[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 140 (Monday, July 22, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43942-43943]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-17519]


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PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION


Submission of Information Collection for OMB Review; Comment 
Request; Data To Study Multiemployer Plan Guaranty Program

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.

ACTION: Notice of request for OMB approval.

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SUMMARY: The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is requesting 
that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approve, under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act, a voluntary collection of information to 
assist PBGC in modeling potential outcomes of pension plans insured 
under its multiemployer program. 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 August 21, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be sent to the Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Attention: Desk 
Officer for Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, via electronic mail 
at [email protected] or by fax to (202) 395-6974.
    Copies of the request (including the collection of information) may 
be obtained without charge by writing to the Disclosure Division of the 
Office of the General Counsel of PBGC at Pension Benefit Guaranty 
Corporation, 1200 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20005-4026 or by 
visiting the Disclosure Division or calling 202-326-4040 during normal 
business hours. (TTY and TDD users may call the Federal relay service 
toll-free at 1-800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-326-4040.) 
The Disclosure Division will email, fax, or mail the requested 
information to you, as you request. The request will also be posted on 
PBGC's Web site at http://www.pbgc.gov/res/laws-and-regulations/information-collections-under-omb-review.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dan Liebman Attorney, Regulatory 
Affairs Group, Office of the General Counsel, Pension Benefit Guaranty 
Corporation, 1200 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20005-4026, 
[email protected] or 202-326-4400, ext. 6510. (For TTY and TDD, 
call 800-877-8339 and request connection to 202-326-4000, ext. 6779.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Pension Protection Act of 2006 (Pub. L. 
109-280) (PPA) requires the actuary of a multiemployer plan in effect 
on July 16, 2006 to certify the plan's status within certain zones 
established under PPA to the plan's trustees and the Secretary of the 
Treasury within 90 days after the beginning of each plan year. The 
certification must state whether or not the plan meets any of the tests 
to be in critical status or endangered status and for a plan already in 
critical or endangered status, whether the plan is progressing as 
scheduled toward the applicable statutory target for improved funding. 
Plans in endangered and critical status are restricted with respect to 
the types of actions they may take and the types of amendments they may 
adopt, as well as required to follow special rules during the adoption 
period of collective bargaining agreements.
    PBGC is researching the effects of potential changes to its 
multiemployer program. PBGC's objective is to quantify the effect of 
potential policy proposals on multiemployer plans that are or could 
enter critical status with respect to projected dates of insolvency, 
amount of financial assistance that PBGC would be required to provide, 
and the benefit changes plan participants would experience. To assist 
in this research, PBGC is requesting that OMB approve an information 
collection request of multiemployer pension plans, their actuarial 
service providers, and their stakeholders, including unions and 
relevant professional and trade organizations.
    PBGC would request the following types of information (which are 
routinely provided to plan actuaries):
     The most recent actuarial valuation report.
     The most recent cash flow projections that the plan 
actuary developed in connection with the plan's rehabilitation plan 
annual update and a summary of the actuarial assumptions utilized in 
the projections.
     Participant census data, including accrued benefit, date 
of birth, date credited service began (for both active and inactive 
participants, if available), gender, form of payment and other data for 
participants in pay status, and any plan specific data needed to 
replicate actuarial valuation results.
    PBGC believes the data requested would be readily available and 
there would be no need to assemble new information. PBGC would not ask 
for any personally identifiable information (such as name, address, 
social security number, etc.) in the participant census data.
    This information collection would be voluntary on the part of 
respondents and any information provided in response to this request 
would not be used for any PBGC enforcement activities. Instead, such 
information will be used only for research into policy alternatives and 
would be subject to PBGC's standard confidentiality agreement. The 
names of the plans submitting data in support of PBGC's research would 
not appear in any report distributed outside of PBGC.
    PBGC is requesting that OMB approve this collection of information 
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.
    PBGC estimates that between 40 to 50 plans would respond to this 
collection of information. PBGC further estimates that the average 
burden of this collection of information would be four hours and $1,280 
per plan, with an average total burden of 180 hours and $57,600.


[[Page 43943]]


    Issued in Washington, DC, this 17th day of July 2013.
Judith Starr,
General Counsel, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2013-17519 Filed 7-19-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7709-02-P