Seyfarth Attorneys to Present at PLI Program: Review of the PBGC’s Final Rule on the Special Financial Assistance Program

On Thursday, October 6 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, Seyfarth attorneys Seong Kim and Ronald Kramer will present a PLI Program on “Review of the PBGC’s Final Rule on the Special Financial Assistance Program.”

On July 8, 2022, the PBGC published its final rule (“Final Rule”) on the Special Financial Assistance (“SFA”) Program established under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. The Final Rule contains a number of significant developments and amendments from the interim final rule (“IFR”), including expanding investment options for SFA assets, providing for separate interest rate assumptions for SFA and non-SFA assets, and adding new rules to “phase-in” recognition of SFA assets for withdrawal liability purposes.

The panelists will provide a brief update on the SFA Program to date, review the significant differences between the Final Rule and the IFR, and discuss how these changes may impact multiemployer plans seeking to participate in the SFA Program. The discussion will be moderated by Arthur H. Kohn, General Counsel – ERISA, Compensation and Benefits at Citigroup Inc.

Specific issues to be addressed include:

• Overview of the SFA Program and SFA applications to date - 15 minutes
• Adjustments to the SFA application process - 5 minutes
• Changes to interest rate assumptions and investment rules for SFA assets - 10 minutes
• Rule changes regarding MPRA Plans – 5 minutes
• Benefit increases, mergers, transfers of assets from pension to health plans – 10 minutes
• Changes regarding withdrawal liability – 10 minutes
• Impact of Final Rule – 5 minutes

Who Should Attend: In-house counsel, multiemployer pension plan counsel, outside attorneys and other allied professionals interested in multiemployer pension plans, and multiemployer plan trustees