109th CONGRESS

2d Session

S. 2794

To ensure the equitable provision of pension and medical benefits to Department of Energy contractor employees.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

May 11, 2006

Mr. KENNEDY (for himself, Mr. REID, Mr. BAUCUS, Mr. BINGAMAN, Mr. HARKIN, Ms. MIKULSKI, and Ms. CANTWELL) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

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A BILL

To ensure the equitable provision of pension and medical benefits to Department of Energy contractor employees.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Department of Energy Contractor Employee Equitable Treatment Act of 2006'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds that--

(1) employment-based pension and medical benefits are critical elements to the retirement security and state of health of working Americans;

(2) the Department of Energy, through the guidance of the Department of Energy relating to contractor employee pension and medical benefits policy (Notice DOE N 351.1 (April 27, 2006)) (referred to in this Act as `Notice DOE N 351.1'), indicated the intent of the Department to cease funding for future defined benefit pension benefits and to reduce the medical benefits for contractor employees;

(3) those policies attack the retirement security and medical benefits of energy workers and workers employed in the defense of the United States, including in the manufacturing and testing of nuclear weapons;

(4) those policies also undermine the ability of employers to provide appropriate and adequate retirement and medical benefits;

(5) defined benefit pension plans have a demonstrated ability to provide secure retirement benefits that furnish steady lifetime retiree income with protection for surviving spouses;

(6) market-based medical benefit plans encourage employers to shift rising health care costs onto employees, particularly less healthy employees, lowering employee compensation and leading to poorer health outcomes without addressing the underlying problem of skyrocketing health care costs; and

(7) the Federal Government should foster employment policies that provide adequate retirement, health, and other employment benefits to the Federal and contractor workforce.

SEC. 3. GUIDANCE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY RELATING TO CONTRACTOR EMPLOYEE PENSION AND MEDICAL BENEFITS POLICY.

(a) In General- No funds made available before, on, or after the date of enactment of this Act shall be expended to implement, administer, or enforce the guidance of the Department of Energy relating to contractor employee pension and medical benefits policy (Notice DOE N 351.1 (April 27, 2006)) (and any successor guidance), or any of the practices described in the guidance.

(b) Withdrawal- Not later than 1 day after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Energy shall withdraw the guidance described in subsection (a).

(c) Reinstatement of Eligibility for Benefits or Benefit Reimbursement- If the Secretary has carried out Notice DOE N 351.1 (and any successor guidance) before the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall reinstate eligibility for benefits or reinstate reimbursement for benefits, as appropriate, in effect as of January 1, 2006, as if Notice DOE N. 351.1 (and any successor guidance) had not been promulgated or carried out.

END