Apache Tribe Sues Labor Department Over $140,000 Pension Penalty

The Labor Department’s employee benefits arm is inconsistently regulating and assessing penalties against the pension plans of Indian tribal governments, an Arizona-based Apache Indian tribe said in a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The White Mountain Apache Tribe’s lawsuit challenges $140,000 in penalties that the DOL’s Employee Benefits Security Administration assessed in connection with its annual pension plan filings. The tribe says the agency failed to provide comprehensive guidance on the pension plans of tribal governments and began penalizing good-faith attempted compliance without warning.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday, claims the tribe continually sought ...