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Dear Folks: I am seeking a greater understanding of the "highest early rule" with respect to FAE DB plans. I am minimally familiar with this requirement but have reviewed IRC 411(a)(9) and Treasury Regulation 1.411(a)-7© which, I believe, comprise the guidance that "requires" this rule for compliance. First, I am trying to understand the rationale for the rule...which might help me understand the "how and when" to actually perform this requirement. In other words, what is the rule trying to prevent...or other rationale. What I am dealing with is a DB plan that is comprised of the merger of several plans due to corporate mergers and acquisitions and resulting in the merger of the plans. Each of the former separate plans is a title in the merged plan. Three of the titles consist of FAE DB designs integrated with SS in an offset arrangement and another of the titles is an FAE DB design integrated with SS in an excess arrangement. All of these titles have participants continuing to participate with active accruals. Of the three titles integrated with SS in an offset arrangement, one has the FAE determined using the eligible earnings in the highest 3 consecutive plan/calendar years of the last 11 years prior to employment ending (including the year that the employment ends.) This title limits the amount of credited service to 576 months (48 years) even if employed and actively participating longer than that. Another of these titles with a SS offset arrangement determines the FAE from the highest 36 months of earnings in the last 120 months of employment. In this title there is no limit to the amount of credited service. The third of these titles with a SS offset arrangement determines the FAE as the greater of 1) using the highest 36 consecutive months of annual earnings or 2) using the highest 3 calendar years (not necessarily consecutive). This title has no limit to the amount of credited service that one can accrue. From what I can tell, the prior record keeper was doing the highest early comparison for the first two of the FAE titles (as referenced above) but not the third one (as referenced above) and not for the plan/title that is integrated with SS in an excess arrangement. Again, from what I can tell,for those titles for which the prior record keeper was performing this comparison, it would calculate the benefit (normal retirement benefit at normal retirement age (65)) at the end of each plan/calendar year at or after which the participant became eligible for early (subsidized) retirement and then compare those values to the benefit (again the normal retirement benefit at normal retirement age) at the employment end date and use the largest benefit. It would then use that age 65 benefit, apply any applicable early receipt discount and then use that amount to convert to the available forms of benefit per the specific title. For the third FAE title integrated with SS in an offset arrangement and the title integrated with SS in an excess arrangement, again, I can't see that any such comparison was done in the past although each of these titles have serial determination letters and, I believe, at least one IRS audit and DOL audit/investigation in the past without this issue having been mentioned by the regulatory entities. If these is publicly available info (examples) available on the Web and someone knows the URL for such, I would appreciate it. Otherwise, I look forward to whatever help/guidance/understanding you wise folks can provide. I have spent a fair amount of time on the Internet and in some hard copy sources and can't find much detail about this rule. Thanks so much.