[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 75 (Friday, April 18, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19149-19150]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-10080]


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OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT


Civil Service Retirement System; Present Value Factors

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is providing notice 
of adjusted present value factors applicable to retirees who elect to 
provide survivor annuity benefits to a spouse based on a post-
retirement marriage and to retiring employees who elect the alternative 
form of annuity, owe certain redeposits based on refunds of 
contributions for service before October 1, 1990, or elect to credit 
certain service with nonappropriated fund instrumentalities. This 
notice is necessary to conform the present value factors to changes in 
economic assumptions and demographic factors approved by the Board of 
Actuaries of the Civil Service Retirement System.

EFFECTIVE DATE: Revised present value factors will apply to survivor 
reductions or employee annuities that commence on or after October 1, 
1997.

ADDRESSES: Send requests for actuarial assumptions and data to the 
Office of the Actuary, Room 4307 STOP, Office of Personnel Management, 
Washington, DC 20415.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Harold L. Siegelman, (202) 606-0299.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Several provisions of the Civil Service 
Retirement System (CSRS) require reduction of annuities on an actuarial 
basis. Under each of these provisions, we are required to issue 
regulations on the method of determining the reduction to ensure that 
the present value of the reduced annuity plus a lump-sum equals, to the 
extent practicable, the present value of the unreduced benefit. The 
regulations for each of these benefits provide that we will publish a 
notice in the Federal Register whenever we change the factors used to 
compute the present values of these benefits.
    Section 831.2205(a) of Title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, 
prescribes the method for computing the reduction in the beginning rate 
of annuity payable to a retiree who elects an alternative form of 
annuity under 5 U.S.C. 8343a. That reduction is required to produce an 
annuity that is the actuarial equivalent of the annuity of a retiree 
who does not elect an alternative form of annuity. The present value 
factors currently used to compute the reduction were published by OPM 
(59 FR 35534) on July 12, 1994.

[[Page 19150]]

    Section 831.303(c) of Title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, 
prescribes the use of these factors for computing the reduction to 
complete payment of certain redeposits of refunded deductions based on 
periods of service that ended before October 1, 1990, under section 
8334(d)(2) of title 5, United States Code.
    Section 831.663 of Title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, prescribes 
the use of similar factors for computing the reduction required for 
certain elections to provide survivor annuity benefits based on a post-
retirement marriage under section 8339(j)(5) (C) or (k)(2) of title 5, 
United States Code. Under section 11004 of the Omnibus Budget 
Reconciliation Act of 1993, Public Law 103-66, effective October 1, 
1993, OPM ceased collection of these survivor election deposits by 
means of either a lump sum payment or by installments. Instead, OPM is 
required to establish a permanent actuarial reduction in the annuity of 
the retiree. This means that OPM must take the amount of the deposit 
computed under the old law, and ``translate'' it into a lifetime 
reduction in the retiree's benefit. The reduction is based on actuarial 
tables, similar to those used for alternative forms of annuity under 
section 8343a of title 5, United States Code. The present value factors 
currently used to compute the reduction were published by OPM (59 FR 
12143) on March 16, 1994.
    Subpart F of part 847 of Title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, 
prescribes the use of similar factors for computing the deficiency the 
retiree must pay to receive credit for certain service with 
nonappropriated fund instrumentalities made creditable by an election 
under section 1043 of Public Law 104-106. The present value factors 
currently used to compute the deficiency were published by OPM (61 FR 
41718) on August, 9, 1996.
    Today, OPM is publishing a notice in the Federal Register to revise 
the normal cost percentage under the FERS Act of 1986, Public Law 99-
335, based on changed economic assumptions and demographic factors 
approved by the Board of Actuaries of the Civil Service Retirement 
System. Those changed economic assumptions require corresponding 
changes in the present value factors. The revised factors will become 
effective in October 1997 to correspond with the changes in FERS normal 
cost percentages. For alternative forms of annuity and redeposits of 
employee contributions, the new factors will apply to annuities that 
commence on or after October 1, 1997. See 5 CFR 831.2205 and 
831.303(c). For survivor election deposits, the new factors will apply 
to survivor reductions that commence on or after October 1, 1997. See 5 
CFR 831.663 (c) and (d). For obtaining credit for service with certain 
nonappropriated fund instrumentalities, the new factors will apply to 
cases in which the date of computation under section 847.603 of Title 
5, Code of Federal Regulations, is on or after October 1, 1997. See 5 
CFR 847.602(c) and 847.603.
    OPM is, therefore, revising the tables of present value factors to 
read as follows:

  CSRS Present Value Factors Applicable to Annuity Payable Following an 
   Election Under Section 8339(j) or (k) or Section 8343a of Title 5,   
   United States Code, or Under Section 1043 of Public Law 104-106 or   
   Following a Redeposit Under Section 8334(d)(2)  of Title 5, United   
                               States Code                              
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                                                                Present 
                             Age                                 value  
                                                                 factor 
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40...........................................................      271.2
41...........................................................      267.1
42...........................................................      263.3
43...........................................................      259.9
44...........................................................      256.5
45...........................................................      252.5
46...........................................................      248.4
47...........................................................      244.4
48...........................................................      240.2
49...........................................................      235.8
50...........................................................      230.9
51...........................................................      226.7
52...........................................................      222.6
53...........................................................      218.2
54...........................................................      213.5
55...........................................................      208.5
56...........................................................      204.0
57...........................................................      199.4
58...........................................................      194.7
59...........................................................      190.2
60...........................................................      186.1
61...........................................................      181.2
62...........................................................      176.0
63...........................................................      171.3
64...........................................................      166.4
65...........................................................      161.5
66...........................................................      156.8
67...........................................................      152.0
68...........................................................      147.1
69...........................................................      142.3
70...........................................................      137.1
71...........................................................      131.9
72...........................................................      126.7
73...........................................................      121.5
74...........................................................      116.2
75...........................................................      111.0
76...........................................................      105.9
77...........................................................      100.8
78...........................................................       95.8
79...........................................................       90.9
80...........................................................       86.2
81...........................................................       81.6
82...........................................................       77.1
83...........................................................       72.8
84...........................................................       68.7
85...........................................................       64.7
86...........................................................       61.0
87...........................................................       57.4
88...........................................................       54.1
89...........................................................       50.9
90...........................................................       47.9
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  CSRS Present Value Factors Applicable to Annuity Payable Following an 
     Election Under Section 1043 of Public Law 104-106 (For Ages at     
                          Calculation Below 40)                         
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                                                                Present 
                                                                value of
                      Age at calculation                       a monthly
                                                                annuity 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
17...........................................................      339.7
18...........................................................      337.5
19...........................................................      335.1
20...........................................................      332.7
21...........................................................      330.3
22...........................................................      327.8
23...........................................................      325.2
24...........................................................      322.6
25...........................................................      319.9
26...........................................................      317.1
27...........................................................      314.3
28...........................................................      311.4
29...........................................................      308.4
30...........................................................      305.4
31...........................................................      302.3
32...........................................................      299.1
33...........................................................      295.9
34...........................................................      292.6
35...........................................................      289.2
36...........................................................      285.8
37...........................................................      282.8
38...........................................................      278.7
39...........................................................      275.0
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    U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
James B. King,
Director.
[FR Doc. 97-10080 Filed 4-17-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-01-M