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GGD-96-24R 1 (1995-10-12)

handle is hein.gao/gaobackyt0001 and id is 1 raw text is: (3 O United States GAO General Accounting Office Washington, D.C. 20548 General Government Division B-261981 October 12, 1995 The Honorable Dan Miller House of Representatives Dear Mr. Miller: In a meeting with your office on January 26, 1995, we were asked to gather certain information relating to your proposal to change the retirement system provisions for Members of Congress. Specifically, we were asked to provide information on (1) the cost of retirement benefits afforded to Members, (2) the cost of retirement benefits afforded to congressional staff, (3) the potential savings available from your proposal, (4) how retirement systems in the private sector compare with the congressional retirement program, and (5) the extent to which nonfederal employers may be replacing their defined benefit pension plans with defined contribution pension plans.' As discussed during the meeting, much of the information requested on congressional retirement costs was not readily available. As a result, we had to arrange with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to retrieve information, where possible, from its databases and to request salary and retirement system coverage information from the House Finance Office and the Senate Disbursing Office. In preparing responses to the questions pertaining to nonfederal retirement programs, we relied on our earlier reports and ongoing work in the retirement area, along with analyses of nonfederal retirement programs others had published. 'A defined benefit pension plan specifies a formula for computing benefit amounts payable at retirement based on age, length of plan participation, and earnings history. A defined contribution pension plan specifies amounts the employer (and employees, if required) will contribute to the plan. The accumulated contributions, plus investment earnings, constitute the source of retirement benefits from a defined contribution plan. Put simply, a defined benefit plan specifies benefit amounts, and a defined contribution plan specifies contribution amounts. GAO/GGD-96-24R Congressional Retirement Costs

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