42 Million Americans are in danger of losing their pensions! ENRON accounting for Pensions.

These pensions are already under-funded. Not one piece of legislation suggested ADDING ADDITIONAL MONEY, or reducing benefits. It doesnt have to go this way. These are existing solutions in the world today. This is not the answer."

Media Contact:
Tom Dillon
(916) 786-6474
tom.dillon@surewest.net   

42 Million Americans are in danger of losing their pensions. ENRON accounting for Pensions.

Roseville, California - August, 2003 - Three years of substantial stock market loses have placed over 75% of Union pension plans at risk of failure to meet MINIMUM-funding requirements (bankruptcy).

The Segal Company (which advises nearly 25% of all MULTIEMPLOYER defined benefit plans (Union Pensions)), in a study conducted for the National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Pension plans, (the NCCMP), showed that

Overall, over 75% of plans are projected to have a minimum funding problem at some point if all of the recent investment experience makes its way into the actuarial value of assets, absent a change to increase contributions or reduce benefits), and that these troubled plans are not limited to any particular industry, or size, but included a cross section of plans by industry, geographic area and size."

According to Tom Dillon, President of Dillon Blonskij Financial Services, As bad as this situation is, the proposed legislative solutions are worse:

"Smooth out loses over longer times (30 years)
Dont reflect actual market valuations (pretend we still have money)
Change assumed rates of returns (change the assumed rate and add a lot less money)

"These pensions are already under-funded. Not one piece of legislation suggested ADDING ADDITIONAL MONEY, or reducing benefits. It doesnt have to go this way. These are existing solutions in the world today. This is not the answer."

Unions currently have 16+ million members in the United States. When retirees and other beneficiaries are added together the pension risk applies to just over 42 million Americans.