DOL Announces Leadership, New Members of ERISA Advisory Council

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) on April 15 announced the appointment of the leadership of the 2022 Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans—also known as the ERISA Advisory Council—as well as seven new members to it.

Leadership 

Peter Wiedenbeck, who is a current member, will serve as the chair of the 2022 Council. He is the Joseph H. Zumbalen Professor of the Law of Property at Washington University School of Law. Megan Broderick will serve as vice chair. She is Senior Director for Global Retirement and Financial Wellbeing at PepsiCo. and leads the strategy, design and governance team for more than 120 PepsiCo retirement programs.

New Members

The new members are as follows, by industry sector: 

Actuarial Counseling: Tonya Manning, U.S. Wealth Practice Leader and Chief Actuary for Buck Global LLC.  

Employee Organizations: Marcelle J. Henry, partner and the chairperson of the ERISA/Employee Benefits Group at Pitta LLP. 

Employee Organizations: Shaun C. O’Brien, Policy Director for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. 

Employers: Holly Verdeyen, partner at Mercer, who leads Mercer’s defined contribution retirement plan and financial wellness business in the U.S.  

General Public: Jeffrey Lewis, partner at Keller Rohrback LLP who has specialized in employee benefits law for more than 45 years and has been a litigator on behalf of plan participants and retirees.  

Insurance: Alice Palmer, Vice President and Chief Counsel for Retirement Plan Service for Lincoln Financial Group. 

Investment Counseling: Beth Halberstadt, senior partner and U.S. Defined Contribution Investment Solutions Leader for Aon Investments USA Inc.  

About the Council 

The ERISA Advisory Council, which has 15 members, provides advice on policies and regulations affecting employee benefit plans governed by ERISA. 

By law, members serve for staggered 3-year terms representing nine fields. Three members represent employee organizations, three represent employers and three represent the public. One member is selected from the accounting, actuarial counseling, corporate trust, insurance, investment counseling and investment management fields.