The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) today announced that the maximum benefit it will guarantee for retirees in underfunded single- employer defined benefit plans that terminate in the year 2000 will be $3,221.59 per month, or $38,659.08 per year.

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) mandates that the maximum guaranteed amount be adjusted annually based on changes in the Social Security contribution and benefit base.

The maximum guarantee applies to workers who retire at age 65 or later. Maximum guarantees are reduced for retirees taking earlier retirement or electing survivors' benefits. In some instances, where a pension plan has adequate resources or PBGC recovers sufficient amounts, a participant may receive benefits in excess of the maximum guarantee.

About 472,000 workers and retirees in 2,665 pension plans rely on PBGC for their retirement income.

The maximum monthly guaranteed amounts for plans terminating each year for the past ten years are:

PBGC is a federal corporation created under ERISA to guarantee payment of basic pension benefits earned by about 42 million American workers and retirees participating in more than 44,000 private-sector defined benefit pension plans. The agency receives no funds from general tax revenues. Operations are financed largely by insurance premiums paid by companies that sponsor pension plans and investment returns.