The PBGC remains at "high risk" of not being able to cut its deficit, despite the Pension Protection Act provisions intended to enhance the agency's solvency, according to a GAO report issued today. The act's requirements are "unlikely to reverse the long-term decline of the DB system or help the PBGC make up its current deficit, as stricter funding requirements and higher premiums may lead sponsors to terminate or freeze their plans," the General Accountability Office report said. The PBGC's single-employer program had a deficit of $18.1 billion as of Sept. 30. Gary Pastorius, a PBGC spokesman, declined comment.
The GAO first put the PBGC on its list of high-risk federal programs in July 2003.
