"This year, 2012, marks the first year that the 417(e) interest rate required to calculate the minimum present value of a DB pension is equal to the interest rate used to calculate its liability for [PPA] minimum funding purposes (ignoring the 24-month averaging). In the past, the lump sum was based in part on 30-year Treasury rates, which often resulted in the payout of lump-sum amounts greater than the corresponding liability funded for in the plan's funding target. With this no longer the case, the settlement of lump sums might be an attractive way to eliminate longevity risk from DB plans."  MORE >>