[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 22 (Tuesday, February 3, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5573-5577]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-2730]


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PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION


Pendency of Request for Approval of Special Withdrawal Liability 
Rules; International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Union-Pacific 
Maritime Association Pension Plan

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.

ACTION: Notice of pendency of request.

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SUMMARY: This notice advises interested persons that the Pension 
Benefit Guaranty Corporation (``PBGC'') has received a request from the 
International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Union-Pacific Maritime 
Association Pension Plan for approval of a plan amendment modifying 
special withdrawal liability rules, which rules were approved by PBGC 
on January 30, 1984. See Approval of Special Withdrawal Liability Rules 
(``Notice of Approval'') 49 FR 6043 (February 16, 1984). Under section 
4203(f) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as 
amended (``ERISA''), PBGC may prescribe regulations under which plans 
in industries other than the construction or entertainment industries 
may be amended to provide for special withdrawal liability rules. PBGC 
has prescribed such regulations at 29 CFR Part 4203. The regulations 
provide that PBGC approval is required for a plan amendment 
establishing special withdrawal liability rules, as well as any 
subsequent modification of a previously approved plan amendment, other 
than repeal of the amendment. The effect of this notice is to advise 
interested persons of this request for approval of a modification to 
special withdrawal liability rules and to invite interested persons to 
submit written comments on it.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before March 20, 1998.

ADDRESSES: All written comments (at least three copies) should be 
addressed to: Office of the General Counsel, Pension Benefit Guaranty 
Corporation, 1200 K Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20005-4026, or hand-
delivered to Suite 340 at the above address. The complete request for 
approval and any comments will be available for public inspection 
between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, at 
PBGC's Communications and Public Affairs Department, Suite 240, at the 
above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gennice D. Brickhouse, Attorney, 
Office of the General Counsel (22500), Pension Benefit Guaranty 
Corporation, 1200 K Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20005-4026; Telephone 
202-326-4020. (For TTY and TDD, call the Federal relay service at 1-
800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-326-4020).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Under section 4203(a) of ERISA, a complete withdrawal from a 
multiemployer plan occurs, generally, when an employer permanently 
ceases to have an obligation to contribute under the plan or 
permanently ceases all covered operations under the plan. Under section 
4205 of ERISA, a partial withdrawal occurs, generally, when an 
employer: (1) Reduces its contribution base units by seventy percent in 
each of three consecutive years; or, (2) permanently ceases to have an 
obligation to contribute under one or more but fewer than all 
collective bargaining agreements under which the employer has been 
obligated to contribute under the plan, while continuing to perform 
work in the jurisdiction of the collective bargaining agreement of the 
type for which contributions were previously required or transfers such 
work to another location; or, (3) permanently ceases to have an 
obligation to contribute under the plan for work performed at one or 
more but fewer than all of its facilities, while continuing to perform 
work at the facility of the type for which the obligation to contribute 
ceased. Although the general rules on complete

[[Page 5574]]

and partial withdrawal identify events that normally result in a loss 
to the plan's contribution base, Congress recognized that, in certain 
industries and under certain circumstances, a complete or partial 
cessation of the obligation to contribute does not normally weaken the 
plan's contribution base. For that reason, Congress established special 
withdrawal rules for the construction and entertainment industries.
    For construction industry plans and employers, section 4203(b)(2) 
of ERISA provides that a complete withdrawal occurs only if an employer 
ceases to have an obligation to contribute under a plan, and the 
employer either continues to perform previously covered work in the 
jurisdiction of the collective bargaining agreement or resumes such 
work within five years without renewing the obligation to contribute at 
the time of resumption. Section 4203(c)(1) of ERISA applies the same 
special definition of complete withdrawal to the entertainment 
industry, except that the pertinent jurisdiction is the jurisdiction of 
the plan rather than the jurisdiction of the collective bargaining 
agreement. In contrast, the general definition of complete withdrawal 
in section 4203(a) of ERISA defines a withdrawal to include permanent 
cessation of the obligation to contribute regardless of the continued 
activities of the withdrawn employer.
    Congress also established special partial withdrawal liability 
rules for the construction and entertainment industries. Under section 
4208(d)(1) of ERISA, ``[a]n employer to whom section 4203(b) (relating 
to the building and construction industry) applies is liable for a 
partial withdrawal only if the employer's obligation to contribute 
under the plan is continued for no more than an insubstantial portion 
of its work in the craft and area jurisdiction of the collective 
bargaining agreement of the type for which contributions are 
required.'' Under section 4208(d)(2) of ERISA, ``[a]n employer to whom 
section 4203(c) (relating to the entertainment industry) applies shall 
have no liability for a partial withdrawal except under the conditions 
and to the extent prescribed by the [PBGC] by regulation.''
    Section 4203(f) of ERISA provides that PBGC may prescribe 
regulations under which plans in industries other than the construction 
or entertainment industries may be amended to provide for special 
withdrawal liability rules similar to the rules prescribed in section 
4203(b) and (c) of ERISA for the construction and entertainment 
industries. Section 4203(f)(2) of ERISA provides that such regulations 
shall permit the use of special withdrawal liability rules only in 
industries (or portions thereof) in which PBGC determines that the 
characteristics that would make use of such rules appropriate are 
clearly shown, and in each instance, the use of such rules will not 
pose a significant risk to the insurance system under Title IV of 
ERISA. Section 4208(e)(3) of ERISA provides that PBGC shall prescribe 
by regulation a procedure by which a plan may by amendment adopt 
special partial withdrawal liability upon a finding by PBGC that the 
adoption of such rules are consistent with the purposes of Title IV of 
ERISA.
    A PBGC regulation, Extension of Special Withdrawal Liability Rules 
(29 CFR Part 4203), prescribes procedures whereby a multiemployer plan 
may, pursuant to sections 4203(f) and 4208(e)(3) of ERISA, request PBGC 
to approve a plan amendment that establishes special complete or 
partial withdrawal liability rules. Under 29 CFR 4203.3(a), a complete 
withdrawal rule adopted pursuant to Part 4203 must be similar to the 
rules for the construction and entertainment industries described in 
section 4203(b) and (c) of ERISA. A partial withdrawal liability rule 
adopted pursuant to Part 4203 must be consistent with the complete 
withdrawal rule adopted by the plan. Pursuant to 29 CFR 4203.3(b), a 
plan amendment adopted pursuant to Part 4203 may cover an entire 
industry or industries, or may be limited to a segment of an industry, 
and may apply to cessations of the obligation to contribute that 
occurred prior to the adoption of the amendment.
    Each request for approval of a plan amendment establishing special 
withdrawal liability rules must contain the information specified in 29 
CFR 4203.4(d). In acting on such a request, 29 CFR 4203.5(a) provides 
that PBGC shall approve a plan amendment establishing special 
withdrawal liability rules if PBGC determines that the plan amendment--
    (1) Will apply only to an industry that has characteristics that 
would make use of the special withdrawal rules appropriate; and
    (2) Will not pose a significant risk to the insurance system.
    In making these determinations, PBGC will conduct a comprehensive 
analysis of the request, the actuarial data submitted and other 
relevant information relating to the industry and the plan. 29 CFR 
4203.4. Under 29 CFR 4203.4(d)(7), the plan must provide information on 
the effects of the withdrawals on the plan's contribution base, as well 
as information sufficient to demonstrate the existence of industry 
characteristics that would indicate that withdrawals in the industry do 
not typically have an adverse effect on the plan's contribution base. 
(These characteristics include the mobility of the employees, the 
intermittent nature of the employment, the project-by-project nature of 
the work, extreme fluctuations in the level of an employer's covered 
work under the plan, the existence of a consistent pattern of entry and 
withdrawal by employers, and the local nature of the work performed.) 
29 CFR 4203.4(d)(7).
    Finally, 29 CFR 4203.5(b) requires PBGC to publish a notice of the 
pendency of a request for approval of a plan amendment containing all 
the information required under 29 CFR 4203.4(d) in the Federal 
Register, and to provide interested parties with an opportunity to 
comment on the request.

Request

    PBGC has received a request from the International Longshoremen's 
and Warehousemen's Union-Pacific Maritime Association Pension Plan 
(``Plan'') for approval of a modification to a plan amendment providing 
for special withdrawal liability rules, which rules were approved by 
PBGC on January 30, 1984 (Notice of Approval, 49 FR 6043 (1984)), 
pursuant to section 4203(f) of ERISA and 29 CFR Part 4203. Pertinent 
information provided by the Plan is summarized below.

Applicant

    The Plan is a multiemployer plan, with 114 employers contributing 
in 1996, maintained pursuant to collective bargaining agreements 
between the International Longshoremen's & Warehousemen's Union 
(``ILWU'') and the Pacific Maritime Association (``PMA''). The Plan, 
which is located in San Francisco, covers the loading and unloading of 
all dry cargo for ocean-going vessels arriving at or departing from 
ports along the Pacific coast of the United States, including all ports 
in the states of California, Oregon and Washington. The only cargoes 
not covered by the Plan are petroleum products and other liquid cargoes 
and certain cargoes handled by inland boatmen.

Employer Association

    The PMA is an employer association whose principal business is to 
negotiate and administer maritime labor agreements with ILWU. The PMA 
is composed of American and foreign flag vessel operators, and 
stevedore and

[[Page 5575]]

terminal companies that operate in California, Oregon and Washington 
ports.

Plan

    As of June 30, 1996, the Plan covered 8,185 active workers, was 
paying benefits to 9,049 pensioners and survivors, and had 87 inactive 
participants (or survivors) with vested entitlements. As of June 30, 
1997, the market value of Plan assets was approximately $1.631 billion 
and the present value of vested liabilities was approximately $1.640 
billion. For the Plan year ending June 30, 1995, the Plan received 
$99.7 million in contributions, and paid out $95 million in benefits 
and $1.9 million in operating expenses. As of June 30, 1996, Plan 
assets were more than 13 times total Plan disbursements during the July 
1, 1995--June 30, 1996 plan year.
    Plan benefit levels are set in negotiations between the PMA and the 
ILWU. Contribution rates to the Plan, which are on the basis of man-
hours, are determined annually, solely by the PMA. Only the stevedoring 
firms, which are the direct employer of covered employees, contribute 
to the Plan.
    The total number of contributing employers has remained relatively 
stable since 1971. There were 110 contributors in 1972, 107 in 1979, 
and 114 in 1996. Forty-two percent of the 1996 contributors were not 
contributors in 1979, and nearly 40 percent of the 1979 contributors 
were no longer contributing by 1996.

Special Characteristics of the Plan

    Since 1938, the Pacific coast has been certified by the National 
Labor Relations Board as a single bargaining unit, with the ILWU 
certified as the exclusive bargaining representative. Every Pacific 
coast port is under the jurisdiction of the ILWU-PMA Pension Agreement 
requiring contributions to the Plan for covered work. The Plan states 
in its request that, because of this characteristic, ``the [Plan] is 
dependent on the vitality of the west coast shipping industry as a 
whole, and not upon the continued existence of any given employer.''
    According to the Plan's request, over the past four decades the 
west coast shipping industry has grown steadily and it looks forward to 
increased growth in the future. Total dry cargo at all covered ports 
amounted to 29 million tons in 1960, 114 million tons in 1980, 182 
millions tons in 1990 and 216 million tons in 1996. Because of dramatic 
productivity gains, this increased shipping activity did not result in 
increased manpower utilization. For a time, the industry did not 
require new workers to replace those retiring from the work force. This 
accounts for the current high ratio of retirees to active employees 
covered by the Plan. However, the gains in productivity and the 
consequent drop in unit labor costs did make it possible to increase 
wages, contribution rates and total contributions during a period in 
which the utilization of labor decreased.
    It now appears that productively gains alone can no longer keep 
pace with the increase in shipping activity. Covered man-hours have 
remained relatively consistent with prior periods from less than 16 
million in 1975 to more than 18 million in 1980. However, with the 
recent growth in trade, covered man-hours have increased from as few as 
15.6 million in 1993 to over 18 million in 1996.

Industry Characteristics

    Work covered under the Plan is dependent on the comings and goings 
of ocean-going vessels at west coast ports. The work done by a covered 
stevedoring company may fluctuate drastically from month to month as 
well as from year to year. A particular company obtains its work force 
through a dispatch hall system, which is jointly maintained by the ILWU 
and the PMA, and in one week the employer may need a workforce large 
enough to unload five ships, and then have no ships to unload the next 
week. Under the dispatch hall system, employees may be shifted daily 
from company to company based upon shifting work requirements. On the 
average, a covered longshoreman worked for more than five stevedoring 
companies in 1996.
    Wages are paid to workers not by the individual employers directly, 
but rather by the PMA, which maintains a coast-wide, computerized 
payroll system. The stevedoring company remits wages and funds for 
benefits to the PMA, which in turn issues weekly payroll checks to all 
ILWU members and transmits contributions to the various benefit funds.
    The work of loading and unloading ocean-going vessels must be 
performed where they call. So long as west coast shipping continues, 
the work covered by the Plan will continue to be performed.
    The Plan stated in its summary that its situation is one where 
neither the special rules nor the proposed modification imposes any 
risk to the multiemployer insurance program. The Plan states in its 
request that ``[Plan] contributions are made with respect to all west 
coast cargo. The [Plan] is dependent, therefore, only on the continued 
activity in the west coast shipping industry as a whole. This industry 
has shown tremendous growth over the past decades, and the growth is 
projected to continue. For those reasons, the [Plan's] contribution 
base share is secure, and employers that go out of business on the west 
coast will not pose a risk to the [Plan] or the PBGC.''

Actuarial Data

    As part of its request, the Plan submitted copies of its six most 
recent actuarial valuation reports. Plan costs for funding purposes are 
determined on the entry age normal, level dollar method. Benefits are 
subject to collective bargaining, and contributions are allocated among 
contributing employers on the basis of the ERISA minimum funding 
requirements.
    The reports show that during the 6-year period spanned by the 
reports (7/1/91-6/30/97), the Plan population was relatively stable. 
During that period, the number of retirees decreased 1.8 percent, while 
the number of active participants decreased 3.4 percent. However, 
during this same period, tonnage handled increased nearly 20 percent. 
And, as of the end of the June 30, 1996 Plan year, annual contributions 
had increased from $71.1 million to $99.7 million, and Plan assets rose 
from $747.0 million to $1.329 billion.
    There were three benefit increases under the Plan during the period 
covered by the reports. The first, effective July 1, 1992, increased 
the unfunded accrued liability by $49 million. The second increase, 
effective July 1, 1993, increased the unfunded accrued liability by 
$500 million. Finally, the third increase, effective July 1, 1996, 
increased the unfunded accrued liability by $52 million. Specifically, 
the Plan's monthly accrual rate for each year of service went from $37 
to $70. PBGC notes that the Plan's benefit level exceeds the maximum 
benefit guaranteed by PBGC under section 4022A(c) of ERISA, which is 
$16.25 per month per year of service.
    From 1991-1995, contributions increased at a faster rate than 
benefit payouts. In 1991, benefit payouts were 97% of contributions, 
and in 1995, they were 95% of contributions.
    A summary of the six actuarial valuations is set forth below.

[[Page 5576]]



                                   Summary of Actuarial Valuation Results \1\                                   
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                                                                   Valuation date                               
                                   -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                       7/1/96       7/1/95       7/1/94       7/1/93       7/1/92       7/1/91  
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No. of active participants........        8,185        7,896        7,682        8,141        8,339        8,469
No. of retired participants.......        9,049        9,236        9,244        8,979        9,132        9,214
Monthly benefit accrual rate......           70           69           69           69           39           37
Max. monthly benefit..............        2,450        2,415        2,415        2,415        1,365        1,295
Contributions (000)...............          N/A       99,696       99,023       87,316       74,139       71,074
Benefits (000)....................          N/A       94,963       92,437       85,293       71,321       68,848
Market value assets (000).........    1,329,082    1,143,335      957,661      950,030      835,063      746,993
Net min. funding charges w/o                                                                                    
 credit bal (000).................       79,154       85,787       81,247       80,034       47,307       43,987
Normal cost (000).................       20,527       19,176       18,441       19,162       12,821       12,334
Unfunded accrued liab. (000)......      534,416      637,646      710,802      664,096      341,037      360,009
Unfunded liab.--vested benefits                                                                                 
 (000)............................      354,821      462,132      530,092      476,168          N/A          N/A
Valuation interest rate...........          6.5          6.5          6.5          6.5          6.5          6.5
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Taken from actuarial reports submitted with request.                                                        

Approved Special Rules

    The complete text of the Plan provisions containing the approved 
special withdrawal liability rules is set forth in the Notice of 
Approval, 49 FR 6043 (1984). Interested persons may obtain a copy of 
that notice by contacting PBGC. Following is a summary of the special 
withdrawal liability rules in effect and the text of the proposed 
modification to those rules.
    Under the special rules, a complete withdrawal occurs if an 
employer who makes contributions to the Plan for longshore work 
permanently ceases to have an obligation to make contributions to the 
Plan, and the employer: (1) Continues to perform work of the type for 
which contributions to the Plan are currently or were previously 
required at any Pacific Coast port in the United States, (2) resumes 
such work at any time during the Plan year in which the contribution 
obligation ceased through the end of the fifth succeeding Plan year 
without renewing the contribution obligation, (3) sells or otherwise 
transfers a substantial portion of its business or assets to another 
person that performs longshore work without having an obligation to 
make contributions to the Plan under the collective bargaining 
agreements under which the Plan is maintained, or (4) ceases to have an 
obligation to contribute in connection with the withdrawal of every 
employer from the Plan or substantially all of the employers within the 
meaning of section 4219(c)(1)(D) of ERISA. A partial withdrawal occurs 
if an employer incurs a partial withdrawal within the meaning of 
section 4205 of ERISA and, in addition, at any time from the date of 
the partial withdrawal through the succeeding five plan years, the 
employer: (1) Performs work of the type for which contributions to the 
Plan are currently or were previously required at any Pacific Coast 
port in the United States without having an obligation to contribute to 
the Plan for such work, or (2) sells or otherwise transfers a 
substantial portion of its business or assets to another person that 
performs longshore work without having an obligation to make 
contributions to the Plan under the collective bargaining agreements 
under which the Plan is maintained.
    The amendment adopting the special withdrawal liability rules also 
added funding requirements to the ILWU-PMA Pension Agreement (``Pension 
Agreement''). Paragraph 4.042(c) of the Pension Agreement requires a 
``Special Contribution Amount'' and specifies the funding goals that 
the Plan must meet for plan years beginning July 1, 1984:

    (i) The ``Special Contribution Amount'' shall be the level 
annual amount which, on the basis of a Certified Actuarial 
Projection, the Plan Actuary certifies will, when added to the 
amounts otherwise required by law (determined without regard to any 
credit balance in the funding standard account) * * * be sufficient 
to make the Funding Percentage as of the Applicable Funding Goal 
Date at least equal to the Applicable Funding Goal.
    (ii) The term ``Funding Percentage'' shall mean for any Plan 
year, the percentage derived by dividing the market value of the 
assets of the Pension Fund by the present value of the 
nonforfeitable benefits within the meaning of ERISA section 
4213(c)(A), both values to be as determined in the Certified 
Actuarial Projection as of the end of such Plan year.
    (iii) For the first through the fifth Plan Years commencing on 
or after July 1, 1984, the term ``Applicable Funding Goal'' for each 
such Plan Year shall mean 50 percent (50%), and the ``Applicable 
Funding Goal Date'' for each such Plan Year shall mean the last day 
of the tenth such Plan Year; for each succeeding Plan Year, the term 
``Applicable Funding Goal'' shall mean the percentage set forth in 
the Accelerated Funding Schedule for the Plan Year commencing four 
years after the end of the Plan Year in question, and the 
``Applicable Funding Goal Date'' for each such Plan Year shall mean 
the last day of the Plan Year commencing four years after the end of 
the Plan Year in question.
    (iv) The ``Accelerated Funding Schedule'' shall be the following 
schedule:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                          Plan year                             Percent 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
10...........................................................         50
11...........................................................         53
12...........................................................         56
13...........................................................         59
14...........................................................         62
15...........................................................         65
16...........................................................         68
17...........................................................         71
18...........................................................         74
19...........................................................         77
20 and over..................................................         80
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (v) The ``Certified Actuarial Projection'' shall be a 
projection, which is prepared as of each actuarial valuation date so 
as to derive the Funding Percentage on the Applicable Funding Goal 
Date, by using the actuarial assumptions and methods utilized in the 
December 31, 1982 Actuarial Valuation of the Plan and the then 
current assets and census data, which projection shall be certified 
to in each Plan Year by the Plan actuary. This projection shall be 
on the basis of: (1) The benefit levels in effect during the Plan 
Year for which the projection is made, and (2) the Contributions 
required for such Plan Year * * * together with any Special 
Contribution Amounts. When the Applicable Funding Goal is met for 
the twentieth or subsequent Plan Year, the Special Contribution 
Amount may be limited to the amount necessary to maintain such 
Applicable Funding Goal for each subsequent Plan Year.

Notice of Approval, 49 FR 6043, 6046 (1984).
    An additional funding requirement is contained in paragraph 4.011 
of the Pension Agreement. That provision requires that: 
``Notwithstanding any other provision of this Plan, the Contributions 
for each Plan Year shall be not less than the total administrative

[[Page 5577]]

costs and benefits to be paid by the Trustee during the Plan Year.'' 
Notice of Approval, 49 FR 6043, 6045 (1984).

Proposed Modification to Special Rules

    On July 21, 1997, the Plan adopted an amendment to the approved 
special withdrawal liability rules, which amendment eliminates the 
requirement under paragraph 4.011 of the Pension Agreement that 
contributions for each Plan year shall be at least equal to benefits 
and administrative costs paid in the year. In lieu of that requirement, 
the parties to the Pension Agreement signed a Letter of Understanding 
on July 21, 1997, whereby the parties agree that:
    [S]hould the Funding Percentage for the ILWU-PMA Pension Plan (as 
defined in paragraph 4.042(c)(ii) of the Plan) fall below eighty-five 
percent (85%) as of the beginning of a particular Plan Year, the 
Contributions in the following Plan Year shall not be less than the 
lesser of: (a) The total administrative costs and benefits to be paid 
by the Trustees during said following Plan Year, or (b) the amount 
required to increase the Funding Percentage for said following Plan 
Year to eighty-five percent (85%).

    Because the requirement that contributions be no less than 
administrative costs and benefits paid in a given year is no longer 
specifically set out in the Plan or the Pension Agreement, PBGC has 
advised the Plan's representative that if PBGC should approve the 
amendment modifying the Plan's special withdrawal liability rules such 
approval will be under the following condition: ``The Plan's special 
withdrawal liability rules will be void as of the first day of the Plan 
Year following a Plan Year for which the Plan is not at least eighty-
five percent (85%) funded, and during said following Plan Year the 
Contributions are less than the least of (a) total administrative cost 
and benefits for said following Plan Year or (b) the amount required to 
increase the Funding Percentage to eighty-five percent (85%) for said 
following Plan Year or (c) the maximum tax-deductible contribution to 
the Plan.'' The Plan has agreed to certify to these conditions 
annually.
    No other changes are proposed to the special withdrawal liabilities 
rules as approved by the PBGC on January 30, 1984.

Reason for Modification

    According to the Plan's request, the funded status of the Plan has 
improved significantly since 1984, and, based on the Plan's improved 
funded status, ``the potential has now arisen for unpredictable and 
volatile contributions to the [Plan] under certain investment 
scenarios'', and ``if the current contribution requirements were to be 
continued, there is a significant risk that, under certain investment 
scenarios the plan could potentially reach the tax deductible 
contribution limit in the near future.'' Depending on fluctuations in 
the investment market, annual contribution requirements under the Plan 
could range from zero to over $100 million, depending on the tax 
deductibility of each year's contributions. According to the Plan's 
request, the proposed modification to the current contribution 
requirement allows the Plan ``to better forecast contribution 
assessments * * * by reducing the contribution volatility as the plan 
nears the tax deductible limit on contributions.'' The request goes on 
to state that: ``[r]educing contribution volatility is important in 
maintaining a secure and soundly funded retirement program. These are 
the same valid arguments that prompted Congress to enact legislation 
this year to allow private plans greater contribution flexibility in 
dealing with the full funding limit.''

Comments

    All interested persons are invited to submit written comments 
concerning the pending request to PBGC at the above address, on or 
before March 20, 1998. All comments will be made a part of the record. 
Comments received, as well as the application for approval of the plan 
amendments, will be available for public inspection at the address set 
forth above.

    Issued at Washington, DC, on this 23rd day of January, 1998.
David Strauss,
Executive Director.
[FR Doc. 98-2730 Filed 2-2-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7708-01-P