Hilton

A participant worked for 12.9 years under an union negotiated plan that provides for $50 per year of credited service. in 2010 at the age of 66 1/2 he transfers to a different job within the same company that has a defined benefit plan which is based on a formula that takes a percentage of his highest 5 years of salary multiples it by the years of credited service offset by the same percentage of his social security times years of credited service. the formula looks like this (1.5% X Average Monthly Earnings X Yrs Credited Service) - (1.5% X Monthly Social Security Benefit X Yrs Credited Service) = Monthly Benefit. the participant is now 73 years of age and wishes to retire. The current plan specifies that after 5 years of vesting service under the new plan all benefits will be calculated under the new plan provisions. (This is referred to an an all service benefit) Under the plan provisions the participant must apply for benefits to establish his retirement date. The plan states that a participant becomes vested the earlier of 5 years of vesting service or attaining his 65th birthday. The plan provides for continued accruals until the actual date of separation. The plan requires an actuarial increase of benefits after December 31st of the year the participant reaches 70 1/2 and for every year following. There are no provisions in the plan for offsets or 'higher of' type calculations. The plan allows for suspension of benefits but none was issued. The plan provides for actuarial increases of benefits at NRA or actual separation form employment, whichever is later. On December 31st, 2013 the participant is still employed and has passed his 70 1/2 date triggering the first actuarial increase and an added year of accrual. The participant was still under a split calculation. i.e. $645 + (1.5% X AME X 4) - (1.5% X SSB X 4) = Benefit. On December 31st, 2014 the participant has 5 years vesting service under the new plan and there should be both an actuarial increase and an added year of accrual. The calculation now becomes (1.5% X AME X 17.9) - (1.5% X SSB X 17.9) + Benefit. The same scenario continues until 2016 when the participant request a retirement date. The first question is how do you deal with the split calculation of December 31st, 2013. Do you do an actuarial increase on the union negotiated plan result starting on December 31st, 2013 or starting on December 31st, 2009? The participant was fully vested and did not accrue any additional benefits form that date. The second question is how do you bring the 2013 adjustments into the later calculations? The all service calculation of 2014 and later is much higher than the fully adjusted benefit of 2013.

I believe the rule requiring that benefits be definitely determinable would apply here, any discretion taken that is not stated as permissible within the plan would violate this rule. https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/26/1.401%28a%29-1 (b) Requirements for pension plans (1) Definitely determinable benefits. (i) In order for a pension plan to be a qualified plan undersection 401(a), the plan must be established and maintained by an employer primarily to provide systematically for the payment of definitely determinable benefits to its employees over a period of years, usually for life, after retirement or attainment of normal retirement age (subject to paragraph (b)(2) of this section).

The rule that benefits cannot be stopped or reduced upon the participant reaching any particular age becomes a key player here. That clearly means that accruals cannot be stopped, if the plan language allows for an offset of accruals by the required Actuarial increases then that is allowed. In the absence of specific plan language then there must be a dual stream calculation that incorporates the accruals and the actuarial increases.