29 U.S.C. § 1147 — National Summit on Retirement Savings

(a) Authority to call Summit. By July 15, 1998, the President had to convene a White House National Summit on Retirement Income Savings, co-hosted by the President and the House Speaker, House Minority Leader, Senate Majority Leader, and Senate Minority Leader. Another Summit had to be held in 2001 and 2005 on or after September 1. It must (1) improve public understanding of retirement savings and its importance to workers and families, (2) help develop broad public education encouraging personal retirement saving, (3) recommend research, reforms, and actions about private pensions and individual savings, and (4) distribute its report and information and display its materials and works. (b) Planning. The Secretary directs the Summit, consulting and receiving help, including personnel, from Federal departments and agencies designated by the President. The Secretary must consult the congressional leaders in (e)(2) and at least one private-business and association organization partnered with government to promote long-term retirement security through saving. (c) Purposes. The Summit must increase awareness of personal retirement saving; advance understanding of retirement savings; help develop public education; identify workers’ problems saving enough; identify employers’ barriers, especially for small employers; examine employers’ efforts to promote saving and participation in company options; examine Federal, State, and local programs educating about and encouraging saving; develop specific comprehensive recommendations for government and private action; and recommend coordination of retirement-savings initiatives among Federal, State, and local governments. (d) Scope. It covers individual and employer retirement savings, not the Social Security Act title II old-age, survivors, and disability insurance program. (e) Participants. (1) The Summit must bring together employee-benefit and retirement-savings professionals and others; Members of Congress and executive officials; State and local representatives; private institutions, including employers, concerned with promoting savings; and the public. (2) Participants must include, or their designees: House Speaker and Minority Leader; Senate Majority and Minority Leaders; the Education and Workforce Committee’s chair and ranking Member; the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee’s chair and ranking Member; the Senate Aging Committee’s chair and ranking Member; the chairs and ranking Members of the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Subcommittees of the Senate and House; and the parties in (b). (3)(A) There may be no more than 200 additional participants. Half are appointed by the President after consulting the President’s congressional party leaders, and half by the other party’s congressional leaders, with each half divided between House and Senate leaders as specified in the statute. (B) They had to be appointed by January 31, 1998, without regard to party or past partisan activity, and represent diverse views in employee benefits and retirement savings. (4) Executive and legislative representatives must preside equally. (f) Administration. (1) The Secretary must request appropriate Federal and other cooperation; help State, area, and other organizations hold related conferences; publish a proposed agenda for public comment reflecting the Summit’s purposes; prepare needed background materials; and appoint and set pay for needed personnel without applying title 5 competitive-service appointment, classification, or General Schedule pay provisions. (2) The Secretary must ensure broad Federal, State, local, private, and professional participation; publish the agenda in the Federal Register; and fairly balance personnel viewpoints and appoint them without regard to party or prior partisan activity. (3) Title 5 chapter 10 does not apply. (g) Report. Within 90 days after adjournment, the Secretary must report the Summit’s activities to the President, specified congressional leaders, and each State’s chief executive officer. (h) “State” means a State, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and any other United States territory or possession. (i) Congress authorizes necessary sums for fiscal years beginning on or after October 1, 1997. The Secretary may accept private money, supplies, or services for the public-private Summit. (j) For fiscal year 1998, Labor’s financial obligation may not exceed the lesser of half the Summit’s cost or $250,000; the contracted private-sector organization must pay the balance. (k) The Secretary may contract for these duties and must use a sole-source contract to finish the 1998 Summit on time.