11572 Federal Register / Vol. 67, No. 51 / Friday, March 15, 2002 / Rules and Regulations

PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY

CORPORATION

29 CFR Parts 4022 and 4044

Benefits Payable in Terminated SingleEmployer Plans; Allocation of Assets

in Single-Employer Plans; Interest

Assumptions for Valuing and Paying

Benefits

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation’s regulations on Benefits

Payable in Terminated Single-Employer

Plans and Allocation of Assets in

Single-Employer Plans prescribe interest

assumptions for valuing and paying

benefits under terminating singleemployer plans. This final rule amends

the regulations to adopt interest

assumptions for plans with valuation

dates in April 2002. Interest

assumptions are also published on the

PBGC’s Web site (http://www.pbgc.gov).

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 1, 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Harold J. Ashner, Assistant General

Counsel, Office of the General Counsel,

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation,

1200 K Street, NW., Washington, DC

20005, 202–326–4024. (TTY/TDD users

may call the Federal relay service tollfree at 1–800–877–8339 and ask to be

connected to 202–326–4024.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

PBGC’s regulations prescribe actuarial

assumptions—including interest

assumptions—for valuing and paying

plan benefits of terminating singleemployer plans covered by title IV of

the Employee Retirement Income

Security Act of 1974. The interest

assumptions are intended to reflect

current conditions in the financial and

annuity markets.

Three sets of interest assumptions are

prescribed: (1) A set for the valuation of

benefits for allocation purposes under

section 4044 (found in appendix B to

part 4044), (2) a set for the PBGC to use

to determine whether a benefit is

payable as a lump sum and to determine

lump-sum amounts to be paid by the

PBGC (found in appendix B to part

4022), and (3) a set for private-sector

pension practitioners to refer to if they

wish to use lump-sum interest rates

determined using the PBGC’s historical

methodology (found in appendix C to

part 4022).

Accordingly, this amendment (1) adds

to Appendix B to Part 4044 the interest

assumptions for valuing benefits for

allocation purposes in plans with

valuation dates during April 2002, (2)

adds to Appendix B to Part 4022 the

interest assumptions for the PBGC to

use for its own lump-sum payments in

plans with valuation dates during April

2002, and (3) adds to Appendix C to

Part 4022 the interest assumptions for

private-sector pension practitioners to

refer to if they wish to use lump-sum

interest rates determined using the

PBGC’s historical methodology for

valuation dates during April 2002.

For valuation of benefits for allocation

purposes, the interest assumptions that

the PBGC will use (set forth in appendix

B to part 4044) will be 5.50 percent for

the first 25 years following the valuation

date and 4.25 percent thereafter. These

interest assumptions represent a

decrease (from those in effect for March

2002) of 0.10 percent for the first 25

years following the valuation date and

are otherwise unchanged.

The interest assumptions that the

PBGC will use for its own lump-sum

payments (set forth in appendix B to

part 4022) will be 4.25 percent for the

period during which a benefit is in pay

status, and 4.00 percent during any

years preceding the benefit’s placement

in pay status. These interest

assumptions represent a decrease (from

those in effect for March 2002) of 0.25

percent for the period during which a

benefit is in pay status and are

otherwise unchanged.

For private-sector payments, the

interest assumptions (set forth in

appendix C to part 4022) will be the

same as those used by the PBGC for

determining and paying lump sums (set

forth in appendix B to part 4022).

The PBGC has determined that notice

and public comment on this amendment

are impracticable and contrary to the

public interest. This finding is based on

the need to determine and issue new

interest assumptions promptly so that

the assumptions can reflect, as

accurately as possible, current market

conditions.

Because of the need to provide

immediate guidance for the valuation

and payment of benefits in plans with

valuation dates during April 2002, the

PBGC finds that good cause exists for

making the assumptions set forth in this

amendment effective less than 30 days

after publication.

The PBGC has determined that this

action is not a ‘‘significant regulatory

action’’ under the criteria set forth in

Executive Order 12866.

Because no general notice of proposed

rulemaking is required for this

amendment, the Regulatory Flexibility

Act of 1980 does not apply. See 5 U.S.C.

601(2).

List of Subjects

29 CFR Part 4022

Employee benefit plans, Pension

insurance, Pensions, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements.

29 CFR Part 4044

Employee benefit plans, Pension

insurance, Pensions.

In consideration of the foregoing, 29

CFR parts 4022 and 4044 are amended

as follows:

PART 4022—BENEFITS PAYABLE IN

TERMINATED SINGLE-EMPLOYER

PLANS

1. The authority citation for part 4022

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 29 U.S.C. 1302, 1322, 1322b,

1341(c)(3)(D), and 1344.

2. In appendix B to part 4022, Rate Set

102, as set forth below, is added to the

table. (The introductory text of the table

is omitted.)

Appendix B to Part 4022—Lump Sum

Interest Rates For PBGC Payments

* * * * *

Rate set

For plans with a valuation date Immediate

annuity rate

(percent)

Deferred annuities

(percent)

On or

after Before i1 i2 i3 n1 n2

*******

102 ............................................ 4–1–02 ... 5–1–02 ... 4.25 4.00 4.00 4.00 7 8

Federal Register / Vol. 67, No. 51 / Friday, March 15, 2002 / Rules and Regulations 11573

3. In appendix C to part 4022, Rate Set

102, as set forth below, is added to the

table. (The introductory text of the table

is omitted.)

Appendix C to Part 4022—Lump Sum

Interest Rates For Private-Sector

Payments

* * * * *

Rate set

For plans with a valuation date Immediate

annuity rate

(percent)

Deferred annuities

(percent)

On or

after Before i1 i2 i3 n1 n2

*******

102 ............................................ 4–1–02 ... 5–1–02 ... 4.25 4.00 4.00 4.00 7 8

PART 4044—ALLOCATION OF

ASSETS IN SINGLE-EMPLOYER

PLANS

4. The authority citation for part 4044

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 29 U.S.C. 1301(a), 1302(b)(3),

1341, 1344, 1362.

5. In appendix B to part 4044, a new

entry, as set forth below, is added to the

table. (The introductory text of the table

is omitted.)

Appendix B to Part 4044—Interest

Rates Used to Value Benefits

* * * * *

For valuation dates occurring in the month—

The values of it are:

it for t= it for t= it for t=

*******

April 2002 .......................................................................... .0550 1–25 .0425 >25 N/A N/A

Issued in Washington, DC, on this 12th day

of March, 2002.

Steven A. Kandarian,

Executive Director, Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation.

[FR Doc. 02–6427 Filed 3–14–02; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7708–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Fiscal Service

31 CFR Part 203

RIN 1510–AA79

Payment of Federal Taxes and the

Treasury Tax and Loan Program

AGENCY: Financial Management Service,

Fiscal Service, Treasury.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Department of the

Treasury (Treasury) is amending the

regulation governing the Treasury Tax

and Loan (TT&L) program, to provide

the Secretary greater flexibility to adjust

the rate of interest we charge on funds

loaned through the existing TT&L

investment option. In addition, Treasury

is making regulatory changes that will

allow us to test the feasibility of a new

investment option known as the term

investment option. The term investment

option would provide financial

institutions participating in the TT&L

investment program with another option

for borrowing Treasury funds. Under the

term investment option, Treasury may

invest excess balances with TT&L

participants at a market based rate of

interest for a predetermined period of

time.

DATES: This final rule is effective April

15, 2002.

ADDRESSES: You can download this final

rule at the following web site: http://

www.fms.treas.gov/eftps. You may also

inspect and copy this final rule at:

Treasury Department Library, Freedom

of Information Act (FOIA) Collection,

Room 1428, Main Treasury Building,

1500 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.,

Washington, DC 20220. Before visiting,

you must call (202) 622–0990 for an

appointment.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Walt

Henderson, Senior Financial Program

Specialist, at (202) 874–6705 or

walt.henderson@fms.treas.gov; Ellen

Neubauer, Senior Attorney, at (202)

874–6680 or

ellen.neubauer@fms.treas.gov; or John

Galligan, Director, Cash Management

Policy and Planning Division, at (202)

874–6590 or

john.galligan@fms.treas.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background on the Treasury Tax and

Loan Program

The Treasury Tax and Loan (TT&L)

program, 31 CFR part 203 (part 203),

encompasses two separate

components—a depositary component

through which we collect Federal tax

deposits and payments from business

taxpayers for employee withholding and

other types of taxes, and an investment

component through which we invest

short-term operating balances not

needed for immediate cash outlays.

Through the TT&L depositary

component, which comprises nearly

10,000 commercial financial institutions

and Federal Reserve Banks (FRBs), we

collected over $1.6 trillion in Fiscal

Year 2001, representing approximately

80 percent of the total Federal annual

tax receipts, from approximately 5

million business taxpayers.

Nearly 1,400 of the TT&L depositaries

borrow excess short-term Treasury

operating funds by participating in the

investment component of the TT&L

program. Through agreements executed

under this Part, participating

depositaries borrow Treasury funds in

the form of a note secured with

collateral pledged to Treasury and pay

interest to the Treasury on these

balances. In Fiscal Year 2001, we earned

nearly $1 billion in interest income

through the TT&L investment

component.