1. PENSIONS Accounting and Reporting Issues
How do we report assets held in the trust fund? How do we report the promised lifetime retirement annuity? How do we measure and record pension expense? How do we record changes in estimate?

2. PENSION PLAN CHARACTERISTICS
Contributory Plan
Employer and employee contribute.
Employees keep their contributions.
Vesting determines employee right to employer contributions.
Defined CONTRIBUTION Plan – Villanova faculty
Specific contributions are promised by the employer. (“Match” $2 for $1 up to 5%)
Specific benefits are NOT promised.
Benefits are a function of the management of the plan assets. Risk/Reward borne by Employee
Pension expense = Cash contributions by employer.
Defined contribution – Amounts are set aside each year for employees (e.g. 7% of salary). When the employee leaves the firm or retires, he/she receives what has been allocated to his account, plus a return (interest and/or dividends).

3. PENSION PLAN CHARACTERISTICS
Defined BENEFIT PLAN (Hydromaint)
Specific benefit payments are promised by the employer. (e.g., at retirement get $2,000 per mo.)
Much More complex accounting.
Funded Pension Plan
Fully funded: Plan Assets = PV of “ABO” (Accumulated Benefit Obligation—using EXISTING compensation levels)
Partially funded: Plan Assets < PV of ABO
Need not be fully funded; plan only needs to have enough assets to meet current payment obligations.
ERISA, tax laws, cash flow impact determines “funding’
Pension Expense = GAAP (FASB #87)
Defined benefit – Employee is guaranteed a lifetime retirement annuity based on salary and years of service. The annuity payment may be some portion of average salary over the last five years multiplied by years of service.
Accumulated Benefit Obligation (ABO) – Present value of benefits for employee service prior to a particular date, based on actual compensation levels prior to that date. Projected Benefit Obligation (PBO) – Present value of benefits for employee service prior to a particular date, based on expected future salary levels. Service Cost (SC) – Increase in PBO due to work performed in the current year. Prior Service Cost (PSC) – Present value of retroactive benefits granted in a plan amendment/adoption. Pension Expense – Comprised of the following components: service cost, interest on PBO (a time-value factor), return on fund assets, and amortization of prior service cost.

4. DEFINED BENEFIT PLANS Pension Expense on Income Statement composed of:
1) Service Cost – “earned” by employees this period (present value of increase in amount paid at retirement for work done this period)
2) Interest cost accrued on Beg. of Year Pension Liability -- the “PBO” (Projected Benefit Obligation—using EXPECTED future compensation levels)
3) “PSC” (Prior Service Cost) amortization – attributed to employee service before plan amendment
4) Plan Asset return – “expected” return on plan assets
5) Gain/loss amortization – adjust expected plan asset return for difference between expected and actual AND for other gains and losses due to changes in estimate that affect PBO (e.g., life expectancy, discount rate, actual age of employees at retirement, employee turnover). These gains and losses are only amortized IF net gain or loss > 10% of plan assets or PBO whichever is larger.

5. EXAMPLE PLAN ASSUMPTIONS
Employee Data
Hired on 1/1/20x1, Expected to retire on 12/31/20x5, and expected to die on 12/31/20x7.
Earns $10,000 per year from 20x1 to 20x3 and expected to earn $20,000 per year from 20x4 to 20x5.
Plan Data (adopted 1/1/20x3)
Benefits = number of years worked x 1% x highest salary
Discount rate is 5%. (Use present value because will not be paying out money until the future)
Current service cost is fully funded at the end of each year.
Expected rate of return to be earned on plan assets is 10%.
PSC (Prior Service Cost) -- Pension credit given for work years prior to plan adoption date. This PSC is given at time plan adopted on 1/1/20X3.
1/10th of PSC “voluntarily” funded 1/1/20x3;
3 year amortization of PSC to Pension Expense.
Assume that the plan counts work years from 1/1/X1 and pension credit is given for years of service prior to the plan date.
Employee is hired on 1/1/X1 and the retirement plan is adopted on 1/1/X3. The employee retires on 12/31/X5 and dies on 12/31/X7.
Pension benefits are calculated using the following equation: n * 1/100 * highest salary level.
The employee salary schedule is: Years 19X1 through 19X3: $10,000 per year. Years 19X4 through 19X5: $20,000 per year.
The discount rate is 5% and the rate of return on fund assets is 10%.
Prior service cost is fully funded on 1/1/X3 and is amortized over 3 years. Current service cost is funded at the end of each year.

6. Calculate Prior Service Cost at Plan Adoption Date (1/1/20X3)
Hire Employee
Adopt Plan
Balance Sheet Date
Employee Retires
Employee Dies
Projected Benefit Obligation (PBO) is the present value of benefits for employee service prior to a particular date based on expected future salary levels.

7. Calculate Service Cost for 20x3 (First Year of the Plan)
Employee Retires
Employee Dies
20x1
20x2
20x3
12/31/x3
Balance Sheet Date
1/1/x1
1/1/x3
Hire Employee
Adopt Plan
PSC is $674.62
Service Cost is the increase in PBO due to work performed in the current year (20x3).

8. Calculate Pension Benefit Obligation (PBO) at 12/31/x3 (Current Year End)
Employee Retires
Employee Dies
20x1
20x2
20x3
12/31/x3
Balance Sheet Date
1/1/x1
1/1/x3
Hire Employee
Adopt Plan
PSC is $674.61
Service Cost is $354.17

9. PBO vs. ABO Projected Benefit Obligation (PBO)
PV of benefits, based on expected future salary levels
Accumulated Benefit Obligation (AB0)
PV of benefits, based on existing compensation levels (Need ABO vs. Plan Assets at end of year to determine IF need an entry to show “Minimum Liability” on Balance Sheet)
Accumulated Benefit Obligation (ABO) – Present value of benefits for employee service prior to a particular date, based on actual compensation levels prior to that date. Projected Benefit Obligation (PBO) – Present value of benefits for employee service prior to a particular date, based on expected future salary levels.

10. Calculate Accumulated Benefit Obligation (ABO) at 12/31/20x3
Employee Retires
Employee Dies
20x1
20x2
20x3
12/31/x3
Balance Sheet Date
1/1/x1
1/1/x3
Hire Employee
Adopt Plan
PSC is $674.61
Service Cost is $354.17
PBO is $1,062.51

11. Financial Statement Effects
Still would need to check for “Minimum Liability”

12. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
SFAS No Employers’ Disclosures about Pensions and Other Postretirement Benefits.
Standardizes disclosures for pensions and other post-retirement benefit plans.
Required disclosures:
Change in PBO.
Change in Plan Assets.
Assumptions for discount rate, expected return on plan assets, and compensation increases.
Components of pension expense (net periodic pension cost).

13. Recent additional pension disclosures
Investment strategies & targets
Plan asset allocations—equities, fixed assets, real estate, and other
Expected pension benefits to be paid out to retirees – each of next 5 years and total estimate for next 10 years
Estimated cash contribution to plan trustee for next year

14. Pension Note Disclosures for 20x3