PBGC Issues RFI on Missing Participants

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) published a Request for Information (RFI) today in the Federal Register that indicates that it is considering expanding its missing participant program to cover participants in certain individual account plans, such as terminating defined contribution plans.

The PBGC indicated that it is interested in obtaining more information before deciding whether to create such a program. 

In particular, the PBGC has asked for comments on:

• The average number of participants a plan cannot find and their average account balances; 
• Whether these types of services for missing participants are currently available and if they are not available, why they aren’t being offered; 
• If the PBGC provided these services, would plans be more likely to choose the PBGC program over a private sector program;
• Whether a plan’s decision to use the PBGC would be affected by: (1) the level of fees the PBGC might charge, (2) the minimum benefit size the PBGC might accept, (3) whether electronic filing was mandatory, or (4) other program features;
• The impact a PBGC program would have on private-sector benefit processing firms;
• The value of a single database of missing participants’ benefits in terminated individual account plans and the burden on plans to provide the data; 
• The information that should be included in any database; and
• Whether plans should have to conduct a search before they could use the program, and if the PBGC should offer those services for a fee. 

Comments are due by August 20, 2013.

For a copy of the RFI, please click here.