Definitions For Defined Benefit Retirement Plan

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FASB Research 4
1. Definitions for defined benefit retirement plan and defined contribution retirement plan 715-30-20
Defined Benefit Plan - A defined benefit plan provides participants with a determinable benefit based on a formula provided for in the plan.
a. Defined benefit health and welfare plans—Defined benefit health and welfare plans specify a determinable benefit, which may be in the form of a reimbursement to the covered plan participant or a direct payment to providers or third-party insurers for the cost of specified services. Such plans may also include benefits that are payable as a lump sum, such as death benefits. The level of benefits may be defined or limited based on factors such as age, years of service, and salary. Contributions may be determined by the plan 's actuary or be based on premiums, actual claims paid, hours worked, or other factors determined by the plan sponsor. Even when a plan is funded pursuant to agreements that specify a fixed rate of employer contributions (for example, a collectively bargained multiemployer plan), such a plan may nevertheless be a defined benefit health and welfare plan if its substance is to provide a defined benefit.
b. Defined benefit pension plan—A pension plan that defines an amount of pension benefit to be provided, usually as a function of one or more factors such as age, years of service, or compensation. Any pension plan that is not a defined contribution pension plan is, for purposes of Subtopic 715-30, a defined benefit pension plan.
c. Defined benefit postretirement plan—A plan that defines postretirement benefits in terms of monetary amounts (for example, $100,000 of life insurance) or benefit coverage to be provided (for example, up to $200 per day for...

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...ns and how those amounts are measured
d. To improve the understandability and comparability of amounts reported by requiring employers with similar plans to use the same method to measure their pension and other postretirement benefit obligations and the related costs of the postretirement benefits.

3. Disclosure requirements of a defined contribution pension plan
715-70-50-1
An employer shall disclose the amount of cost recognized for defined contribution pension plans and for other defined contribution postretirement benefit plans for all periods presented separately from the amount of cost recognized for defined benefit plans. The disclosures shall include a description of the nature and effect of any significant changes during the period affecting comparability, such as a change in the rate of employer contributions, a business combination, or a divestiture.

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