Submission of Information Collection for OMB Review; Comment Request; Qualified Domestic Relations Orders Submitted to PBGC

AGENCY:

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.

ACTION:

Notice of request for extension of OMB approval of information collection, with modifications.

SUMMARY:

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is requesting that the Office of Management and Budget extend approval (with modifications), under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, of the information collection related to PBGC's booklet, Qualified Domestic Relations Orders & PBGC. This notice informs the public of PBGC's request and solicits public comment on the collection of information.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted by January 18, 2022.

ADDRESSES:

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain . Find this particular information collection by selecting “Currently under 30-day Review—Open for Public Comments” or by using the search function.

A copy of the request will be posted on PBGC's website at www.pbgc.gov/prac/laws-and-regulation/federalregister-notices-open-for-comment . 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; or, calling 202-229-4040 during normal business hours (TTY users may call the Federal Relay Service toll-free at 800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-229-4040). The Disclosure Division will email, fax, or mail the information to you, as you request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Karen Levin ( levin.karen@pbgc.gov ), Attorney, Regulatory Affairs Division, Office of the General Counsel, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, 1200 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-4026, 202-229-3559. (TTY users may call the Federal Relay Service toll-free at 800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-229-3559.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A defined benefit pension plan that does not have enough money to pay benefits may be terminated if the employer responsible for the plan faces severe financial difficulty, such as bankruptcy, and is unable to maintain the plan. In such an event, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) becomes trustee of the plan and pays benefits, subject to legal limits, to plan participants and beneficiaries.

The benefits of a pension plan participant generally may not be assigned or alienated. Title I of ERISA provides an exception for domestic relations orders that relate to child support, alimony payments, or marital property rights of an alternate payee (a spouse, former spouse, child, or other dependent of a plan participant). The exception applies only if the domestic relations order meets specific legal requirements that make it a qualified domestic relations order (QDRO).

When PBGC is trustee of a plan, it reviews submitted domestic relations orders to determine whether the order is qualified before paying benefits to an alternate payee. The requirements for submitting a domestic relations order (DRO or order) and the contents of such orders are established by statute. The models and the guidance provided by PBGC assist parties by making it easier for them to comply with ERISA's QDRO requirements in plans trusteed by PBGC; they do not create any additional requirements and result in a reduction of the statutory burden.

The existing collection of information was approved under OMB control number 1212-0054, expiring on February 28, 2022. On October 6, 2021, PBGC published in the Federal Register (at 86 FR 55638), a notice informing the public of its intent to request an extension of this collection of information, as modified. No comments were received. PBGC is requesting that OMB extend approval of the collection with modifications for three years. The modifications requested are not material. 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 it will receive approximately 428 domestic relations orders each year from prospective alternate payees and participants. PBGC further estimates that the total average annual burden of this collection of information will be approximately 321 hours and $299,600.