Voglio sapere a riguardo di…

khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES2

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 130 / Monday, July 12, 2021 / Rules and Regulations assumption is reasonable. If there is a change in assumptions, each of the actuarial assumptions and methods other than the interest rate must be reasonable and the combination of those actuarial assumptions and methods excluding the interest rate must also be reasonable. With large amounts of SFA
at stake, PBGC will be called on to perform a more searching analysis of any changed assumptions. While PBGC
expects actuaries to be conscientious in setting assumptions, it is a process that presents many opportunities for judgment calls that may be influenced by the goal of maximizing SFA.
Concurrent with this interim final rule, PBGC has issued guidelines for changes to certain assumptions that plans may use for purposes of determining eligibility for SFA and the amount of SFA. Plans may, but are not required to, use the guidelines if they are reasonable for the plan. Guidelines are available for contribution base units CBUs, administrative expenses, mortality, contribution rates, and new entrant profiles, and can be found in the guidance issued on PBGCs website at www.pbgc.gov/guidance.
Additionally, PBGC acknowledges that plans may have a gap in the assumption for projected CBUs and administrative expenses used in the prior certification of plan status such that the assumption cannot be used as is for determining SFA. This is because plans generally do not project these assumptions more than 20 years in the future. In addition, before the enactment of ARP, if a plan was projected to become insolvent within 20 years, then the plan is unlikely to have assumptions for CBUs or plan-related administrative expenses for years after the projected insolvency date. These are natural practices for purposes of a certification of plan status, but a significant deficiency where those assumptions are needed to determine the amount of SFA.
A plan can fill this gap with any reasonable extension of its CBU
assumption and administrative expense assumption, but that will generally mean a change in assumptions, triggering a more intensive and timeconsuming review by PBGC. To assist applicants and aid in the review of a plans CBU assumption and administrative expense assumption, PBGC has developed standard extensions that plans can use to complete the assumption set for a plan that otherwise can use its original assumptions. These assumptions are described in the guidance mentioned earlier in this section of the preamble.

VerDate Sep<11>2014

17:51 Jul 09, 2021

Jkt 253001

Information To Be Filed Sections 4262.6 through 4262.8 of the regulation describe the information that must be included in a plans SFA
application. Section 4262.6 summarizes the requirements for an application to be considered complete, including plan information; actuarial and financial information including the amount of SFA requested; a completed checklist per the SFA instructions on PBGCs website at www.pbgc.gov; the signature of an authorized trustee who is a current member of the board of trustees; a signed penalties of perjury statement; a copy of the executed plan amendment providing that, beginning with the SFA
measurement date, the plan must be administered in accordance with the restrictions and conditions specified in section 4262 of ERISA and this regulation; a copy of the proposed plan amendment to reinstate benefits and pay make-up payments and certification by the plan sponsor that the plan amendment will be adopted timely; and information required by PBGC to clarify or verify the information in a filed application. If any of the information required under this part and in the SFA
instructions is missing from the filed application, the application will not be considered complete.
The SFA instructions, including templates, supplement the regulation and provide guidance to plan sponsors and practitioners on how to prepare and file the required application information.
Sections 4262.6 through 4262.8 and the instructions specify the minimum necessary plan, actuarial, and financial information that PBGC requires to approve or deny an application for SFA
and to verify the amount of SFA within the short 120-day review window permitted under section 4262g of ERISA. As described in the Paperwork Reduction Act section of this preamble, the application instructions and checklist have been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget OMB for review and approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act. OMBs decision regarding this information collection request will be available at http www.Reginfo.gov.
Unless confidential under the Privacy Act, all information that is filed with PBGC for an application for SFA may be made publicly available, at PBGCs sole discretion, on PBGCs website at www.pbgc.gov or otherwise publicly disclosed. Except to the extent required by the Privacy Act, PBGC provides no assurance of confidentiality in any information or documentation included in an application for SFA.

PO 00000

Frm 00009

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

36605

Application for Plans With a Partition Under section 4233 of ERISA, a plan may apply to PBGC for a partition to fund a portion of the plans benefits to avoid insolvency. Upon PBGCs approval of an application for partition, PBGC issues a partition order to provide: 1 For a transfer from the original plan to the plan created by the partition order the successor plan, the minimum amount of benefit liabilities necessary for the original plan to remain solvent, and 2 financial assistance from PBGC under section 4261 to pay those benefits. The successor plan is but a creature of PBGCs partition order, terminated and insolvent from its inception. The original and successor plans are required by section 4233d2
to have the same plan sponsor and administrator.
Section 4262c3 of ERISA requires PBGC to provide an alternative application for SFA that may be used for a plan approved for a partition before March 11, 2021. Section 4262.9 of PBGCs regulation describes this application.
The plan sponsor of a partitioned plan must apply for SFA using the alternative application, which contemplates PBGCs rescission of the partition order as prescribed under 4262.9c and other conditions particular to a partitioned plan as described under 4262.9b. One of these conditions is that the plan sponsor must file a single application for SFA consisting of information about the original plan and the successor plan. The combined information must reflect that, on the date SFA is transferred to the plan, PBGC will rescind the order that created the successor plan, and the plan sponsor will remove plan provisions and amendments that were required to be adopted under the order.
Another condition is that the application must include a statement that the plan was partitioned and a copy of the provisions or amendments that the plan was required to adopt under the partition order. A partitioned plans application must include all the required information described in 4262.6 through 4262.8 for applications generally. However, if the plan sponsor of a partitioned plan has filed any of the required information with PBGC already, the sponsor is not required to include that information again with its SFA application. Instead, the sponsor must only note on the checklist described under 4262.6a that the information was already filed.
Partitioned plans also have benefit suspensions that must be reinstated if the plan is approved for SFA. Under
E:FRFM12JYR2.SGM

12JYR2