Pension Funding Relief and PBGC Premium Increases in Final Highway Legislation

On June 29, the House and Senate each passed a House-Senate Conference Agreement on federal highway and surface transportation legislation (H.R. 4348), and President Obama is expected to sign the legislation into law today.  Notably, the final legislation – known as the "Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act" – contains several important pension provisions as key revenue raisers, including pension funding relief that has been sought by the business community and increases in PBGC premiums that have been opposed by the business community.  We summarize the pension-related changes in the final highway bill in the attached memo.