mr. speaker , i rise in reluctant support of the pension protection act of 2005 , h.r. 2830 . 
i commend the authors of this bill who worked with elements of the union movement to craft legislation designed to address some of the issues affecting the employer-provided pension system . 
key stakeholders in michigan 's 13th congressional district support the bill that we will consider today . 
organizations like general motors , ford motor company , the united auto workers union , building trade unions , northwest airlines , airline pilots , flight attendants , and more have contacted my office to express their support for the bill . 
the leadership of my party has pointed out that the bill has several major shortcomings . 
my leadership argues that h.r. 2830 does very little over the long-term to strengthen traditional , defined benefit plans . 
had the majority permitted members on my side of the aisle to amend the bill , i am sure that our suggestions would go a long way to improving the legislative product before us . 
we , however , are being denied that opportunity , and i must decide what best represents the interests of the income security needs of my southeast michigan constituents . 
after careful examination , i have decided to support the passage of h.r. 2830 , but with the hope that it will be improved when a compromised is reached with the other body . 
my district is the center of the world automotive industry . 
as my colleagues know , the economic condition of the gm , ford motor and daimler-chrysler is under stress . 
the workers employed in local plant sites throughout the nation feel their future income security is threatened because their pensions are dependent on the financial health of company-sponsored plans . 
all in all , this bill strengthens funding for employer pension plans and includes reforms advocated by companies and unions who participate in multi-employer pension plans . 
therefore , i vote for this bill with hope that it will move the process forward to address the pension concerns of the airline industry and airline employees and the concerns of our steelworkers , who take exception with shutdown provisions of the bill to address the pension needs of companies in total `` shutdown '' status . 
