Dear Leader Thune, Leader Schumer, Chairman Cassidy, Chairman Crapo, Ranking Member Sanders, and Ranking Member Wyden:
On behalf of the undersigned organizations, we are writing in strong support of the nominations of Janet Dhillon to be Director of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation and of Dan Aronowitz to be the Assistant Secretary at the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) at the Department of Labor (DOL). We urge the Senate to vote on their confirmations as soon as practicable.
Both nominees are proven leaders with the experience and expertise to address today’s pressing retirement security issues.
The biggest challenge faced by the retirement plan community today is the proliferation of baseless litigation that is costing the system enormous amounts that are ultimately borne by the plan participants. Mr. Aronowitz has a unique expertise and vast knowledge with respect to retirement plan litigation and is accordingly an excellent choice to address what has become a crisis. Mr. Aronowitz supports the ability of participants to make valid claims where there is evidence of wrongdoing, as do we, but the current system has enabled baseless claims to move forward in the hopes of obtaining settlements, benefiting plaintiffs’ lawyers at the expense of plan participants and retirement plan coverage and benefits.
The biggest challenges facing the defined benefit plan system are the strong forces pushing plan sponsors to exit the system, including excessive PBGC premiums, funding and accounting volatility, and plan litigation. Ms. Dhillon has experience with defined benefit plans, so that she is well positioned to address those challenges. And she has an excellent track record of leadership, including her tenure at the EEOC. We believe that Ms. Dhillon has the skill set to provide leadership at PBGC that will support workers, retirees, and the companies and plans that provide benefits to millions of Americans, while preserving the voluntary nature of the defined benefit system.
We urge the Senate to approve both of these nominations at its earliest convenience, so that Mr. Aronowitz and Ms. Dhillon can take the next steps forward on their path to improving the retirement security of Americans. We thank you for your consideration of our views.
Sincerely,
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Stable Value Investment Association
The SPARK Institute
The Institute for Portfolio Alternatives
The ERISA Industry Committee
The ESOP Association
The Defined Contribution Alternatives Association
Investment Company Institute
Finseca
American Benefits Council
