White House Pushes $1 Billion Delphi Pension Bill for 20,000 Retirees

Q: After 17 years, what is the final hurdle preventing 20,000 retirees from receiving their lost pensions?

The final hurdle is congressional action: lawmakers still have not approved the Susan Muffley Act or the related $1 billion funding needed for the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation to restore Delphi retirees’ lost benefits. After 17 years, the dispute is no longer mainly about eligibility or the underlying claim. The White House has asked Congress to provide the money so PBGC can raise benefits for the more than 20,000 affected salaried retirees, but the legislation remains stalled. A key setback came when the House Rules Committee moved forward on another bill without adding the Delphi pension provision, leaving the retirees without a legislative vehicle. The broader problem is procedural gridlock. The pension fix is tied to larger budget and appropriations decisions, and Congress has not yet completed the steps needed to move the funding and authorizing language through both chambers. Even though the measure has bipartisan backing and strong support from advocates in Ohio and Michigan, that support has not yet translated into final passage. In practical terms, retirees are waiting on one thing: Congress must pass the measure and fund it. Until that happens, the promised lump-sum payments covering 15 years of lost pension benefits, plus 6 percent interest for the delay, cannot be issued.

1 articles · Updated · WFMJ · Jul 2

$1 billion in restored benefits for more than 20,000 Delphi salaried retirees is still stalled in Congress, even as the White House and the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber press for quick passage.
The Susan Muffley Act would repay pension benefits lost after General Motors terminated Delphi-sponsored plans during its 2009 bankruptcy, with a lump-sum catch-up payment plus 6% interest for roughly 15 years of missed benefits.
About 70% of Delphi salaried employees were hit by the cuts, including roughly 6,000 retirees in Michigan and 5,100 in Ohio, where backers say restored payments would return millions of dollars to local economies.
The renewed push adds national weight to a long-running grievance tied to GM's restructuring, with supporters urging the House to move the bill first and the Senate to send it to the president.