[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]
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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.
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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 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