PROCEDURES APPLICABLE TO DISPUTES INVOLVING PENSION PLAN WITHDRAWAL LIABILITY.

SEC. 202. PROCEDURES APPLICABLE TO DISPUTES INVOLVING PENSION PLAN WITHDRAWAL LIABILITY. (a) In General.—Section 4221 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1401) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: “(f) Procedures Applicable to Certain Disputes. “(1) In general. If— “(A) a plan sponsor of a plan determines that— “(i) a complete or partial withdrawal of an employer has occurred, or “(ii) an employer is liable for withdrawal liability payments with respect to the complete or partial withdrawal of an employer from the plan, “(B) such determination is based in whole or in part on a finding by the plan sponsor under section 4212(c) that a principal purpose of a transaction that occurred before January 1, 1999, was to evade or avoid withdrawal liability under this subtitle, and “(C) such transaction occurred at least 5 years before the date of the complete or partial withdrawal, then the special rules under paragraph (2) shall be used in applying subsections (a) and (d) of this section and section 4219(c) to the employer. “(2) Special rules. “(A) Determination. Notwithstanding subsection (a)(3)— “(i) a determination by the plan sponsor under paragraph (1)(B) shall not be presumed to be correct, and “(ii) the plan sponsor shall have the burden to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, the elements of the claim under section 4212(c) that a principal purpose of the transaction was to evade or avoid withdrawal liability under this subtitle. Nothing in this subparagraph shall affect the burden of establishing any other element of a claim for withdrawal liability under this subtitle. “(B) Procedure. Notwithstanding subsection (d) and section 4219(c), if an employer contests the plan sponsor’s determination under paragraph (1) through an arbitration proceeding pursuant to subsection (a), or through a claim brought in a court of competent jurisdiction, the employer shall not be obligated to make any withdrawal liability payments until a final decision in the arbitration proceeding, or in court, upholds the plan sponsor’s determination.” . (b) [26 U.S.C. 1401 note] Effective Date.—The amendments made by this section shall apply to any employer that receives a notification under section 4219(b)(1) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1399(b)(1)) after October 31, 2003.