2019-08492. 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.

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 a collection of information contained in its regulation on Annual Financial and Actuarial Information Reporting. This notice informs the public of PBGC's request and solicits public comment on the collection.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted by May 29, 2019.

ADDRESSES:

Comments should be sent to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, via electronic mail at [e-mail] or by fax to [phone].

A copy of the request will be posted on PBGC's website at https://www.pbgc.gov/​prac/​laws-and-regulations/​information-collections-under-omb-review. It may also be obtained without charge by writing to the Disclosure Division of the Office of the General Counsel of PBGC, 1200 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-4026; faxing a request to 202-326-4042; or, calling 202-326-4040 during normal business hours (TTY users may call the Federal Relay Service toll-free at 800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-326-4040). The Disclosure Division will email, fax, or mail the information to you, as you request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Stephanie Cibinic, Deputy Assistant General Counsel, Regulatory Affairs Division, Office of the General Counsel, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street NW, Washington DC 20005-4026; 202-326-4400, extension 6352. (TTY users may call the Federal Relay Service toll-free at 800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-326-4400, extension 6352.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Section 4010 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and PBGC's regulation on Annual Financial and Actuarial Information Reporting (29 CFR part 4010) require each member of a controlled group to submit financial and actuarial information to PBGC under certain circumstances. Section 4010 specifies that each controlled group member must provide PBGC with certain financial information, including audited (if available) or (if not) unaudited financial statements. Section 4010 also specifies that the controlled group must provide PBGC with certain actuarial information necessary to determine the liabilities and assets for all PBGC-covered plans.

PBGC's 4010 regulation specifies the items of identifying, financial, and actuarial information that filers must submit under section 4010, through PBGC's secure e-4010 web-based application. Computer-assisted analysis of this information helps PBGC to anticipate possible major demands on the pension insurance system and to focus PBGC resources on situations that pose the greatest risks to that system. Because other sources of information are usually not as current as the section 4010 information and do not reflect a plan's termination liability, the section 4010 filing plays a major role in PBGC's ability to protect participant and premium-payer interests.

The existing collection of information was approved under OMB control number 1212-0049 (expires July 31, 2019). On February 19, 2019, PBGC published in the Federal Register (at 84 FR 4863) a notice informing the public of its intent to request an extension of this collection of information for another three years. No comments were received. 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 estimates that 560 controlled groups will file each year. The total estimated annual burden of the information collection would be approximately 532 hours and $12,871,000.

Issued in Washington, DC, by

Stephanie Cibinic,

Deputy Assistant General Counsel for Regulatory Affairs, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.