[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 104 (Wednesday, May 31, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34906-34907]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-11564]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION


Submission of Information Collections for OMB Review; Comment 
Request; Special Financial Assistance Information

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.

ACTION: Notice of request for extension of OMB approval of information 
collections.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

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 collections of information contained in 
PBGC's regulation on special financial assistance. The purpose of the 
information collections is to gather information necessary for PBGC to 
operate the special financial assistance program. This notice informs 
the public of PBGC's request and solicits public comment on the 
collections of information.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before June 30, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collections should be sent within 30 days of publication of 
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find the information 
collections by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for 
Public Comments'' or by using the search function. All comments 
received will be posted without change to PBGC's website, http://www.pbgc.gov, including any personal information provided. Do not 
submit comments that include any personally identifiable information or 
confidential business information.
    Copies of the collections of information may be obtained by writing 
to Disclosure Division ([email protected]), Office of the General 
Counsel, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 445 12th Street SW, 
Washington, DC 20024-2101, or calling 202-229-4040 during normal 
business hours. If you are deaf or hard of hearing, or have a speech 
disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay 
services.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melissa Rifkin 
([email protected]), Attorney, Regulatory Affairs Division, 
Office of the General Counsel, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 
445 12th Street SW, Washington, DC 20024-2101; 202-229-6563. If you are 
deaf or hard of hearing or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 
to access telecommunications relay services.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 4262 of the Employee Retirement 
Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) requires PBGC to provide special 
financial assistance (SFA) to certain

[[Page 34907]]

financially troubled multiemployer plans upon application for 
assistance. Part 4262 of PBGC's regulations, ``Special Financial 
Assistance by PBGC,'' provides guidance to multiemployer pension plan 
sponsors on eligibility for SFA, determining the amount of SFA, content 
of an application for SFA, the process of applying, PBGC's review of 
SFA applications, restrictions and conditions, and reporting and notice 
requirements.
    To apply for SFA, a plan sponsor must file an application with PBGC 
and include information about the plan, plan documentation, and 
actuarial information, as specified in Sec. Sec.  4262.6 through 
4262.9. Also, if the plan is changing certain assumptions for purposes 
of its requested amount of SFA, then the plan sponsor may use PBGC's 
SFA assumptions guidance. PBGC needs the application information to 
review a plan's eligibility for SFA and amount of requested SFA. In 
this renewal, PBGC is modifying the instructions of the application for 
SFA to require full census data of all terminated vested participants 
that were included in the SFA projections. PBGC will use this 
information to conduct an independent death audit. In addition, PBGC is 
adding a new ``assumptions summaries'' template, and a cover letter 
that a plan, in certain circumstances, may use to withdraw a previously 
filed application for SFA and seek expedited review of a revised 
application. These two additions are intended to make PBGC's review 
process more efficient. PBGC estimates that over the next 3 years an 
annual average of 59 plan sponsors will file applications for SFA with 
an average annual hour burden of 649 hours and an average annual cost 
burden of $1,888,000.
    Under Sec.  4262.10(g), a plan sponsor may, but is not required to, 
file a lock-in application as a plan's initial application. The lock-in 
application contains basic information about the plan and a statement 
of intent to lock-in base data. PBGC needs the information in the lock-
in application to ensure that a plan sponsor intends to lock-in the 
plan's base data. In this renewal, PBGC is modifying language in the 
lock-in application's form and instructions to add information for 
filing a ``revised lock-in application.'' A revised lock-in application 
may be used by a plan that was not eligible for SFA on the filing date 
of the plan's earlier lock-in application, based on the information 
available on that date. PBGC estimates that over the next 3 years an 
annual average of 23 plan sponsors will file lock-in applications, 
including revised lock-in applications, for SFA with an average annual 
hour burden of 23 hours and an average annual cost burden of $18,400.
    Under Sec.  4262.16(i), a plan sponsor of a plan that has received 
SFA must file an Annual Statement of Compliance with the restrictions 
and conditions under section 4262 of ERISA and part 4262 once every 
year through 2051. PBGC needs the information in the Annual Statement 
of Compliance to ensure that a plan is compliant with the imposed 
restrictions and conditions. Based on its experience with these 
filings, PBGC is clarifying the types of documents to be attached to 
the Annual Statement of Compliance and adding a template that filers 
may use to submit the required account and investment information. PBGC 
estimates that over the next 3 years an annual average of 120 plan 
sponsors will file Annual Statements of Compliance with an average 
annual hour burden of 240 hours and an average annual cost burden of 
$288,000.
    Under Sec.  4262.15(c), a plan sponsor of a plan with benefits that 
were suspended under sections 305(e)(9) or 4245(a) of ERISA must issue 
notices of reinstatement to participants and beneficiaries whose 
benefits were suspended and are being reinstated. Participants and 
beneficiaries need the notice of reinstatement to better understand the 
calculation and timing of their reinstated benefits and, if applicable, 
make-up payments. PBGC estimates that over the next 3 years an average 
of 5 plans per year will be required to send notices to participants 
with suspended benefits. PBGC estimates that these notices will impose 
an average annual hour burden of 10 hours and average annual cost 
burden of $10,000.
    Finally, under Sec.  4262.16(d), (f), (g) and (h) a plan sponsor 
must file a request for a determination from PBGC for approval for an 
exception under certain circumstances for SFA conditions under Sec.  
4262.16 relating to reductions in contributions, transfers or mergers, 
and withdrawal liability. PBGC needs the information required for such 
a request to determine whether to approve an exception from the 
specified condition of receiving SFA. PBGC estimates that over the next 
3 years, PBGC will receive an average of 3.2 requests per year for 
determinations. PBGC estimates an average annual hour burden of 15.6 
hours and average annual cost burden of $44,000.
    The estimated aggregate average annual hour burden for the next 3 
years for the information collections in part 4262 is 937.6 hours for 
employer and fund office administrative, clerical, and supervisory 
time. The estimated aggregate average annual cost burden for the next 3 
years for the information collections in part 4262 is $2,248,400, for 
approximately 5,621 contract hours assuming an average hourly rate of 
$400 for work done by outside actuaries and attorneys. The actual hour 
burden and cost burden per plan will vary depending on plan size and 
other factors.
    The existing collections of information were approved under OMB 
control number 1212-0074 (expires July 31, 2023). On February 15, PBGC 
published in the Federal Register (at 88 FR 9914) a notice informing 
the public of its intent to request an extension of the collections of 
information. No comments were received. PBGC is requesting that OMB 
extend approval of the collections (with modifications) for 3 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.

    Issued in Washington, DC.
Hilary Duke,
Assistant General Counsel for Regulatory Affairs, Pension Benefit 
Guaranty Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2023-11564 Filed 5-30-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7709-02-P