[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 226 (Friday, November 22, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70070-70071]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-28045]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Office of the Secretary


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request; Annual Funding Notice for Defined Benefit 
Pension Plans

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting the Employee 
Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) sponsored information 
collection request (ICR) titled, ``Annual Funding Notice for Defined 
Benefit Pension Plans,'' to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
for review and approval for continued use, without change, in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 44 U.S.C. 
3501 et seq.

DATES: Submit comments on or before December 23, 2013.

ADDRESSES: A copy of this ICR with applicable supporting documentation; 
including a description of the likely respondents, proposed frequency 
of response, and estimated total burden may be obtained free of charge 
from the RegInfo.gov Web site at http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewICR?ref_nbr=201307-1210-002 (this link will only become active 
on the day following publication of this notice) or by contacting 
Michel Smyth by telephone at 202-693-4129 (this is not a toll-free 
number) or sending an email to [email protected].
    Submit comments about this request by mail or courier to the Office 
of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attn: OMB Desk Officer for DOL-
EBSA, Office of Management and Budget, Room 10235, 725 17th Street NW., 
Washington, DC 20503; by Fax: 202-

[[Page 70071]]

395-6881 (this is not a toll-free number); or by email: [email protected]. Commenters are encouraged, but not required, to 
send a courtesy copy of any comments by mail or courier to the U.S. 
Department of Labor-OASAM, Office of the Chief Information Officer, 
Attn: Information Policy and Assessment Program, Room N1301, 200 
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20210; or by email: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michel Smyth by telephone at 202-693-
4129 (this is not a toll-free number) or by email at [email protected].

    Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D).


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 
1974 (ERISA) section 101(f) sets forth the requirements for plan 
administrators of most single-employer defined benefit (DB) plans to 
furnish annual funding notices to the Pension Benefit Guarantee 
Corporation, plan participants and beneficiaries, and each labor 
organization representing such participants or beneficiaries. The 
Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) has amended 
the ERISA, by adding a requirement for a single-employer DB plan 
administrator to disclose additional information in the annual funding 
notice for a plan year beginning after December 31, 2011, and before 
January 1, 2015, regarding the effect of MAP-21 segment rate 
stabilization rules on plan liabilities and the plan sponsor's minimum 
required contributions to the plan. The MAP-21 sets a floor (or 
ceiling) for the interest rates that a single employer DB plan 
administrator generally is required to use for calculating 
contributions. The required interest rates are generally limited to 
rates that are within a specified range, or corridor, above or below a 
25-year average for the rates. The MAP-21 also required the DOL to 
modify the model annual funding notice required under Pension 
Protection Act of 2006 section 501(c) to include, prominently, the 
supplemental information required under new ERISA section 101(f)(2)(D).
    On March 8, 2013, the DOL released EBSA Field Assistance Bulletin 
(FAB) 2013-01 concerning the new disclosure requirements mandated by 
MAP-21 provisions. The FAB addresses a need for interim guidance 
pending the adoption of regulations or other guidance under ERISA 
section 101(f), as amended by the MAP-21. The FAB sets forth technical 
questions and answers and provides a model supplement that plan 
administrators may use to discharge their MAP-21 disclosure obligations 
and provides that, pending further guidance and as a matter of 
enforcement policy, the DOL will treat a single employer DB plan 
administrator as satisfying MAP-21 requirements if the plan 
administrator complies with the guidance in the memorandum and 
otherwise acts in accordance with a good faith and reasonable 
interpretation of those requirements.
    This information collection is subject to the PRA. A Federal agency 
generally cannot conduct or sponsor a collection of information, and 
the public is generally not required to respond to an information 
collection, unless it is approved by the OMB under the PRA and displays 
a currently valid OMB Control Number. In addition, notwithstanding any 
other provisions of law, no person shall generally be subject to 
penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information that 
does not display a valid Control Number. See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and 
1320.6. The DOL obtains OMB approval for this information collection 
under Control Number 1210-0126.
    The current approval for this collection is scheduled to expire on 
December 31, 2013. The DOL seeks to extend PRA authorization for this 
information collection for three (3) more years, without any change to 
existing requirements. The DOL notes that existing information 
collection requirements submitted to the OMB receive a month-to-month 
extension while they undergo review. For additional substantive 
information about this ICR, see the related notice published in the 
Federal Register on August 15, 2013 (78 FR 49771).
    Interested parties are encouraged to send comments to the OMB, 
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs at the address shown in 
the ADDRESSES section within 30 days of publication of this notice in 
the Federal Register. In order to help ensure appropriate 
consideration, comments should mention OMB Control Number 1210-0126. 
The OMB is particularly interested in comments that:
     Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
     Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the 
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the 
validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
     Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
     Minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting 
electronic submission of responses.
    Agency: DOL-EBSA.
    Title of Collection: Annual Funding Notice for Defined Benefit 
Pension Plans.
    OMB Control Number: 1210-0126.
    Affected Public: Private Sector--businesses or other for-profits 
and not-for-profit institutions.
    Total Estimated Number of Respondents: 27,534.
    Total Estimated Number of Responses: 77,989,123.
    Total Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 977,000.
    Total Estimated Annual Other Costs Burden: $26,845,755.

    Dated: November 18, 2013.
Michel Smyth,
Departmental Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2013-28045 Filed 11-21-13; 8:45 am]
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