Two days before Christmas, the House Rules Committee did not rule in a bill amendment for inclusion in the final federal omnibus spending bill.
Although the House passed the Susan Muffley Act in July 2022, it did not win Senate assent several weeks later, stalling when a senator objected for apparent procedural reasons. President Biden had said he would sign the bill if it made it to his desk.
The act, named after a Delphi retiree, would have used federal funds to restore the pensions of retired engineers and managers from former auto parts producer Delphi, a company that once employed thousands of Dayton-area residents.
With this new introduction in the 118th Congress, Turner will be joined by co-sponsors Reps Dan Kildee, D-Mich., Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., and Gwen Moore, D-Wisc.
Salaried retirees from a then-bankrupt Delphi saw their pensions diminished when the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC) assumed control of the company’s pensions in 2009, reduced by up to 70% in some cases, all while General Motors, Delphi’s former owner, continued to support the pensions of hourly, union-represented Delphi workers.
The PBGC’s takeover of the pensions affected more than 20,000 salaried retirees nationwide — including over 5,000 in Ohio.
Retirees sued the PBGC in federal court, a case that worked its way for more than 12 years to a January 2022 decision by the Supreme Court not to hear a final appeal from the retirees.
The Delphi Salaried Retirees Association (DSRA), a group of Delphi retirees, “are most grateful to have Congressman Turner’s unwavering support in this very long fight for justice,” Washington Twp. resident Mary Miller said. “There have been so many twists and turns along the way, more than anyone could have ever anticipated, and through it all Congressman Turner has never given up; his commitment is a bright light that helps the DSRA to keep moving forward in order to win back the pensions we earned and counted on having during retirement.”
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