[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 38 (Tuesday, February 26, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8830-8831]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-4502]


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PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION


Submission of Information Collection for OMB Review; Comment 
Request; Annual Financial and Actuarial Information Reporting

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.

ACTION: Notice of request for extension of OMB approval.

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SUMMARY: The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is requesting 
that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) extend approval, under 
the Paperwork Reduction Act, of the collection of information under the 
PBGC's regulation on Annual Financial and Actuarial Information 
Reporting, 29 CFR part 4010 (OMB control number 1212-0049; expires 
March 31, 2002). This notice informs the public of the PBGC's request 
and solicits public comment on the collection of information.

DATES: Comments should be submitted by March 28, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be mailed to the Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and Budget, Attention: 
Desk Officer for Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, Washington, DC 
20503. Copies of the request for extension (including the collection of 
information) may be obtained without charge by writing to or visiting 
the PBGC's Communications and Public Affairs Department, suite 240, 
1200 K Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005-4026, or calling 202-326-4040. 
(TTY and TDD users may call 800-877-8339 and request connection to 202-
326-4040). The regulation on Annual Financial and Actuarial Information 
Reporting can be accessed on the PBGC's Web site at http://www.pbgc.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Harold J. Ashner, Assistant General 
Counsel, or Deborah C. Murphy, Attorney, Office of the General Counsel, 
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street, NW., Washington, 
DC 20005-4026, 202-326-4024. (TTY and TDD users may call 800-877-8339 
and request connection to 202-326-4024.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 4010 of the Employee Retirement 
Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) requires each member of a 
controlled group to submit identifying, financial, and actuarial 
information to the PBGC in certain circumstances. Reporting is required 
(1) if the aggregate unfunded vested benefits of all defined benefit 
pension plans maintained by the controlled group exceed $50 million, 
(2) if the controlled group maintains any plan with missed 
contributions aggregating more than $1 million (unless paid within a 
ten-day grace period), or (3) if the controlled group maintains any 
plan with funding waivers in excess of $1 million and any portion is 
still outstanding (taking into account certain credit balances in the 
funding standard account). The PBGC's regulation on Annual Financial 
and Actuarial Information Reporting (29

[[Page 8831]]

CFR part 4010) implements section 4010.
    The regulation requires the controlled group to file certain 
identifying information, certain financial information, each plan's 
actuarial valuation report, certain participant information, and a 
determination of the amount of each plan's benefit liabilities. The 
information submitted under the regulation allows the PBGC (1) to 
detect and monitor financial problems with the contributing sponsors 
that maintain severely underfunded pension plans and their controlled 
group members and (2) to respond quickly when it learns that a 
controlled group with severely underfunded pension plans intends to 
engage in a transaction that may significantly reduce the assets 
available to pay plan liabilities.
    The collection of information under the regulation has been 
approved by OMB under control number 1212-0049, expiring March 31, 
2002. The PBGC is requesting that OMB extend its approval for three 
years. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not 
required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.
    The PBGC estimates that an average of 70 controlled groups per year 
respond to this collection of information. The PBGC further estimates 
that the average annual burden of this collection of information is 7.9 
hours and $10,000 per controlled group, for a total burden of 552 hours 
and $700,000.

    Issued in Washington, D.C., this 20th day of February, 2002.
Stuart Sirkin,
Director, Corporate Policy and Research Department, Pension Benefit 
Guaranty Corporation.
[FR Doc. 02-4502 Filed 2-25-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7708-01-P