets as of the most
recent valuation date.
Any such entity shall also provide to the Secretary, upon
request, a written statement described in clause (ii). Such
entity shall certify as to the authenticity and accuracy of
the information contained in any statement provided pur-
suant to this subparagraph. The Secretary may prescribe
regulations setting forth the form and manner in which
any such statement is to be provided.’’.
(b) NOTIFICATION
OF RIGHT TO ASSET STATE-
MENT.—Subsection (b) of section 104 of such Act (29
U.S.C. 1024(b)) is amended—
(1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para-
graph (5); and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the follow-
ing new paragraph:
‘‘(4) The administrator of each pension plan for
which simplified annual reports are prescribed pursuant
to subsection (a)(2)(A) shall notify its participants and
beneficiaries of their right under subsection (a)(2)(B)(ii)
to request an asset statement from an entity holding the
assets of the plan. Such notification shall also inform them
of their right to request that the Secretary of Labor make
such requests on their behalf. Such notification shall be
included as part of the materials necessary to fairly sum-
marize the latest annual report.’’.
(c) LIABILITY OF ADMINISTRATOR FOR FAILURE TO
ENSURE PROMPT DISTRIBUTION OF REQUESTED STATE-
MENTS.—Subsection (c) of section 502 of such Act (29
U.S.C. 1132(c)) is amended—
(1) by redesignating paragraph (7) as para-
graph (8); and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (6) the follow-
ing new paragraph:
‘‘(7)(A)(i) In any case in which an entity described
in section 104(a)(2)(B)(i) holding the assets of a pension
plan fails or refuses to comply with a request, by a partici-
pant or beneficiary under the plan, for any statement
which such entity is required by the plan, pursuant to sec-
tion 104(a)(2)(B)(ii), to provide to such participant or
beneficiary by mailing the material requested to the last
known address of the requesting participant or beneficiary
within 30 days after the date of the receipt of such re-
quest, the administrator of such plan may in the court’s
discretion be personally liable to such participant or bene-
ficiary in the amount of up to $100 a day from the date
of such failure or refusal, and the court may in its discre-
tion order such other relief as it deems proper. The Sec-
retary may prescribe, by regulation, alternate means of
satisfying the requirements of this clause.
‘‘(ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, each viola-
tion described in clause (i) with respect to any single par-
ticipant or beneficiary shall be treated as a separate viola-
tion.
‘‘(iii) No liability shall arise under this subparagraph
for any failure resulting from matters reasonably beyond
the control of the entity or the plan administrator.
‘‘(B)(i) If, within 30 days after a request by the Sec-
retary to an entity described in section 104(a)(2)(B)(i)
holding the assets of a pension plan, the entity fails to
provide the asset statement requested to the Secretary, the
Secretary may assess a civil penalty against the plan ad-
ministrator of up to $100 a day from the date of such
failure.
‘‘(ii) No penalty shall be imposed under this subpara-
graph for any failure resulting from matters reasonably
beyond the control of the entity or the plan administrator,
as determined by the Secretary in the Secretary’s sole dis-
cretion.
‘‘(C) For purposes of this paragraph, the inclusion
of materially incorrect or incomplete information in any
statement provided in response to a request made pursu-