Bill C-567 (Historical)

An Act to amend the Pension Benefits Standards Act, 1985 (protection of the assets)

This bill was last introduced in the 39th Parliament, 2nd Session, which ended in September 2008.

Sponsor

Pat Martin  NDP

Introduced as a private member’s bill. (These don’t often become law.)

Status

Outside the Order of Precedence (a private member's bill that hasn't yet won the draw that determines which private member's bills can be debated), as of June 16, 2008
(This bill did not become law.)

Summary

This is from the published bill. The Library of Parliament often publishes better independent summaries.

This enactment improves the protection of the assets of pension plan members and beneficiaries by
(a) ensuring that members have substantial representation on boards of trustees, pension committees and pension councils;
(b) providing that not more than 10% of the total value of the assets of a pension plan may be held in securities issued by the employer or by a corporation associated with the employer (the limit is currently in the regulations);
(c) preventing pension plan administrators and beneficiaries from being restricted in the sale of the employer’s securities unless the directors and officers of the employer are similarly restricted, and in any event for not more than a year; and
(d) requiring that information that affects or is likely to affect the value of securities be provided to pension plan administrators and to persons with the power to trade in those securities at the same time it is provided to anyone other than the directors, officers, management and advisors of the employer.

Elsewhere

All sorts of information on this bill is available at LEGISinfo, an excellent resource from the Library of Parliament. You can also read the full text of the bill.

Pension Benefits Standards Act, 1985Routine Proceedings

June 16th, 2008 / 3:10 p.m.
See context

NDP

Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-567, An Act to amend the Pension Benefits Standards Act, 1985 (protection of the assets).

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to introduce this bill on behalf of many members of pension plans. This bill would ensure members have guaranteed representation on boards of trustees so that members and beneficiaries are represented on trustee boards, pension committees and pension councils.

It would also provide, and this is what we call the Enron clause, that not more than 10% of the total value of assets in a pension plan may be held in securities issued by the company where the employees work or by a corporation associated with the company.

It also would prevent pension plan administrators and beneficiaries from being restricted in the sale of the employer's securities unless the directors and officers of the employer are similarly limited and, in any event, for not more than year.

Finally, to ensure that pension benefits are adequately cared for, it would require that information that affects or is likely to affect the value of the security be provided to pension plan administrators at the same time as it is provided to anyone other than the directors, officers, managers, et cetera, to prevent insider trading problems.

This is very important legislation to ensure that what happened to Enron employees in the United States does not happen to employees working for Canadian firms in this country.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)