Pension Plans:
Hidden Liabilities Increase Claims Against Government Insurance Program
HRD-93-7: Published: Dec 30, 1992. Publicly Released: Dec 30, 1992.
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Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation's (PBGC) pension plans and its vulnerability to unfunded liabilities, focusing on: (1) factors which cause hidden liabilities; (2) the impact on recent claims against the pension insurance program; and (3) PBGC ability to control these factors.
GAO found that: (1) PBGC exposure to private pension unfunded liability claims totalled $2.7 billion, which included $990 million in hidden liabilities; (2) when pension plans terminated with insufficient assets, PBGC frequently absorbed unfunded liabilities which were considerably greater than the plan reported; (3) 81 percent of the hidden liabilities increased because of pension plan liabilities and decreases in pension plan assets; (4) differing actuarial assumptions including interest rates, mortality rates, and retirement age accounted for 31 percent of discrepancies between the reported plan liabilities and PBGC calculations; (5) reasons for reductions in pension plan assets included lump sum payments, annuity purchases, unpaid contributions, market losses, inappropriate asset use, and asset overvaluation; (6) 25 percent of PBGC liability resulted from company pension plan shutdown benefits; (7) PBGC has few tools to control its exposure to unfunded liabilities, since PBGC guarantees worker pensions without regard to the amount of unfunded liability; (8) PBGC inability to restrict claims has created an institutional moral hazard for plan sponsors by giving them incentives to shift their liabilities onto PBGC; and (9) tools which could assist in controlling hidden liabilities could impose additional costs on plan participants, plan sponsors, and the government.
Feb 24, 2021
Financial Services:
Fair Lending, Access, and Retirement SecurityGAO-21-399T: Published: Feb 24, 2021. Publicly Released: Feb 24, 2021.
Jan 19, 2021
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Elder Justice:
HHS Could Do More to Encourage State Reporting on the Costs of Financial ExploitationGAO-21-90: Published: Dec 18, 2020. Publicly Released: Jan 19, 2021.
Oct 30, 2020
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Retirement Security:
Other Countries' Experiences with Caregiver PoliciesGAO-20-623: Published: Sep 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 30, 2020.
Sep 24, 2020
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Retirement Security:
Older Women Report Facing a Financially Uncertain FutureGAO-20-718T: Published: Sep 24, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 24, 2020.
Aug 28, 2020
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Retirement Security:
DOL Could Better Inform Divorcing Parties About Dividing SavingsGAO-20-541: Published: Jul 31, 2020. Publicly Released: Aug 28, 2020.
Aug 13, 2020
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Retirement Security:
Older Women Report Facing a Financially Uncertain FutureGAO-20-435: Published: Jul 14, 2020. Publicly Released: Aug 13, 2020.
Jun 16, 2020
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Retirement Security:
BLS Should Explore Ways to Improve the Accuracy, Timeliness, and Relevance of Its Cost-of-Living MeasurementsGAO-20-422: Published: Jun 16, 2020. Publicly Released: Jun 16, 2020.
Feb 27, 2020
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Private Pensions:
IRS and DOL Should Strengthen Oversight of Executive Retirement PlansGAO-20-70: Published: Jan 28, 2020. Publicly Released: Feb 27, 2020.
Jan 9, 2020
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Social Security Disability:
Action Needed to Help Agency Staff Understand and Follow Policies Related to Prescription Opioid MisuseGAO-20-120: Published: Jan 9, 2020. Publicly Released: Jan 9, 2020.
Dec 18, 2019
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Capitol Police:
Potential Effects of Raising the Mandatory Retirement AgeGAO-20-137R: Published: Dec 18, 2019. Publicly Released: Dec 18, 2019.
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