The head of the Senate Finance Committee said on Thursday he would try to add U.S. airline pension relief to a tax bill if Senate and House negotiators are unable to finish broad pension legislation.

Republican Charles Grassley of Iowa, chairman of the Senate panel, said he was frustrated by a two-month delay in naming congressional negotiators to reconcile the Senate and House versions of pension reform legislation.
"If we don't get this resolved right away, I'm going to look into pulling the airline relief and the post-Enron reforms out of the pension bill, adding them to the tax reconciliation bill," Grassley said in a statement.

Such a move would effectively kill the broader pension reform legislation, Grassley said.

Last November, the Senate approved a bill that would strengthen traditional corporate pensions and shore up a deficit-ridden pension insurance agency. The package also included language that would give distressed airlines up to 20 years to repair their underfunded pension plans, in addition to the seven years provided by the bill to all companies.

While both chambers have passed pension bills, negotiations over a merged version have been delayed while Senate leaders feud over the size of the negotiating committee.

Democrats have demanded to add one more of their number, so that there would be eight republican senators and six democrats, but Senate majority leader Bill Frist has refused, saying it should be 7-5.

Grassley said time was running out to name a negotiating panel that would prepare one final version of the bill.

"The airline provisions need to get done because if any more airlines tank, the economy will tank right along with them," Grassley said. "And employees have waited long enough for the post-Enron reforms, such as the basic right to diversify from company stock."

Airlines such as bankrupt Delta Air Lines Inc and Northwest Airlines Corp have been lobbying for months to get special pension aid.
Nationwide, traditional pensions are underfunded by some $450 billion. The federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., which takes over failed plans, is $22.8 billion in deficit.