Federal Employees' Retirement System; Present Value Conversion Factors for Spouses of Deceased Separated Employees, 24401-24402 [2019-10849]
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[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 102 (Tuesday, May 28, 2019)] [Proposed Rules] [Pages 24401-24402] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 2019-10849] ======================================================================== Proposed Rules Federal Register ________________________________________________________________________ This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules. ======================================================================== Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 102 / Tuesday, May 28, 2019 / Proposed Rules [[Page 24401]] OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT 5 CFR Part 843 RIN 3206-AN82 Federal Employees' Retirement System; Present Value Conversion Factors for Spouses of Deceased Separated Employees AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management. ACTION: Proposed rule. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is proposing to revise the table of reduction factors for early commencing dates of survivor annuities for spouses of separated employees who die before the date on which they would be eligible for unreduced deferred annuities, and to revise the annuity factor for spouses of deceased employees who die in service when those spouses elect to receive the basic employee death benefit in 36 installments under the Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS) Act of 1986. These rules are necessary to ensure that the tables conform to the economic and demographic assumptions adopted by the Board of Actuaries and published in the Federal Register on May 20, 2019. DATES: Send comments on or before July 29, 2019. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by docket number and/or Regulatory Information Number (RIN) and title, by the following method:Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments. All submissions received must include the agency name and docket number or RIN for this document. The general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the public is to make these submissions available for public viewing at https://www.regulations.gov as they are received without change, including any personal identifiers or contact information. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karla Yeakle, (202) 606-0299. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On May 20, 2019, OPM published notice 84 FR 22915 in the Federal Register to revise the normal cost percentages under the Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS) Act of 1986, Public Law 99-335, 100 Stat. 514, as amended, based on economic assumptions and demographic factors adopted by the Board of Actuaries of the Civil Service Retirement System. By statute under 5 U.S.C. 8461(i), the revisions to the actuarial assumptions require corresponding changes in factors used to produce actuarially equivalent benefits when required by the FERS Act. Section 843.309 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, regulates the payment of the basic employee death benefit. Under 5 U.S.C. 8442(b), the basic employee death benefit may be paid to a surviving spouse as a lump sum or as an equivalent benefit in 36 installments. These rules amend 5 CFR 843.309(b)(2) to conform the factor used to convert the lump sum to 36-installment payments with the revised economic assumptions. Section 843.311 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, regulates the benefits for the survivors of separated employees under 5 U.S.C. 8442(c). This section provides a choice of benefits for eligible current and former spouses. If the current or former spouse is the person entitled to the unexpended balance under the order of precedence under 5 U.S.C. 8424, he or she may elect to receive the unexpended balance instead of an annuity. Alternatively, an eligible current or former spouse may elect to receive an annuity commencing on the day after the employee's death or on the deceased separated employee's 62nd birthday. If the annuity commences on the deceased separated employee's 62nd birthday, the annuity will equal 50 percent of the annuity that the separated employee would have received had he or she attained age 62. If the current or former spouse elects an earlier commencing date, the annuity is reduced using the factors in Appendix A to subpart C of part 843 to make the annuity actuarially equivalent to the present value of the annuity that the spouse or former spouse would have received if the annuity had commenced on the deceased separated employee's 62nd birthday. These rules amend Appendix A to subpart C of part 843 to conform the factors to the revised actuarial assumptions. Regulatory Impact Analysis OPM has examined the impact of this rule as required by Executive Order 12866 and Executive Order 13563, which directs agencies to assess all costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize net benefits (including potential economic, environmental, public, health, and safety effects, distributive impacts, and equity). A regulatory impact analysis must be prepared for major rules with economically significant effects of $100 million or more in any one year. This rule was not designated as a ``significant regulatory action,'' under Executive Order 12866. Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs This proposed rule is not expected to be a E.O. 13771 regulatory action because this proposed rule is not significant under E.O. 12866. Regulatory Flexibility Act The Office of Personnel Management certifies that this rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. Federalism We have examined this rule in accordance with Executive Order 13132, Federalism, and have determined that this rule will not have any negative impact on the rights, roles and responsibilities of State, local, or tribal governments. Civil Justice Reform This regulation meets the applicable standard set forth in Executive Order 12988. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 This rule will not result in the expenditure by state, local, and tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 million or more in any year and it will not significantly or uniquely affect small governments. Therefore, no actions were deemed [[Page 24402]] necessary under the provisions of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995. Congressional Review Act This action pertains to agency management, personnel, and organization and does not substantially affect the rights or obligations of nonagency parties and, accordingly, is not a ``rule'' as that term is used by the Congressional Review Act (Subtitle E of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (SBREFA)). Therefore, the reporting requirement of 5 U.S.C. 801 does not apply. Paperwork Reduction Act Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person is required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty for failure to comply with a collection of information subject to the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) (PRA), unless that collection of information displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number. This rule involves an OMB approved collection of information subject to the PRA Application for Death Benefits (FERS)/Documentation and Elections in Support of Application for Death Benefits when Deceased was an Employee at the Time of Death (FERS), 3206-0172. The public reporting burden for this collection is estimated to average 60 minutes per response, including time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. The total burden hour estimate for this form is 16,751 hours. The systems of record notice for this collection is: OPM SORN CENTRAL-1-Civil Service Retirement and Insurance Records. List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 843 Air traffic controllers, Disability benefits, Firefighters, Government employees, Law enforcement officers, Pensions, Retirement. Alexys Stanley, Regulatory Affairs Analyst, Office of Personnel Management. For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Office of Personnel Management proposes to amend 5 CFR part 843 as follows: PART 843--FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM--DEATH BENEFITS AND EMPLOYEE REFUNDS 0 1. The authority citation for part 843 continues to read as follows: Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8461; Sec. Sec. 843.205, 843.208, and 843.209 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8424; Sec. 843.309 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8442; Sec. 843.406 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8441. Subpart C--Current and Former Spouse Benefits 0 2. In Sec. 843.309, revise paragraph (b)(2) to read as follows: Sec. 843.309 Basic employee death benefit. * * * * * (b) * * * (2) For deaths occurring on or after October 1, 2019, 36 equal monthly installments of 2.96358 percent of the amount of the basic employee death benefit. * * * * * 0 3. Revise Appendix A to subpart C of part 843 to read as follows: Appendix A to Subpart C of Part 843--Present Value Conversion Factors for Earlier Commencing Date of Annuities of Current and Former Spouses of Deceased Separated Employees With at least 10 but less than 20 years of creditable service-- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Age of separated employee at birthday before death Multiplier ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 26......................................................... .0998 27......................................................... .1068 28......................................................... .1138 29......................................................... .1214 30......................................................... .1291 31......................................................... .1375 32......................................................... .1463 33......................................................... .1555 34......................................................... .1651 35......................................................... .1755 36......................................................... .1867 37......................................................... .1986 38......................................................... .2113 39......................................................... .2247 40......................................................... .2390 41......................................................... .2540 42......................................................... .2701 43......................................................... .2875 44......................................................... .3057 45......................................................... .3252 46......................................................... .3460 47......................................................... .3680 48......................................................... .3917 49......................................................... .4171 50......................................................... .4445 51......................................................... .4739 52......................................................... .5055 53......................................................... .5393 54......................................................... .5758 55......................................................... .6151 56......................................................... .6578 57......................................................... .7037 58......................................................... .7536 59......................................................... .8076 60......................................................... .8663 61......................................................... .9302 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ With at least 20, but less than 30 years of creditable service-- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Age of separated employee at birthday before death Multiplier ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 36......................................................... .2153 37......................................................... .2291 38......................................................... .2436 39......................................................... .2592 40......................................................... .2756 41......................................................... .2930 42......................................................... .3116 43......................................................... .3316 44......................................................... .3527 45......................................................... .3752 46......................................................... .3992 47......................................................... .4247 48......................................................... .4521 49......................................................... .4814 50......................................................... .5131 51......................................................... .5470 52......................................................... .5834 53......................................................... .6225 54......................................................... .6646 55......................................................... .7100 56......................................................... .7592 57......................................................... .8123 58......................................................... .8698 59......................................................... .9322 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ With at least 30 years of creditable service-- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Multiplier by separated employee's year of birth Age of separated employee at birthday before death ------------------- From After 1950 1966 through 1966 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 46.................................................. .4912 .5254 47.................................................. .5226 .5591 48.................................................. .5564 .5953 49.................................................. .5926 .6340 50.................................................. .6316 .6757 51.................................................. .6733 .7203 52.................................................. .7181 .7683 53.................................................. .7663 .8199 54.................................................. .8182 .8754 55.................................................. .8741 .9353 56.................................................. .9346 1.0000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [FR Doc. 2019-10849 Filed 5-24-19; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6325-38-P
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