[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 112 (Monday, June 14, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31539-31540]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-12362]


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PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION


Submission of Information Collection for OMB Review; Comment 
Request; Survey of Nonparticipating Single Premium Group Annuity Rates

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.

ACTION: Notice of request for extension of OMB approval, with 
modifications.

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SUMMARY: The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is requesting 
that the Office of Management and Budget

[[Page 31540]]

(OMB) extend approval, under the Paperwork Reduction Act, of a 
collection of information with modifications. The purpose of this 
information collection is to survey insurance companies that provide 
group annuities for premium rates and related information to calibrate 
actuarial interest rate assumptions. The American Council of Life 
Insurers conducts this voluntary survey for PBGC. This notice informs 
the public of PBGC's request and solicits public comment on the 
collection.

DATES: Comments must be submitted by July 14, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of 
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular 
information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--
Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
    A copy of the request will be posted on PBGC's website at https://www.pbgc.gov/prac/laws-and-regulation/federal-register-notices-open-for-comment. It may also be obtained without charge by writing to the 
Disclosure Division of the Office of the General Counsel of PBGC, 1200 
K Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-4026; faxing a request to 202-326-
4042; or, calling 202-326-4040 during normal business hours (TTY users 
may call the Federal Relay Service toll-free at 800-877-8339 and ask to 
be connected to 202-326-4040). The Disclosure Division will email, fax, 
or mail the information to you, as you request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hilary Duke ([email protected]), 
Assistant General Counsel for Regulatory Affairs, Office of the General 
Counsel, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street NW, 
Washington, DC 20005-4026, 202-229-3839; or Gregory Katz 
([email protected]), Attorney, Regulatory Affairs Division, Office 
of the General Counsel, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K 
Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-4026, 202-229-3829. TTY users may call 
the Federal Relay Service toll-free at 800-877-8339 and ask to be 
connected to 202-229-3839 or 202-229-3829.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: PBGC's regulations prescribe actuarial 
valuation methods and assumptions (including interest rate assumptions) 
to be used to determine the actuarial present value of benefits under 
single-employer plans in involuntary or distress terminations (29 CFR 
part 4044) and the value of benefits and certain assets under 
multiemployer plans that undergo a mass withdrawal of contributing 
employers (29 CFR part 4281). In each month immediately preceding the 
start of a new calendar quarter, PBGC publishes the interest rates to 
be used under those regulations for plans terminating or undergoing 
mass withdrawal during the next quarter.
    The interest rates are intended to reflect current conditions in 
the annuity markets. To determine these interest rates, PBGC gathers 
premium rate data from insurance companies that are providing group 
annuity contracts to terminating pension plans through a quarterly 
survey. The American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) distributes the 
survey and provides PBGC with ``blind'' data (i.e., PBGC is unable to 
match responses with the insurance companies that submitted them). PBGC 
also uses the information from the survey in determining the interest 
rates it uses to value benefits payable to participants and 
beneficiaries in PBGC-trusteed plans for purposes of PBGC's financial 
statements.
    PBGC is proposing several changes to the survey distributed by 
ACLI:
     Addition of a question asking for specific information 
about the interest assumptions underlying the annuity premium rates 
reported in parts I and II of the survey. This information is needed to 
allow PBGC to better analyze annuity price data provided in the survey.
     Increases to the dollar ranges in the questions on 
respondents' group annuity business in part III to allow the survey to 
continue to capture the variability and range of business accepted by 
respondents as the prices of plan termination annuity contracts 
increase with inflation.
     Changes to the instructions to clarify that respondents 
should provide pricing information only for full plan terminations (and 
transactions priced consistently with full plan terminations), that the 
annuity premium rates provided should include reductions for investment 
expenses but exclude administrative expenses, and that respondents 
should assume that plan provisions are straightforward and do not 
contain significant levels of anti-selection, expensive options, or 
subsidies.
     Addition of a confirmation that administrative expenses 
are excluded from pricing information and an option to comment on any 
exceptions. This is needed for PBGC to compare pricing information 
amongst survey responses when respondents are unable to completely 
exclude administrative expenses from pricing information.
     Consolidation and simplification of former parts III and 
IV into a new part III and elimination of questions asking for 
information PBGC no longer uses. These changes streamline and simplify 
the response process.
     Modification of a question asking for the volume of 
respondents' plan termination annuity business so that it requests 
annual data instead of quarterly data to reduce volatility in survey 
responses.
     Addition of a question soliciting feedback on how PBGC 
could improve the survey process.
     Addition of flexibility to conduct the survey 
electronically.
    This voluntary survey is directed at insurance companies most, if 
not all, of which are members of ACLI. The survey is conducted 
quarterly and approximately 20 insurance companies will be asked to 
participate.
    The existing collection of information was approved under OMB 
control number 1212-0030 (expires August 31, 2021). On April 1, 2021, 
PBGC published in the Federal Register (at 86 FR 17217) a notice 
informing the public of its intent to request an extension of this 
collection of information, as modified. No comments were received. PBGC 
is requesting that OMB extend approval of the collection (with 
modifications) 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 about 6 insurance companies will respond to the 
survey each quarter, and that each survey will require approximately 30 
minutes to complete and return. The total burden is estimated to be 12 
hours (30 minutes per survey x 4 surveys per year x 6 respondents per 
quarter).

    Issued in Washington, DC.
Hilary Duke,
Assistant General Counsel for Regulatory Affairs, Pension Benefit 
Guaranty Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2021-12362 Filed 6-11-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7709-02-P