S1728-119

What This Bill Does

This bill expands the federal labor-policy infrastructure for employee ownership. It amends ERISA to increase the Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans from 15 members to 17 members and reserves two seats for representatives of employee ownership organizations.

The bill also requires the Secretary of Labor to establish an Office of Employee Ownership, create an Advisory Council on Employee Ownership, and designate an Advocate for Employee Ownership. Those entities are meant to coordinate policy, promote employee-ownership models such as ESOPs and cooperatives, and report on federal efforts.

Who Benefits and How

Employee ownership organizations, ESOP sponsors, worker cooperatives, employee-owned companies, and workers in employee-owned firms benefit from dedicated representation in Department of Labor advisory structures. The ERISA Advisory Council and Department of Labor gain more specialized input on how pension, benefits, and labor policy affect employee ownership.

Who Bears the Burden and How

The Department of Labor and Secretary of Labor must add advisory seats, create the Office of Employee Ownership, stand up the new advisory council, designate an Advocate for Employee Ownership, coordinate federal policy, and handle reporting duties. Existing advisory bodies must absorb additional members and employee-ownership policy work.

Key Provisions

• Expands the ERISA Advisory Council from 15 to 17 members.
• Requires two ERISA Advisory Council seats for representatives of employee ownership organizations.
• Directs the Secretary of Labor to establish an Office of Employee Ownership.
• Creates an Advisory Council on Employee Ownership.
• Establishes an Advocate for Employee Ownership to coordinate, promote, and report on employee-ownership issues.