The American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries asked the IRS to allow sponsors of hybrid plans to use a combination of equity and fixed-income indexes to determine the market rates of return when calculating participant account balances. Some plans are already using market indexes to determine the rates, but many others are using 30-year Treasury rates clearly approved by IRS guidance.
The ASPPA made its request in a comment letter in response to a proposed regulation to implement key provisions on hybrid plans mandated by the Pension Protection Act of 2006. Judy Miller, ASPPA chief of actuarial issues, said the association also urged the IRS in its comments Thursday to clarify how plans should amend their existing interest rates and other benefit calculations to comply with the new regulations set by the PPA.
