On October 13, 2022, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (“PBGC”) released a proposed rule on actuarial assumptions that may be used in determining a withdrawing employer’s liability under a multiemployer plan. Under current law, actuarial assumptions, in combination, must offer the actuary’s best estimate of anticipated experience under the plan.  Actuaries have used interest rates ranging from PBGC settlement rates (currently 3.0% to 4.0%) to funding rates (currently 6.5% to 7.5% for most plans) for years.  However, the use of rates lower than the funding rate has been a ..read more

At Horizon Actuarial, we are retirement and healthcare actuaries, not investment professionals.  Therefore, when developing assumptions as to what returns a pension plan’s assets might be expected to earn in the future, we seek input from our colleagues in the investment advisory community.  Each year, we survey different investment advisors and ask them to provide their “capital market assumptions” – their expectations for future risk and returns for different asset classes in which pension funds commonly invest. The information gathered from this survey can help answer the commonl ..read more

At Horizon Actuarial, we are retirement and healthcare actuaries, not investment professionals.  Therefore, when developing assumptions as to what returns a pension plan’s assets might be expected to earn in the future, we seek input from our colleagues in the investment advisory community.  Each year, we survey different investment advisors and ask them to provide their “capital market assumptions” – their expectations for future risk and returns for different asset classes in which pension funds commonly invest. The information gathered from this survey can help answer the commonl ..read more

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​On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) into law.  The key provisions for multiemployer pension plans are outlined here and summarized in more detail in the link below.  In addition, Horizon Actuarial is co-sponsoring a webinar with Groom Law Group, NCCMP, and Segal to discuss the relief measures on Tuesday, March 23rd at 12:00 pm EDT.  A registration link will be provided when it becomes available.  Please check back soon for updates. Special Financial Assistance Program.  ARPA creates and appropriates funding for a fin ..read more

Horizon Actuarial Services has partnered with the International Foundation of Employee Benefits Plans to conduct a study of U.S. multiemployer defined benefit pension plans.  The study covers multiemployer plans in all industries, building upon the similar study of construction industry plans that Horizon Actuarial originally conducted with the Mechanical Contractors Association of America (MCAA) in 2012. The report – The Multiemployer Retirement Plan Landscape: A Fifteen-Year Look (2003-2017) – is available at the International Foundation’s website (link below). The repor ..read more

Horizon Actuarial Services has once again partnered with the International Foundation of Employee Benefits Plans to conduct a study of U.S. multiemployer health plans.  The study covers multiemployer health plans in all industries and the plans in the study have more than five million covered participants.   The full report – The Multiemployer Health Plan Landscape: A Ten-Year Look (2008-2017) – is available at the International Foundation’s website (link below). The report provides a look at historical trends for U.S. multiemployer health plans for the ten-year perio ..read more

Horizon Actuarial Services has once again partnered with the International Foundation of Employee Benefits Plans to conduct a study of U.S. multiemployer health plans.  The study covers multiemployer health plans in all industries and the plans in the study have more than five million covered participants.   The full report – The Multiemployer Health Plan Landscape: A Ten-Year Look (2008-2017) – is available at the International Foundation’s website (link below). The report provides a look at historical trends for U.S. multiemployer health plans for the ten-year perio ..read more

At Horizon Actuarial, we are retirement and healthcare actuaries, not investment professionals.  Therefore, when developing assumptions as to what returns a pension plan’s assets might be expected to earn in the future, we seek input from our colleagues in the investment advisory community.  Each year, we survey different investment advisors and ask them to provide their “capital market assumptions” – their expectations for future risk and returns for different asset classes in which pension funds commonly invest. The information gathered from this survey can help answer the commonl ..read more

​On May 12, 2020, House Democrats introduced the “Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act” (HEROES Act) to address the ongoing health and economic crises brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The broad reaching stimulus package provides funding for a wide range of groups, and includes significant relief provisions for multiemployer pension plans.  The provisions that would apply to multiemployer pension plans are summarized below. Special Partition Relief.  The bill creates and appropriates funding for a special elective partition program for distressed pl ..read more