August is Pension Protection Month, a reminder that protecting a pension plan begins with protecting the quality of the data behind it.
While Annual Funding Notices (AFNs) are distributed after the close of the plan year, the work to ensure accurate reporting starts well before year-end. As pension plans begin preparing for year-end reporting and the upcoming plan year, now is the ideal time to review participant records, verify mortality events, update beneficiary information, and confirm member data is accurate.
Taking a proactive approach now can help reduce administrative burdens, improve participant communications, and avoid last-minute data issues that may delay reporting or require additional corrections.
What Is an Annual Funding Notice?
An Annual Funding Notice (AFN) is an annual disclosure required under ERISA for traditional defined benefit pension plans. It provides participants, beneficiaries, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), and contributing unions with important information about a pension plan’s financial condition, including its funded status, assets, liabilities, and participant counts.¹
The SECURE 2.0 Act expanded the information required in Annual Funding Notices, and in 2025 the Department of Labor issued updated guidance and model notices through Field Assistance Bulletin (FAB) 2025-02 to help plan administrators comply with these new requirements.²
Why August Matters
Annual Funding Notices may not be distributed until after the plan year ends, but preparing for them shouldn’t begin in December.
Waiting until the final weeks of the year often leaves little time to identify and resolve participant data issues that can complicate reporting and participant communications.
August provides a valuable opportunity to review your records before year-end priorities compete for attention.
Waiting until the final months before reporting deadlines can make it more difficult to identify and correct issues such as:
– Unreported mortality events
– Outdated participant records
– Missing participants or beneficiaries
– Incorrect mailing addresses
– Duplicate or incomplete records
Addressing these issues early gives administrators more time to resolve discrepancies before they affect participant communications and year-end reporting.
Better Data Makes Reporting Easier
Annual Funding Notices rely on accurate participant information. While actuaries determine funding calculations and financial reporting, maintaining accurate demographic records helps ensure participant counts, communications, and plan records remain reliable.
The Department of Labor’s updated guidance also requires additional disclosures regarding funding percentages, demographic information, and other plan metrics, making strong data governance even more important.²
How Abacus Intel Helps
Preparing for Annual Funding Notices isn’t just about completing required forms, it’s about ensuring the underlying participant data is accurate.
Abacus Intel helps pension plans improve data integrity through comprehensive verification services, including:
Our mortality verification platform delivers nationwide mortality event data with 99% accuracy, leveraging multiple trusted sources to reduce overpayment risk and maintain accurate participant records.
Locate participants with outdated addresses before important plan communications and Annual Funding Notices are mailed.
Research and verify beneficiary information to help maintain complete and accurate participant records.
Start Preparing Before Reporting Season Begins
The pension plans that avoid year-end surprises are often the ones that begin preparing long before reporting deadlines arrive.
This August, use Pension Protection Month as an opportunity to:
– Review participant records
– Verify mortality events
– Update participant addresses
– Locate missing participants
– Verify beneficiary information
– Improve data integrity before year-end
Small improvements today can prevent significant administrative challenges later.
The plans that begin preparing in August are often the ones that avoid year-end surprises.
Prepare Now for Pension Protection Month
Pension Protection Month is an ideal reminder that protecting a pension plan goes beyond investments, it also means protecting the quality of the data that supports every benefit payment, participant communication, and regulatory disclosure.
This August, take a proactive approach to preparing for Annual Funding Notices and year-end reporting by partnering with Abacus Intel. Request a demo by August 31, 2026, and lock in your pricing.
References
1. U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration. Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2025-02: Annual Funding Notice Guidance and Model Notices. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ebsa/employers-and-advisers/guidance/field-assistance-bulletins/2025-02
2. U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration. Appendix 1 – Model Annual Funding Notice. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ebsa/employers-and-advisers/guidance/field-assistance-bulletins/2025-02-appendix-1
3. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Annual Funding Notice Requirements. https://www.pbgc.gov