Overview. On August 17, President Bush signed into law the Pension Protection Act (Act) of 2006,1 the first comprehensive pension legislation in more than 30 years. The Act is massive, is designed to strengthen traditional pension plans that cover approximately 44 million Americans (primarily in the manufacturing and other non-service industries) and will certainly make retirement planning for businesses and individuals more complex.2 The Act also creates new rules governing charitable donations for businesses and individuals, as well as the operation of charities. In addition, the Act includes numerous miscellaneous provisions and technical corrections.