[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 109 (Tuesday, June 8, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32517-32519]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-13654]
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PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION
Proposed Submission of Information Collections for OMB Review;
Comment Request; Payment of Premiums; Termination Premium
AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
[[Page 32518]]
ACTION: Notice of intent to request extension of OMB approval of
collection of information without change.
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SUMMARY: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) intends to request
that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) extend approval, under
the Paperwork Reduction Act, of the collection of information for the
termination premium under its regulation on Payment of Premiums (29 CFR
Part 4007) (OMB control number 1212-0064; expires October 31, 2010),
without change. This notice informs the public of PBGC's intent and
solicits public comment on the collection of information.
DATES: Comments should be submitted by August 9, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the Web site instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: [email protected].
Fax: 202-326-4224.
Mail or hand delivery: Legislative and Regulatory
Department, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street, NW.,
Washington, DC 20005-4026.
Comments received, including personal information provided, will be
posted to PBGC's Web site (http://www.pbgc.gov).
The collection of information (Form T and instructions) and PBGC's
premium payment regulation may be accessed on PBGC's Web site at http://www.pbgc.gov. Copies of the collection of information may also be
obtained without charge by writing to the Disclosure Division of the
Office of the General Counsel of PBGC at the above address or by
visiting the Disclosure Division or calling 202-326-4040 during normal
business hours. (TTY and TDD users may call the Federal relay service
toll-free at 1-800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-326-4040.)
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Deborah C. Murphy, Staff Attorney,
Legislative and Regulatory Department, Pension Benefit Guaranty
Corporation, 1200 K Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005-4026, 202-326-
4024. (TTY and TDD users may call the Federal relay service toll-free
at 1-800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-326-4024.)
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) administers the pension
plan termination insurance program under title IV of the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). Section 4006(a)(7) of
ERISA provides for a ``termination premium'' (in addition to the flat-
rate and variable-rate premiums under section 4006(a)(3)(A) and (E) of
ERISA) that is payable for three years following certain distress and
involuntary plan terminations. PBGC's regulations on Premium Rates (29
CFR part 4006) and Payment of Premiums (29 CFR part 4007) implement the
termination premium. Sections 4007.3 and 4007.13(b) of the premium
payment regulation require the filing of termination premium
information and payments with PBGC. PBGC has promulgated Form T and
instructions for paying the termination premium.
In general, the termination premium applies where a single-employer
plan terminates in a distress termination under ERISA section 4041(c)
(unless contributing sponsors and controlled group members meet the
bankruptcy liquidation requirements of ERISA section 4041(c)(2)(B)(i))
or in an involuntary termination under ERISA section 4042, and the
termination date under section 4048 of ERISA is after 2005. The
termination premium does not apply in certain cases where termination
occurs during a bankruptcy proceeding filed before October 18, 2005.
The termination premium is payable for three years. The same amount
is payable each year. The amount of each payment is based on the number
of participants in the plan as of the day before the termination date.
In general, the amount of each payment is equal to $1,250 times the
number of participants. However, the rate is increased from $1,250 to
$2,500 in certain cases involving commercial airline or airline
catering service plans. The termination premium is due on the 30th day
of each of three consecutive 12-month periods. The first 12-month
period generally begins shortly after the termination date or after the
conclusion of bankruptcy proceedings in certain cases.
Sections 4007.3 and 4007.13(b) of the premium payment regulation
require the filing of termination premiums and related information. A
filing must be made by a person liable for the termination premium. The
persons liable for the termination premium are contributing sponsors
and members of their controlled groups, determined on the day before
the plan termination date. Interest on late termination premiums is
charged at the rate imposed under section 6601(a) of the Internal
Revenue Code, compounded daily, from the due date to the payment date.
Penalties based on facts and circumstances may be assessed both for
failure to timely pay the termination premium and for failure to timely
file required related information and may be waived in appropriate
circumstances. A penalty for late payment will not exceed the amount of
termination premium paid late. Section 4007.10 of the premium payment
regulation requires the retention of records supporting or validating
the computation of premiums paid and requires that the records be made
available to PBGC.
OMB has approved the termination premium collection of information
(Form T and instructions) under control number 1212-0064 through
October 31, 2010. PBGC intends to request that OMB extend approval of
this collection of information for three years, without change. (In
connection with this request for extension of OMB approval, Form T has
been reformatted without substantive change, and current burden data
and instructions for the hearing impaired have been added to the Form T
instructions.) 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 assumes that termination premium filings will be made with
respect to one termination per year. Accordingly, PBGC assumes that it
will receive each year an average of about one first-year, one second-
year, and one third-year termination premium filing from an average of
about three plan sponsor groups. Thus, PBGC estimates that the total
annual burden of the collection of information will be about two-and-a-
half hours and $16,625.
PBGC is soliciting public comments to--
Evaluate whether the 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 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.
[[Page 32519]]
Issued in Washington, DC, June 2, 2010.
John H. Hanley,
Director, Legislative and Regulatory Department, Pension Benefit
Guaranty Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2010-13654 Filed 6-7-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7709-01-P