4231.9—Request for compliance determination.
(a) General.
The plan sponsor(s) of one or more plans involved in a merger or transfer, or the duly authorized representative(s) acting on behalf of the plan sponsor(s), may file a request for a determination that the transaction complies with the requirements of section 4231 of ERISA. The request must contain the information described in paragraph (b) or (c) of this section, as applicable.
(2) Single request permitted for all de minimis transactions.
Because the plan solvency test for de minimis mergers and transfers is based on the most recent valuation (without adjustment for intervening de minimis transactions), a plan sponsor may submit a single request for a compliance determination covering all de minimis mergers or transfers that occur between one plan valuation and the next. However, the plan sponsor must still notify PBGC of each de minimis merger or transfer separately, in accordance with § 4231.8. The single request for a compliance determination may be filed concurrently with any one of the notices of a de minimis merger or transfer.
(b) Contents of request—
(1) General.
A request for a compliance determination concerning a merger or transfer that is not de minimis must contain—
(ii)
A summary of the required calculations, including a complete description of assumptions and methods, on which the enrolled actuary based each certification that a plan involved in the merger or transfer satisfied a plan solvency test described in § 4231.6; and
(iii)
For each significantly affected plan, other than a plan that is a significantly affected plan only because the merger or transfer involves a plan that has terminated by mass withdrawal under section 4041A(a)(2) of ERISA, copies of all actuarial valuations performed within the 5 years preceding the date of filing the notice required under § 4231.8.
(2) De minimis merger or transfer.
A request for a compliance determination concerning a de minimis merger or transfer must contain one of the following statements for each plan that exists after the transaction, certified by an enrolled actuary:
(i)
A statement that the plan satisfies one of the plan solvency tests set forth in § 4231.6(a), indicating which test is satisfied.
(ii)
A statement of the basis on which the actuary has determined that benefits under the plan are not reasonably expected to be subject to suspension under section 4245 of ERISA, including supporting data or calculations, assumptions and methods.