2019-20124. Federal Employees' Retirement System; Present Value Conversion Factors for Spouses of Deceased Separated Employees

AGENCY:

Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION:

Final rule.

SUMMARY:

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is adopting its proposed rule 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, as required by the United States Code.

DATES:

This rule becomes effective on October 1, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Karla Yeakle, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

On May 20, 2019, OPM published at 84 FR 22915, a notice 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. As a result, on May 28, 2019, at 84 FR 24401, OPM published a proposed rule in the Federal Register to revise the table of reduction factors in appendix A to subpart C of part 843, Code of Federal Regulations, 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 5 CFR 843.309. OPM received no written comments on the proposed rule.

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). This rule is not a significant regulatory action, under Executive Order 12866 and was not reviewed by OMB. This rule is not a major rule under 5 U.S.C. 804.

Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs

This rule is not an E.O. 13771 regulatory action because this rule is not a significant regulatory action 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 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

Office of Personnel Management.

Stephen Hickman,

Federal Register Liaison.

For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Office of Personnel Management amends 5 CFR part 843 as follows:

PART 843—FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM—DEATH BENEFITS AND EMPLOYEE REFUNDS

1. The authority citation for part 843 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8461; §§ 843.205, 843.208, and 843.209 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8424; § 843.309 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8442; § 843.406 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8441.

Subpart C—Current and Former Spouse Benefits

2. In § 843.309, revise paragraph (b)(2) to read as follows:

§ 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.

* * * * *

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

Age of separated employee at birthday before death	Multiplier
With at least 10 but less than 20 years of creditable service—
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—
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

Age of separated employee at birthday before death	Multiplier by separated employee's year of birth
	After 1966	From 1950 through 1966
With at least 30 years of creditable service—
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