Today Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-03) and Senator Roy Blunt (MO) introduced the Vested Employee Pension Benefit Protection Act. This legislation will codify decades of precedent into law, ensuring pension beneficiaries can take early retirement and return to, or remain in, covered employment.

“More than 20,000 hardworking families in Missouri and Illinois rely upon the St. Louis Carpenters’ Pension Plan as an integral part of their long-term financial planning. Many expected to take advantage of early retirement benefits until the IRS abruptly reversed course in 2009, instituting a major policy shift which no longer allowed early retirees to continue working,” said Luetkemeyer. “The Vested Employee Pension Benefit Protection Act will provide certainty to Missouri families by codifying this longstanding practice into law and ensuring the pension benefits they earned will be there when they need it most.”

“These men and women have worked hard to earn the benefits they were promised when they were hired,” said Blunt. “This bill will ensure early retirees who choose to supplement their income by going back to work or continuing their career won’t have to sacrifice their pension because of an unfair policy change by the IRS. It’s the right thing to do for the thousands of workers who have every right to depend on their benefits being there when they need them. I’ll continue working with my colleagues to move the bill forward.”

Vested Employee Pension Benefit Protection Act

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