Submission of Information Collection for OMB Review; Comment Request; Annual Financial and Actuarial Information Reporting

PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION

Submission of Information Collection for OMB Review; Comment

Request; Annual Financial and Actuarial Information Reporting

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.

ACTION: Notice of request for extension of OMB approval.

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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 the collection of information under the

PBGC's regulation on Annual Financial and Actuarial Information

Reporting, 29 CFR Part 4010 (OMB control number 1212-0049; expires

December 31, 1998). This notice informs the public of the PBGC's

request and solicits public comment on the collection of information.

DATES: Comments should be submitted by December 3, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be mailed to the Office of Information and

Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and Budget, Attention:

Desk Officer for Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, Washington, DC

20503. Copies of the request for extension (including the collection of

information) are available from the Communications and Public Affairs

Department, suite 240, 1200 K Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005-4026,

between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on business days.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Harold J. Ashner, Assistant General

[[Page 59342]]

Counsel, or Deborah C. Murphy, Attorney, Office of the General Counsel,

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street, NW., Washington,

DC 20005-4026, 202-326-4024. (For TTY and TDD, call the Federal relay

service toll-free at 1-800-877-8339 and request connection to 202-326-

4024).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 4010 of the Employee Retirement

Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) requires each member of a corporate

controlled group to submit identifying, financial, and actuarial

information to the PBGC in certain circumstances. Reporting is required

(1) if the aggregate unfunded vested benefits of all defined benefit

pension plans maintained by the controlled group exceed $50 million,

(2) if the controlled group maintains any plan with missed

contributions (unless paid within a ten-day grace period), or (3) if

the controlled group maintains any plan with funding waivers in excess

of $1 million and any portion is still outstanding (taking into account

certain credit balances in the funding standard account). The PBGC's

regulation on Annual Financial and Actuarial Information Reporting (29

CFR Part 4010) implements section 4010.

The regulation requires the controlled group to file certain

identifying information, certain financial information, each plan's

actuarial valuation report, certain participant information, and a

determination of the amount of each plan's benefit liabilities. The

information submitted under the regulation allows the PBGC (1) to

detect and monitor financial problems with the contributing sponsors

that maintain severely underfunded pension plans and their controlled

group members and (2) to respond quickly when it learns that a

controlled group with severely underfunded pension plans intends to

engage in a transaction that may significantly reduce the assets

available to pay plan liabilities.

The collection of information under the regulation has been

approved by OMB under control number 1212-0049 through December 31,

1998. The PBGC is requesting that OMB extend its approval for another

three 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.

The PBGC estimates that an average of 60 controlled groups per year

respond to this collection of information. The PBGC further estimates

that the average annual burden of this collection of information is 9.2

hours and $7,500 per controlled group, for a total burden of 552 hours

and $450,000.

Issued in Washington, D.C., this 28th day of October, 1998.

Stuart Sirkin,

Director, Corporate Policy and Research Department, Pension Benefit

Guaranty Corporation.

[FR Doc. 98-29398 Filed 11-2-98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7708-01-P