Much of the $4.7 billion improvement in the PBGC’s insurance program for single-employer pension plans stemmed from airline industry pension funding relief provisions in the recently enacted Pension Protection Act, which resulted in "a sharp reduction in the amount of ‘probable’ liabilities reflected on the agency’s balance sheet," the PBGC said in a statement Wednesday, November 15.

"The PBGC’s financial condition appears to have stabilized for the time being," Vince Snowbargerm, PBGC interim director, said in the statement. "Our current assets can cover pension payments coming due for a number of years into the future, and our exposure to additional losses has declined."

As of September 30, the agency reported assets of $60 billion and liabilities of $78.1 billion. In addition, the PBGC noted that its potential exposure to losses from pension plans sponsored by financially weak employers decreased to $73 billion from $108 billion in 2005.

In its statement, the PBGC attributed that improvement in part to higher interest rates, better credit ratings and improved plan funding at some employers.

—Matt Scroggins

Scroggins is a reporter for Business Insurance, a sister publication of Workforce Management, where this article first appeared.