§1304 Participant and Plan Sponsor Advocate

Summary

The board of directors must pick a Participant and Plan Sponsor Advocate from people the advisory committee nominates under section 1302(h)(1). The pick does not follow the usual title 5 hiring rules. The Advocate must act as a link between the corporation, sponsors of insured defined benefit pension plans, and plan participants. The Advocate must push for participants’ rights, help sponsors and participants settle disputes with the corporation, find recurring problems, suggest changes to how the corporation runs things, point out possible changes to laws or rules, and report fraud, waste, abuse, or legal violations to the corporation’s Office of the Inspector General. If the Advocate is removed or moved, the board must tell Congress in writing at least 30 days before the action. Other lawful personnel actions are not blocked. Pay must match the highest Senior Executive Service basic rate under 5 U.S.C. 5382, or a rate the board sets under 5 U.S.C. 9503. By December 31 each year, the Advocate must send a report to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee; the Senate Committee on Finance; the House Committee on Education and the Workforce; and the House Committee on Ways and Means. The report, covering the fiscal year that ended that calendar year, must summarize help requests, describe and evaluate the Advocate’s work, name major problems, include specific legislative and regulatory fixes, and note any steps taken on problems from past reports. A copy must also go at the same time to the Secretary of Labor, the corporation’s Director, and any other appropriate official.