Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 29 / Friday, February 12, 1999 /Rules and Regulations 7083

The Attorney General’s order shall be

stated in writing and shall be

transmitted to all parties in the case and

to the Chief Administrative Hearing

Officer.

(3) If the Attorney General remands

the case for further administrative

proceedings, the Chief Administrative

Hearing Officer or the Administrative

Law Judge shall conduct further

proceedings consistent with the

Attorney General’s order. Any

subsequent final order of the

Administrative Law Judge or the Chief

Administrative Hearing Officer shall be

subject to administrative review in

accordance with § 68.54 and this

section.

(d) Final agency order. (1) The

Attorney General’s order pursuant to

paragraph (c) of this section (other than

a remand as provided in paragraph

(c)(3)) shall become the final agency

order on the date of the Attorney

General’s order.

(2) If the Attorney General declines

the Commissioner’s request for referral

of a case pursuant to paragraph (b) of

this section, or does not issue a written

notice of acceptance within sixty (60)

days of the date of the Commissioner’s

request, then the final order of the

Administrative Law Judge or the Chief

Administrative Hearing Officer that was

the subject of a referral pursuant to

paragraph (b) shall become the final

agency order on the day after that sixty

(60) day period has expired.

§ 68.56 Judicial review of a final agency

order in cases arising under section 274A

or 274C.

A person or entity adversely affected

by a final agency order may file, within

forty-five (45) days after the date of the

final agency order, a petition in the

United States Court of Appeals for the

appropriate circuit for review of the

final agency order. Failure to request

review by the Chief Administrative

Hearing Officer of a final order by an

Administrative Law Judge shall not

prevent a party from seeking judicial

review.

§ 68.57 Judicial review of the final agency

order of an Administrative Law Judge in

cases arising under section 274B.

Any person aggrieved by a final

agency order issued under § 68.52(d)

may, within sixty (60) days after entry

of the order, seek review of the final

agency order in the United States Court

of Appeals for the circuit in which the

violation is alleged to have occurred or

in which the employer resides or

transacts business. If a final agency

order issued under § 68.52(d) is not

appealed, the Special Counsel (or, if the

Special Counsel fails to act, the person

filing the charge, other than the

Immigration and Naturalization Service

officer) may file a petition in the United

States District Court for the district in

which the violation that is the subject of

the final agency order is alleged to have

occurred, or in which the respondent

resides or transacts business, requesting

that the order be enforced.

§ 68.58 Filing of the official record.

Upon timely receipt of notification

that an appeal has been taken, a

certified copy of the record will be filed

promptly with the appropriate United

States Court.

Dated: January 8, 1999.

Janet Reno,

Attorney General.

[FR Doc. 99–1899 Filed 2–11–99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4410–30–P

PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY

CORPORATION

29 CFR Part 4044

Allocation of Assets in SingleEmployer Plans; Interest Assumptions

for Valuing Benefits

AGENCY: Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Pension Benefit Guaranty

Corporation’s regulation on Allocation

of Assets in Single-Employer Plans

prescribes interest assumptions for

valuing benefits under terminating

single-employer plans. This final rule

amends the regulation to adopt interest

assumptions for plans with valuation

dates in March 1999.

EFFECTIVE DATE: March 1, 1999.

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. (For TTY/TDD

users, 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 regulation on Allocation of

Assets in Single-Employer Plans (29

CFR part 4044) prescribes actuarial

assumptions for valuing plan benefits of

terminating single-employer plans

covered by title IV of the Employee

Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.

Among the actuarial assumptions

prescribed in part 4044 are interest

assumptions. These interest

assumptions are intended to reflect

current conditions in the financial and

annuity markets.

Two sets of interest assumptions are

prescribed, one set for the valuation of

benefits to be paid as annuities and one

set for the valuation of benefits to be

paid as lump sums. This amendment

adds to appendix B to part 4044 the

annuity and lump sum interest

assumptions for valuing benefits in

plans with valuation dates during

March 1999.

For annuity benefits, the interest

assumptions will be 5.30 percent for the

first 20 years following the valuation

date and 5.25 percent thereafter. The

annuity interest assumptions represent a

decrease (from those in effect for

February 1999) of 0.10 percent for the

first 20 years following the valuation

date and are otherwise unchanged. For

benefits to be paid as lump sums, the

interest assumptions to be used by the

PBGC will be 4.00 percent for the period

during which a benefit is in pay status

and during any years preceding the

benefit’s placement in pay status. The

lump sum interest assumptions are

unchanged from those in effect for

February 1999.

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 of

benefits in plans with valuation dates

during March 1999, 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 in 29 CFR Part 4044

Pension insurance, Pensions.

In consideration of the foregoing, 29

CFR part 4044 is amended as follows:

PART 4044—ALLOCATION OF

ASSETS IN SINGLE-EMPLOYER

PLANS

1. The authority citation for part 4044

continues to read as follows:
7084 Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 29 / Friday, February 12, 1999 /Rules and Regulations

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

1341, 1344, 1362.

2. In appendix B, a new entry is

added to Table I, and Rate Set 65 is

added to Table II, as set forth below.

The introductory text of each table is

republished for the convenience of the

reader and remains unchanged.

Appendix B to Part 4044—Interest Rates Used to Value Annuities and Lump Sums

TABLE I.—ANNUITY VALUATIONS

[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.]

For valuation dates occurring in the month—

The values of it are:

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

* * * * * * *

March 1999 ............................................................................. .0530 1–20 .0525 >20 N/A N/A

TABLE II.—LUMP SUM VALUATIONS

[In using this table: (1) For benefits for which the participant or beneficiary is entitled to be in pay status on the valuation date, the immediate annuity rate shall apply; (2) For benefits for which the deferral period is y years (where y is an integer and 0 < y ≤ n1), interest rate i1 shall

apply from the valuation date for a period of y years, and thereafter the immediate annuity rate shall apply; (3) For benefits for which the deferral period is y years (where y is an integer and n1 < y ≤ n1 + n2), interest rate i2 shall apply from the valuation date for a period of y ¥ n1

years, interest rate i1 shall apply for the following n1 years, and thereafter the immediate annuity rate shall apply; (4) For benefits for which

the deferral period is y years (where y is an integer and y > n1 + n2), interest rate i3 shall apply from the valuation date for a period of

y¥n1¥n2 years, interest rate i2 shall apply for the following n2 years, interest rate i1 shall apply for the following n1 years, and thereafter the

immediate annuity rate shall apply.]

Rate set

For plans with a valuation

date Immediate

annuity rate

(percent)

Deferred annuities

(percent)

On or after Before i1 i2 i3 n1 n2

* * * * * * *

65 03–1–99 04–1–99 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00 7 8

Issued in Washington, DC, on this 8th day

of February 1999.

John Seal,

Acting Executive Director, Pension Benefit

Guaranty Corporation.

[FR Doc. 99–3467 Filed 2–11–99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 7708–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

32 CFR Part 199

[DoD 6010.8–R]

RIN 0720–AA30

Civilian Health and Medical Program of

the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS);

Individual Case Management

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, DoD.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: This final rule implements

provisions of the 1993 National Defense

Authorization Act which allows the

Secretary of Defense to establish a case

management program for CHAMPUS

beneficiaries with extraordinary medical

or psychological disorders and to allow

such beneficiaries medical or

psychological services, supplies, or

durable medical equipment excluded by

law or regulation as a TRICARE/

CHAMPUS benefit. Under this program,

waiver of benefit limits or exclusions to

the basic TRICARE/CHAMPUS program

may be authorized for beneficiaries

when the provision of such services or

supplies is cost effective and clinically

appropriate, as compared to historical or

projected TRICARE/CHAMPUS

utilization of health care services. Such

waivers will also provide families in

crisis time for transition to other sources

of support when TRICARE/CHAMPUS

benefits have been exhausted. This case

management program is designed to

provide a cost-effective plan of care by

targeting appropriate resources to meet

the individual needs of the beneficiary.

DATED: March 15, 1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: CDR

Tracy Malone, TRICARE Management

Activity, (703) 681–1745.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Civilian Health and Medical Program of

the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS)

supplements the availability of health

care in military hospitals and clinics.

Statutory Authority

The case management program is

based on the authority of 10 U.S.C.

1079(a)(17), which provides:

The Secretary of Defense may establish a

program for the individual case management

of a person covered by this section or section

1086 of this title who has extraordinary

medical or psychological disorders and,

under such a program, may waive benefit

limitations contained in paragraph (5) and

(13) of this subsection or section 1077(b)(1)

of this title and authorize the payment for

comprehensive home health care services,

supplies, and equipment if the Secretary

determines that such a waiver is cost

effective and appropriate.

Statutory and Legislative History

This provision was enacted in 1992

by Congress as section 704 of the

National Defense Authorization Act for

Fiscal Year 1993, Pub. L. 102–484, Oct.

23, 1992. It is substantively identical to

a provision recommended by the

Department of Defense in a report to

Congress submitted a few months earlier

by the Assistant Secretary of Defense

(Health Affairs) and entitled, ‘‘Report to

Congress: Comprehensive Home Health

Care as a CHAMPUS Benefit.’’ The 1992

Report to Congress and statutory