Allocation of Assets in Single-Employer Plans; Valuation of Benefits and Assets; Expected Retirement Age, 74699-74700 [2011-30849]
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 231 / Thursday, December 1, 2011 / Rules and Regulations
and copying by authorized employees of
the Administration under the provisions
of section 510 of the Act (21 U.S.C. 880).
(h) A record developed and
maintained to comply with a State law
may be used to meet the requirements
of this section if the record includes the
information specified in this section.
Dated: November 22, 2011.
Joseph T. Rannazzisi,
Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of
Diversion Control.
[FR Doc. 2011–30630 Filed 11–30–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410–09–P
PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY
CORPORATION
29 CFR Part 4044
Allocation of Assets in SingleEmployer Plans; Valuation of Benefits
and Assets; Expected Retirement Age
Pension Benefit Guaranty
Corporation.
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:
This rule amends Pension
Benefit Guaranty Corporation’s
regulation on Allocation of Assets in
Single-Employer Plans by substituting a
new table for determining expected
retirement ages for participants in
pension plans undergoing distress or
involuntary termination with valuation
dates falling in 2012. This table is
needed in order to compute the value of
early retirement benefits and, thus, the
total value of benefits under a plan.
DATES: Effective Date: January 1, 2012.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Catherine B. Klion, Manager, Regulatory
and Policy Division, Legislative and
Regulatory Department, Pension Benefit
Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street
NW., Washington, DC 20005, (202) 326–
4024. (TTY/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: The
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).
PBGC’s regulation on Allocation of
emcdonald on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with RULES
SUMMARY:
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17:21 Nov 30, 2011
Jkt 226001
Assets in Single-Employer Plans (29
CFR part 4044) sets forth (in subpart B)
the methods for valuing plan benefits of
terminating single-employer plans
covered under Title IV. Guaranteed
benefits and benefit liabilities under a
plan that is undergoing a distress
termination must be valued in
accordance with subpart B of part 4044.
In addition, when PBGC terminates an
underfunded plan involuntarily
pursuant to ERISA section 4042(a), it
uses the subpart B valuation rules to
determine the amount of the plan’s
underfunding.
Under § 4044.51(b) of the asset
allocation regulation, early retirement
benefits are valued based on the annuity
starting date, if a retirement date has
been selected, or the expected
retirement age, if the annuity starting
date is not known on the valuation date.
Sections 4044.55 through 4044.57 set
forth rules for determining the expected
retirement ages for plan participants
entitled to early retirement benefits.
Appendix D of part 4044 contains tables
to be used in determining the expected
early retirement ages.
Table I in appendix D (Selection of
Retirement Rate Category) is used to
determine whether a participant has a
low, medium, or high probability of
retiring early. The determination is
based on the year a participant would
reach ‘‘unreduced retirement age’’ (i.e.,
the earlier of the normal retirement age
or the age at which an unreduced
benefit is first payable) and the
participant’s monthly benefit at
unreduced retirement age. The table
applies only to plans with valuation
dates in the current year and is updated
annually by the PBGC to reflect changes
in the cost of living, etc.
Tables II–A, II–B, and II–C (Expected
Retirement Ages for Individuals in the
Low, Medium, and High Categories
respectively) are used to determine the
expected retirement age after the
probability of early retirement has been
determined using Table I. These tables
establish, by probability category, the
expected retirement age based on both
the earliest age a participant could retire
under the plan and the unreduced
retirement age. This expected retirement
age is used to compute the value of the
early retirement benefit and, thus, the
total value of benefits under the plan.
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74699
This document amends appendix D to
replace Table I–11 with Table I–12 in
order to provide an updated correlation,
appropriate for calendar year 2012,
between the amount of a participant’s
benefit and the probability that the
participant will elect early retirement.
Table I–12 will be used to value benefits
in plans with valuation dates during
calendar year 2012.
PBGC has determined that notice of
and public comment on this rule are
impracticable and contrary to the public
interest. Plan administrators need to be
able to estimate accurately the value of
plan benefits as early as possible before
initiating the termination process. For
that purpose, if a plan has a valuation
date in 2012, the plan administrator
needs the updated table being
promulgated in this rule. Accordingly,
the public interest is best served by
issuing this table expeditiously, without
an opportunity for notice and comment,
to allow as much time as possible to
estimate the value of plan benefits with
the proper table for plans with valuation
dates in early 2012.
PBGC has determined that this action
is not a ‘‘significant regulatory action’’
under the criteria set forth in Executive
Order 12866.
Because no general notice of proposed
rulemaking is required for this
regulation, the Regulatory Flexibility
Act of 1980 does not apply (5 U.S.C.
601(2)).
List of Subjects in 29 CFR Part 4044
Pension insurance, Pensions.
In consideration of the foregoing, 29
CFR part 4044 is amended as follows:
PART 4044—ALLOCATION OF
ASSETS IN SINGLE-EMPLOYER
PLANS
1. The authority citation for part 4044
continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 29 U.S.C. 1301(a), 1302(b)(3),
1341, 1344, 1362.
2. Appendix D to part 4044 is
amended by removing Table I–11 and
adding in its place Table I–12 to read as
follows:
■
Appendix D to Part 4044—Tables Used
To Determine Expected Retirement Age
E:\FR\FM\01DER1.SGM
01DER1
74700
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 231 / Thursday, December 1, 2011 / Rules and Regulations
TABLE I–12— SELECTION OF RETIREMENT RATE CATEGORY
[For plans with valuation dates after December 31, 2011, and before January 1, 2013]
Participant’s Retirement Rate Category is—
Low 1 if
monthly
benefit at
URA is less
than—
If participant reaches URA in year—
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
1
2
3
*
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................
or later ....................................................................................................................
From—
575
586
598
610
623
636
649
663
677
691
To—
575
586
598
610
623
636
649
663
677
691
2,431
2,477
2,527
2,577
2,632
2,687
2,743
2,801
2,860
2,920
High 3 if
monthly
benefit at
URA is
greater
than—
2,431
2,477
2,527
2,577
2,632
2,687
2,743
2,801
2,860
2,920
Table II–A.
Table II–B.
Table II–C.
*
*
*
*
Issued in Washington, DC, this 18th day of
November 2011.
Laricke Blanchard,
Deputy Director for Policy, Pension Benefit
Guaranty Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2011–30849 Filed 11–30–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7709–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
37 CFR Part 1
[Docket No. PTO–P–2011–0014]
RIN 0651–AC56
Revision of Patent Term Adjustment
Provisions Relating to Information
Disclosure Statements
United States Patent and
Trademark Office, Commerce.
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:
The United States Patent and
Trademark Office (Office) is revising the
patent term adjustment provisions of the
rules of practice in patent cases. The
patent term adjustment provisions of the
American Inventors Protection Act of
1999 (AIPA) provide for a reduction of
any patent term adjustment if the
applicant failed to engage in reasonable
efforts to conclude prosecution of the
application. The Office is revising the
rules of practice pertaining to the
reduction of patent term adjustment for
applicant delays to exclude information
disclosure statements resulting from the
citation of information in a counterpart
application that are promptly filed with
SUMMARY:
emcdonald on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with RULES
Medium 2 if monthly benefit
at URA is—
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17:21 Nov 30, 2011
Jkt 226001
the Office. The rule change allows the
diligent applicant to avoid patent term
adjustment reduction for an IDS
submission that results from a
communication from the Office.
Presently, the rule only provides relief
if the IDS was cited as a result of a
communication from a foreign patent
office. Under this final rule, there will
be no reduction of patent term
adjustment in the following situations:
when applicant promptly submits a
reference in an information disclosure
statement after the mailing of a notice of
allowance if the reference was cited by
the Office in another application, or
when applicant promptly submits a
copy of an Office communication (e.g.,
an Office action) in an information
disclosure statement after the mailing of
a notice of allowance if the Office
communication was issued by the Office
in another application or by a foreign
patent office in a counterpart foreign
application. The above changes are
intended to ensure compliance with
AIPA in light of the evolving case law.
DATES: Effective Date: December 1, 2011.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kery
A. Fries, Senior Legal Advisor, Office of
Patent Legal Administration, by
telephone at (571) 272–7757, by mail
addressed to: Box Comments—Patents,
Commissioner for Patents, P.O. Box
1450, Alexandria, VA 22313–1450,
marked to the attention of Kery A. Fries.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The AIPA
amended 35 U.S.C. 154(b) to provide
patent term adjustment for certain
delays during the patent examination
process. See Public Law 106–113, 113
Stat. 1501, 1501A–552 through 1501A–
591 (1999)). Specifically, under the
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patent term adjustment provisions of 35
U.S.C. 154(b) as amended by the AIPA,
an applicant is entitled to patent term
adjustment for the following reasons: (1)
If the Office fails to take certain actions
during the examination and issue
process within specified time frames (35
U.S.C. 154(b)(1)(A)); (2) if the Office
fails to issue a patent within three years
of the actual filing date of the
application in the United States (35
U.S.C. 154(b)(1)(B)); and (3) for delays
due to interference, secrecy order, or
successful appellate review (35 U.S.C.
154(b)(1)(C)). The AIPA, however, sets
forth a number of conditions and
limitations on any patent term
adjustment accrued under 35 U.S.C.
154(b)(1). Specifically, 35 U.S.C.
154(b)(2)(C) provides, in part, that ‘‘[t]he
period of adjustment of the term of a
patent under [35 U.S.C. 154(b)(1)] shall
be reduced by a period equal to the
period of time during which the
applicant failed to engage in reasonable
efforts to conclude prosecution of the
application’’ and that ‘‘[t]he Director
shall prescribe regulations establishing
the circumstances that constitute a
failure of an applicant to engage in
reasonable efforts to conclude
processing or examination of an
application.’’ 35 U.S.C. 154(b)(2)(C)(i)
and (iii). The Office implemented the
patent term adjustment provisions of 35
U.S.C. 154(b) as amended by the AIPA,
including setting forth the
circumstances that constitute a failure of
an applicant to engage in reasonable
efforts to conclude processing or
examination of an application, in a final
rule published in September of 2000.
See Changes to Implement Patent Term
Adjustment Under Twenty-Year Patent
E:\FR\FM\01DER1.SGM
01DER1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 231 (Thursday, December 1, 2011)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 74699-74700]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-30849]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION
29 CFR Part 4044
Allocation of Assets in Single-Employer Plans; Valuation of
Benefits and Assets; Expected Retirement Age
AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
ACTION: Final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This rule amends Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation's
regulation on Allocation of Assets in Single-Employer Plans by
substituting a new table for determining expected retirement ages for
participants in pension plans undergoing distress or involuntary
termination with valuation dates falling in 2012. This table is needed
in order to compute the value of early retirement benefits and, thus,
the total value of benefits under a plan.
DATES: Effective Date: January 1, 2012.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Catherine B. Klion, Manager,
Regulatory and Policy Division, Legislative and Regulatory Department,
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street NW., Washington, DC
20005, (202) 326-4024. (TTY/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: The 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). PBGC's regulation on Allocation of Assets in Single-Employer
Plans (29 CFR part 4044) sets forth (in subpart B) the methods for
valuing plan benefits of terminating single-employer plans covered
under Title IV. Guaranteed benefits and benefit liabilities under a
plan that is undergoing a distress termination must be valued in
accordance with subpart B of part 4044. In addition, when PBGC
terminates an underfunded plan involuntarily pursuant to ERISA section
4042(a), it uses the subpart B valuation rules to determine the amount
of the plan's underfunding.
Under Sec. 4044.51(b) of the asset allocation regulation, early
retirement benefits are valued based on the annuity starting date, if a
retirement date has been selected, or the expected retirement age, if
the annuity starting date is not known on the valuation date. Sections
4044.55 through 4044.57 set forth rules for determining the expected
retirement ages for plan participants entitled to early retirement
benefits. Appendix D of part 4044 contains tables to be used in
determining the expected early retirement ages.
Table I in appendix D (Selection of Retirement Rate Category) is
used to determine whether a participant has a low, medium, or high
probability of retiring early. The determination is based on the year a
participant would reach ``unreduced retirement age'' (i.e., the earlier
of the normal retirement age or the age at which an unreduced benefit
is first payable) and the participant's monthly benefit at unreduced
retirement age. The table applies only to plans with valuation dates in
the current year and is updated annually by the PBGC to reflect changes
in the cost of living, etc.
Tables II-A, II-B, and II-C (Expected Retirement Ages for
Individuals in the Low, Medium, and High Categories respectively) are
used to determine the expected retirement age after the probability of
early retirement has been determined using Table I. These tables
establish, by probability category, the expected retirement age based
on both the earliest age a participant could retire under the plan and
the unreduced retirement age. This expected retirement age is used to
compute the value of the early retirement benefit and, thus, the total
value of benefits under the plan.
This document amends appendix D to replace Table I-11 with Table I-
12 in order to provide an updated correlation, appropriate for calendar
year 2012, between the amount of a participant's benefit and the
probability that the participant will elect early retirement. Table I-
12 will be used to value benefits in plans with valuation dates during
calendar year 2012.
PBGC has determined that notice of and public comment on this rule
are impracticable and contrary to the public interest. Plan
administrators need to be able to estimate accurately the value of plan
benefits as early as possible before initiating the termination
process. For that purpose, if a plan has a valuation date in 2012, the
plan administrator needs the updated table being promulgated in this
rule. Accordingly, the public interest is best served by issuing this
table expeditiously, without an opportunity for notice and comment, to
allow as much time as possible to estimate the value of plan benefits
with the proper table for plans with valuation dates in early 2012.
PBGC has determined that this action is not a ``significant
regulatory action'' under the criteria set forth in Executive Order
12866.
Because no general notice of proposed rulemaking is required for
this regulation, the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 does not apply
(5 U.S.C. 601(2)).
List of Subjects in 29 CFR Part 4044
Pension insurance, Pensions.
In consideration of the foregoing, 29 CFR part 4044 is amended as
follows:
PART 4044--ALLOCATION OF ASSETS IN SINGLE-EMPLOYER PLANS
0
1. The authority citation for part 4044 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 29 U.S.C. 1301(a), 1302(b)(3), 1341, 1344, 1362.
0
2. Appendix D to part 4044 is amended by removing Table I-11 and adding
in its place Table I-12 to read as follows:
Appendix D to Part 4044--Tables Used To Determine Expected Retirement
Age
[[Page 74700]]
Table I-12-- Selection of Retirement Rate Category
[For plans with valuation dates after December 31, 2011, and before January 1, 2013]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Participant's Retirement Rate Category is--
---------------------------------------------------
Medium \2\ if monthly High \3\ if
Low \1\ if benefit at URA is-- monthly
If participant reaches URA in year-- monthly -------------------------- benefit at
benefit at URA is
URA is less From-- To-- greater
than-- than--
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2013........................................................ 575 575 2,431 2,431
2014........................................................ 586 586 2,477 2,477
2015........................................................ 598 598 2,527 2,527
2016........................................................ 610 610 2,577 2,577
2017........................................................ 623 623 2,632 2,632
2018........................................................ 636 636 2,687 2,687
2019........................................................ 649 649 2,743 2,743
2020........................................................ 663 663 2,801 2,801
2021........................................................ 677 677 2,860 2,860
2022 or later............................................... 691 691 2,920 2,920
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Table II-A.
\2\ Table II-B.
\3\ Table II-C.
* * * * *
Issued in Washington, DC, this 18th day of November 2011.
Laricke Blanchard,
Deputy Director for Policy, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2011-30849 Filed 11-30-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7709-01-P
