(a) Valuation of benefits—(1) Trusteed plans. The plan administrator of a plan that has been or will be placed into trusteeship by the PBGC shall value plan benefits in accordance with §§ 4044.51 through 4044.57.

(2) Non-trusteed plans. The plan administrator of a non-trusteed plan shall value plan benefits in accordance with §§ 4044.71 through 4044.75. If a plan is unable to satisfy all benefits assigned to priority categories 1 through 4 on the distribution date, the PBGC will place it into trusteeship and the plan administrator shall re-value the benefits in accordance with §§ 4044.51 through 4044.57.

(b) Valuation of assets. Plan assets generally will be valued at their fair market value as defined in § 4001.2 of this chapter. As appropriate, plan assets will be valued at their fair value in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (U.S. GAAP).

[61 FR 34059, July 1, 1996, as amended at 76 FR 34606, June 14, 2011; 88 FR 44052, July 11, 2023]

(a) Form of benefit. The plan administrator shall determine the form of each benefit to be valued in accordance with the following rules:

(1) If a benefit is in pay status as of the valuation date, the plan administrator shall value the form of the benefit being paid.

(2) If a benefit is not in pay status as of the valuation date but a valid election with respect to the form of benefit has been made on or before the valuation date, the plan administrator shall value the form of benefit so elected.

(3) If a benefit is not in pay status as of the valuation date and no valid election with respect to the form of benefit has been made on or before the valuation date, the plan administrator shall value the form of benefit that, under the terms of the plan, is payable in the absence of a valid election.

(b) Timing of benefit. The plan administrator shall value benefits whose starting date is subject to election using the assumption specified in paragraph (b)(1) or (b)(2) of this section.

(1) Where election made. If a valid election of the starting date of a benefit has been made on or before the valuation date, the plan administrator shall assume that the starting date of the benefit is the starting date so elected.

(2) Where no election made. If no valid election of the starting date of a benefit has been made on or before the valuation date, the plan administrator shall assume that the starting date of the benefit is the later of—

(i) The expected retirement age, as determined under §§ 4044.55 through 4044.57, of the participant with respect to whom the benefit is payable, or

(ii) The valuation date.

The plan administrator shall value all benefits as of the valuation date by—

(a) Using the mortality assumptions prescribed by § 4044.53 and the interest assumptions prescribed in appendix B to this part;

(b) Using interpolation methods, where necessary, at least as accurate as linear interpolation;

(c) Using valuation formulas that accord with generally accepted actuarial principles and practices; and

(d) Adjusting the values to reflect loading expenses in accordance with appendix C to this part.

[65 FR 14753, Mar. 17, 2000, as amended at 70 FR 72207, Dec. 2, 2005]

(a) General rule. Subject to paragraph (b) of this section (regarding certain death benefits), the plan administrator shall use the mortality factors prescribed in paragraphs (c), (d), (e), (f), and (g) of this section to value benefits under § 4044.52.

(b) Certain death benefits. If an annuity for one person is in pay status on the valuation date, and if the payment of a death benefit after the valuation date to another person, who need not be identifiable on the valuation date, depends in whole or in part on the death of the pay status annuitant, then the plan administrator shall value the death benefit using—

(1) The mortality rates that are applicable to the annuity in pay status under this section to represent the mortality of the pay status annuitant; and

(2) The mortality rates under paragraph (c) of this section to represent the mortality of the death beneficiary.

(c) Healthy lives. If the individual is not disabled under paragraph (f) of this section, the plan administrator will value the benefit using—

(1) For male participants, the rates in Table 1 of appendix A to this part projected from 1994 to the calendar year in which the valuation date occurs plus 10 years using Scale AA from Table 2 of appendix A to this part; and

(2) For female participants, the rates in Table 3 of appendix A to this part projected from 1994 to the calendar year in which the valuation date occurs plus 10 years using Scale AA from Table 4 of appendix A to this part.

(d) Social Security disabled lives. If the individual is Social Security disabled under paragraph (f)(1) of this section, the plan administrator will value the benefit using—

(1) For male participants, the rates in Table 5 of appendix A to this part; and

(2) For female participants, the rates in Table 6 of appendix A to this part.

(e) Non-Social Security disabled lives. If the individual is non-Social Security disabled under paragraph (f)(2) of this section, the plan administrator will value the benefit at each age using—

(1) For male participants, the lesser of—

(i) The rate determined from Table 1 of appendix A to this part projected from 1994 to the calendar year in which the valuation date occurs plus 10 years using Scale AA from Table 2 of appendix A to this part and setting the resulting table forward three years, or

(ii) The rate in Table 5 of appendix A to this part.

(2) For female participants, the lesser of—

(i) The rate determined from Table 3 of appendix A to this part projected from 1994 to the calendar year in which the valuation date occurs plus 10 years using Scale AA from Table 4 of appendix A to this part and setting the resulting table forward three years, or

(ii) The rate in Table 6 of appendix A to this part.

(f) Definitions of disability—(1) Social Security disabled. A participant is Social Security disabled if, on the valuation date, the participant is less than age 65 and has a benefit in pay status that—

(i) Is being received as a disability benefit under a plan provision requiring either receipt of or eligibility for Social Security disability benefits, or

(ii) Was converted under the plan's terms from a disability benefit under a plan provision requiring either receipt of or eligibility for Social Security disability benefits to an early or normal retirement benefit for any reason other than a change in the participant's health status.

(2) Non-Social Security disabled. A participant is non-Social Security disabled if, on the valuation date, the participant is less than age 65, is not Social Security disabled, and has a benefit in pay status that—

(i) Is being received as a disability benefit under the plan, or

(ii) Was converted under the plan's terms from a disability benefit to an early or normal retirement benefit for any reason other than a change in the participant's health status.

(g) Contingent annuitant mortality during deferral period. If a participant's joint and survivor benefit is valued as a deferred annuity, the mortality of the contingent annuitant during the deferral period will be disregarded.

[70 FR 72207, Dec. 2, 2005]

(a) Applicability. Except as provided in § 4044.57, the plan administrator shall determine the XRA under this section when plan provisions or established plan practice require a participant to retire from his or her job to begin receiving an early retirement benefit.

(b) Data needed. The plan administrator shall determine for each participant who is entitled to an early retirement benefit—

(1) The amount of the participant's monthly benefit payable at unreduced retirement age in the normal form payable under the terms of the plan or in the form validly elected by the participant before the termination date;

(2) The calendar year in which the participant reaches unreduced retirement age (“URA”);

(3) The participant's URA; and

(4) The participant's earliest retirement age at the valuation date.

(c) Procedure. (1) The plan administrator shall determine whether a participant is in the high, medium or low retirement rate category using the applicable Selection of Retirement Rate Category Table in appendix D, based on the participant's benefit determined under paragraph (b)(1) of this section and the year in which the participant reaches URA.

(2) Based on the retirement rate category determined under paragraph (c)(1), the plan administrator shall determine the XRA from Table II-A, II-B or II-C, as appropriate, by using the participant's URA and earliest retirement age at valuation date.

(a) Applicability. Except as provided in § 4044.57, the plan administrator shall determine the XRA under this section when plan provisions or established plan practice do not require a participant to retire from his or her job to begin receiving his or her early retirement benefit.

(b) Data needed. The plan administrator shall determine for each participant—

(1) The participant's URA; and

(2) The participant's earliest retirement age at valuation date.

(c) Procedure. Participants in this case are always assigned to the high retirement rate category and therefore the plan administrator shall use Table II-C of appendix D to determine the XRA. The plan administrator shall determine the XRA from Table II-C by using the participant's URA and earliest retirement age at termination date.

(a) Applicability. The plan administrator shall determine the XRA under this section, rather than § 4044.55 or § 4044.56, when both the conditions set forth in paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this section exist.

(1) The facility at which the participant is or was employed permanently closed within one year before the valuation date, or is in the process of being permanently closed on the valuation date.

(2) The participant left employment at the facility less than one year before the valuation date or was still employed at the facility on the valuation date.

(b) XRA. The XRA is equal to the earliest retirement age at valuation date.

The value of a benefit which is to be paid as an annuity is the cost of purchasing the annuity on the date of distribution from an insurer.

[61 FR 34059, July 1, 1996, as amended at 76 FR 34606, June 14, 2011]

(a) When both the participant and beneficiary are alive on the date of distribution, the form of annuity to be valued is—

(1) For a participant or beneficiary already receiving a monthly benefit, that form which is being received, or

(2) For a participant or beneficiary not receiving a monthly benefit, the normal annuity form payable under the plan or the optional form for which the participant has made a valid election.

(b) When the participant dies after the date of plan termination but before the date of distribution, the form of annuity to be valued is determined under paragraph (b)(1) or (b)(2) of this section:

(1) For a participant who was entitled to a deferred annuity—

(i) If the form was a single or joint life annuity, no benefit shall be valued; or

(ii) If the participant had made a valid election of a lump sum benefit before he or she died, the form to be valued is the lump sum.

(2) For a participant who was eligible for immediate retirement, and for a participant who was in pay status at the date of termination—

(i) If the form was a single life annuity, no benefit shall be valued;

(ii) If the form was an annuity for a period certain and life thereafter, the form to be valued is an annuity for the certain period;

(iii) If the form was a joint and survivor annuity, the form to be valued is a single life annuity payable to the beneficiary, unless the beneficiary has also died, in which case no benefit shall be valued;

(iv) If the form was an annuity for a period certain and joint and survivor thereafter, the form to be valued is an annuity for the certain period and the life of the beneficiary thereafter, unless the beneficiary has also died, in which case the form to be valued is an annuity for the certain period;

(v) If the form was a cash refund annuity, the form to be valued is the remaining lump sum death benefit; or

(vi) If the participant had elected a lump sum benefit before he or she died, the form to be valued is the lump sum.

(c) When the participant is still living and the named beneficiary or spouse dies after the date of termination but before the date of distribution, the form of annuity to be valued is determined under paragraph (c)(1) or (c)(2) of this section:

(1) For a participant entitled to a deferred annuity—

(i) If the form was a joint and survivor annuity, the form to be valued is a single life annuity payable to the participant; or

(ii) If the form was an annuity for a period certain and joint and survivor thereafter, the form to be valued is an annuity for the certain period and the life of the participant thereafter.

(2) For a participant eligible for immediate retirement and for a participant in pay status at the date of termination—

(i) If the form was a joint and survivor annuity, the form to be valued is a single life annuity payable to the participant; or

(ii) If the form was an annuity for a period certain and joint survivor thereafter annuity, the form to be valued is an annuity for the certain period and for the life of the participant thereafter.

[61 FR 34059, July 1, 1996, as amended at 76 FR 34606, June 14, 2011]

(a) Valuation. (1) The value of the lump sum or other alternative form of distribution is the present value of the normal form of benefit provided by the plan payable at normal retirement age, determined as of the date of distribution using reasonable actuarial assumptions as to interest and mortality.

(2) If the participant dies before the date of distribution, but had elected a lump sum benefit, the present value shall be determined as if the participant were alive on the date of distribution.

(b) Actuarial assumptions. The plan administrator shall specify the actuarial assumptions used to determine the value calculated under paragraph (a) of this section when the plan administrator submits the benefit valuation data to the PBGC. The same actuarial assumptions shall be used for all such calculations. The PBGC reserves the right to review the actuarial assumptions used and to re-value the benefits determined by the plan administrator if the actuarial assumptions are found to be unreasonable.

[61 FR 34059, July 1, 1996, as amended at 76 FR 34606, June 14, 2011]

(a) If a participant has not started to receive monthly benefit payments on the date of distribution, the value of the lump sum which returns mandatory employee contributions is equal to the total amount of contributions made by the participant, plus interest that is payable to the participant under the terms of the plan, plus interest on that total amount from the date of termination to the date of distribution. The rate of interest credited on employee contributions up to the date of termination shall be the greater of the interest rate provided under the terms of the plan or the interest rate required under section 204(c) of ERISA or section 411(c) of the IRC.

(b) If a participant has started to receive monthly benefit payments on the date of distribution, part of which are attributable to his or her contributions, the value of the lump sum which returns employee contributions is equal to the excess of the amount described in paragraph (b)(1) of this section over the amount computed in paragraph (b)(2) of this section.

(1) The amount of accumulated mandatory employee contributions remaining in the plan as of the date of termination plus interest from the date of termination to the date of distribution.

(2) The excess of benefit payments made from the plan between date of plan termination and the date of distribution, over the amount of payments that would have been made if the employee contributions had been paid as a lump sum on the date of plan termination, with interest accumulated on the excess from the date of payment to the date of distribution.

(c) Interest assumptions. The interest rate used under this section to credit interest between the date of termination to the date of distribution shall be a reasonable rate and shall be the same for both paragraphs (a) and (b).

The value of a lump sum benefit which is not covered under § 4044.73 or § 4044.74 is equal to—

(a) The value under the irrevocable commitment, if an insurer provides the benefit; or

(b) The present value of the benefit as of the date of distribution, determined using reasonable actuarial assumptions, if the benefit is to be distributed other than by the purchase of the benefit from an insurer. The PBGC reserves the right to review the actuarial assumptions as to reasonableness and re-value the benefit if the actuarial assumptions are unreasonable.

[61 FR 34059, July 1, 1996, as amended at 76 FR 34606, June 14, 2011]

The mortality tables in this appendix set forth for each age x the probability qX that an individual aged x (in 1994, when using Table 1 or Table 3) will not survive to attain age x + 1. The projection scales in this appendix set forth for each age x the annual reduction AAX in the mortality rate at age x.

[70 FR 72208, Dec. 2, 2005; 70 FR 73330, Dec. 9, 2005]

[This table sets forth, for each indicated calendar month, the interest rates (denoted by i1, i2, . . ., and referred to generally as it) assumed to be in effect between specified anniversaries of a valuation date that occurs within that calendar month; those anniversaries are specified in the columns adjacent to the rates. The last listed rate is assumed to be in effect after the last listed anniversary date.] [61 FR 34059, July 1, 1996] Editorial Note:For Federal Register citations affecting part 4044, appendix B, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.govinfo.gov.

[61 FR 34059, July 1, 1996, as amended at 65 FR 14753, Mar. 17, 2000]

[61 FR 34059, July 1, 1996; 61 FR 36626, July 12, 1996, as amended at 61 FR 65476, Dec. 13, 1996; 62 FR 65611, Dec. 15, 1997; 63 FR 63180, Nov. 12, 1998; 64 FR 67165, Dec. 1, 1999; 65 FR 75166, Dec. 1, 2000; 66 FR 59695, Nov. 30, 2001; 67 FR 71472, Dec. 2, 2002; 68 FR 67034, Dec. 1, 2003; 69 FR 69822, Dec. 1, 2004; 70 FR 72076, Dec. 1, 2005; 71 FR 69482, Dec. 1, 2006; 72 FR 67645, Nov. 30, 2007; 73 FR 72717, Dec. 1, 2008; 74 FR 62698, Dec. 1, 2009; 75 FR 74622, Dec. 1, 2010; 80 FR 74987, Dec. 1, 2015; 81 FR 83138, Nov. 21, 2016; 82 FR 60308, Dec. 20, 2017; 83 FR 63803, Dec. 12, 2018; 84 FR 67186, Dec. 9, 2019; 85 FR 78742, Dec. 7, 2020; 86 FR 68561, Dec. 3, 2021; 87 FR 74968, Dec. 7, 2022; 88 FR 83353, Nov. 29, 2023]