The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp (PBGC) is something that the media likes to say is “not funded by taxpayer dollars.” This story makes the usual claim: “The PBGC, whose costs are paid by premiums assessed on businesses, and money in the pension funds it takes over….”
The PBGC, which just took over Metaldyne Corp’s pension plans last week, just committed to its 2nd most costly takeover ever, after the United Airlines bailout, as it took over Delphi’s pension plans, which will cost $6.25 billion.
The government-owned PBGC has a $30+ billion deficit, and it has not yet begun to take over auto industry pension plans. Earlier this year, the Washington Post reported:
Despite the deficit, the PBGC will be able to meet its obligations to pensioners for many years, the agency’s acting director, Vincent K. Snowbarger, told the panel. That’s because the payments it owes are not due all at once; they are spread over the beneficiaries’ lifetimes, Snowbarger explained.
Talk about a (often ignored) government ponzi scheme! You can bet that American taxpayers are being set up to bail out this monstrosity.
