Milliman USA has posted a very good “Client Action Bulletin” entitled “New disclosures for Pensions and Other Benefits.” The Bulletin highlights what was decided by the FASB Board day before yesterday concerning financial statement disclosures for sponsors of pensions and postretirement benefits. For employers with calendar fiscal years, most of the new requirements will apply to the upcoming December 31, 2003 year-end financial statements.
According to the Bulletin:
After reviewing comments from companies, financial statement preparers, and financial statement users, the Board has affirmed its intention to change the disclosure rules, with most of the changes set to take effect as early as the end of 2003.
The Bulletin notes that the decisions made by the FASB Board incorporate several key modifications to the proposal issued this past September, “notably the elimination of a requirement that sponsors disclose expected rates of return segregated by major asset classes.” The Bulletin states further that “the added disclosures could necessitate new calculations and may influence management decisions about pensions and other post-employment benefits.”
Other articles on the subject:
- The Wall Street Journal: “FASB Keeps Existing Format For Corporate Pension Data”
- Plan Sponsor: “FASB Retreats From Partial Pension Accounting Rule”
(An unofficial source tells me that the latter articles could be a bit misleading for plan sponsors since the articles do not appear to discuss the fact that many of the changes will apply to the upcoming December 31, 2003 year-end financial statements.)
The FASB website provides a great deal of information concerning the decisions made by the Board and you can access that information here.