COLUMBUS — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Co-Chair of the House and Senate Joint Select Committee on Pensions, and Committee Member U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) will host a field hearing of the Committee at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus on Friday, July 13.

The hearing, “Understanding What’s at Stake for Current Workers and Retirees,” will allow members of the committee to hear directly from current workers and retirees who will be affected by the pension crisis if nothing is done, according to a joint press release from Ohio’s senators.

It follows a hearing in D.C., where the committee heard from contributing employers about the potential consequences to small businesses and the national economy if no action is taken.

The bipartisan, bicameral committee has been tasked with finding a solution to the pension crisis immediately threatening 1.3 million Americans and thousands of small businesses around the country. Any solution the committee produces would be guaranteed an expedited vote in the Senate without amendments.

Numerous Ohio pension plans, including the massive Central States Teamsters Pension Plan, the United Mine Workers Pension Plan, the Ironworkers Local 17 Pension Plan, the Ohio Southwest Carpenters Pension Plan and the Bakers and Confectioners Pension Plan are currently on the brink of failure, according to the release; and if nothing is done to the plans, they will fail and retirees will face massive cuts to the benefits they earned over decades of work.