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Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act

Public Law 113-97 · H.R. 4275 · 113th Congress · began in the House

Signed by Barack Obama (D) on Apr 7, 2014 · Labor and Employment

Sponsor: Rep. Susan Brooks (R-IN-5)

Cosponsors (1): Rep. Ron Kind

Passage votes

  • HouseVoice vote
  • SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes

The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.

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Summary

The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.

Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act - (Sec. 2) Declares that: (1) defined benefit pension plans are a cost-effective way for cooperative associations and charities to provide their employees with economic security in retirement, (2) many cooperative associations and charitable organizations are only able to provide their employees with defined benefit pension plans because those organizations are able to pool their resources using the multiple employer plan structure, and (3) the pension funding rules should encourage cooperative associations and charities to continue to provide their employees with pension benefits.

(Sec. 3) Makes this Act generally applicable to years beginning after December 31, 2013.

Title I: Amendments to Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and Other Provisions - (Sec. 101) Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to define a "cooperative and small employer charity pension plan" (CSEC pension plan), for purposes of this Act, as an employee pension benefit plan that is a defined benefit pension plan: (1) to which certain provisions of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 apply; or (2) that, as of June 25, 2010, was maintained by more than one employer all of whom were tax-exempt charitable organizations.

(Sec. 102) Establishes minimum funding standards for CSEC pension plans. Allows a CSEC plan that uses a funding method that requires contributions in all years to maintain an alternative minimum funding standard account for any plan year.

Permits the Secretary of the Treasury to extend an amortization of any unfunded liability of a CSEC pension plan for up to 10 years if the Secretary determines that: (1) such extension would carry out the purposes of this Act and would provide adequate protection for plan participants and their beneficiaries, and (2) failure to permit such extension would result in a substantial risk to the voluntary continuation of the plan or a substantial curtailment of pension benefit levels or employee compensation.

Sets forth rules for valuation of CSEC pension plan assets, allowable contributions, and plan liquidity. Imposes a lien in favor of a CSEC plan for failure to make required contributions.

Authorizes the Secretary to prescribe mortality tables to determine current liability of CSEC plans.

Requires a CSEC plan sponsor to establish a written funding restoration plan within 180 days after receipt of a certification from the plan actuary that the plan is in funding restoration status for a plan year.

(Sec. 103) Allows a CSEC plan sponsor to elect not to treat such plan as a CSEC plan in plan years beginning after 2013.

Amends the Pension Protection Act of 2006 to allow a pension plan sponsor an election to cease treating a plan as an eligible charity plan for plan years beginning after 2013.

(Sec. 104) Requires notices to participants in a CSEC plan to include: (1) a statement that different rules apply to CSEC plans than apply to single-employer plans; (2) for the first two years beginning after December 31, 2013, a statement that, as a result of changes made by this Act, the contributions to the plan may have changed; and (3) a statement that a CSEC plan is in funding restoration status. Authorizes the Secretary of Labor to modify the model notice required by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 to include such statements.

Requires the annual report for employee benefit plans required by ERISA to include a list of participating employers and a good faith estimate of the percentage of total contributions made by such employers during the plan year.

(Sec. 105) Requires the Participant and Plan Sponsor Advocate established by ERISA to make itself available to assist CSEC plan sponsors and participants.

Title II: Amendments to Internal Revenue Code of 1986 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to CSEC plans, to set forth rules for such plans similar to those rules added to ERISA in title I of this Act.

Committees

The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.

Data notes

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Related bills

1 bill the Library of Congress relates to this one.

  • S. 1302Related billRelated document

    Cooperative and Small Employer Charity Pension Flexibility Act

Data notes

Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.

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Timeline

From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 12 actions.

  1. Apr 7, 2014Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 113-97.
  2. Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
  3. Mar 27, 2014FloorFloor · Presented to President.
  4. Mar 25, 2014FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
  5. FloorFloor · See also S. 1302.
  6. FloorFloor · Received in the Senate, read twice, considered, read the third time, and passed, pursuant to the order of January 28, 2014, without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
  7. Mar 24, 2014FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.
  8. FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 4275.
  9. FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
  10. FloorFloor · Mrs. Brooks (IN) moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
  11. Mar 18, 2014CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
  12. IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in House
Data notes

Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.

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Amendments

No amendments to this bill are on record.

Data notes

Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.

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Official record

The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.