{"schema_version":2,"canonical_url":"https://asc.understandingaccounting.org/asc/205/960/#50-disclosure","source":"FASB Accounting Standards Codification, Basic View","usage":"Study and research edition. Verify current requirements with the official source. Summaries, enrichment, and tags are machine-generated study aids. Paragraph html preserves source markup; snippet is abbreviated. Pending content is not necessarily effective.","topic":"205","topic_title":"Presentation of Financial Statements","subtopic":"205-960","subtopic_title":"Plan Accounting—Defined Benefit Pension Plans","section":{"number":"50","label":"50 Disclosure","anchor":"50-disclosure","is_sec":false,"groups":[{"block":null,"heading":null,"paragraphs":[{"citation":"205-960-50-1","para":"50-1","html":"
The financial statements shall include the following disclosures, if applicable:
  1. a
    A brief, general description of the plan agreement, including, but not limited to, vesting and benefit provisions. If a plan agreement or a description thereof providing this information is otherwise published and made available, this description may be omitted provided that reference to such other source is made.
  2. b
    A description of significant plan amendments adopted during the year ending on the latest benefit information date. If significant amendments were adopted between the latest benefit information date and the plan's year-end, it shall be indicated that the actuarial present value of accumulated plan benefits does not reflect those amendments.
  3. c
    A brief, general description of the priority order of participants' claims to the assets of the plan upon plan termination and benefits guaranteed by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, including a discussion of the application of its guaranty to any recent plan amendment. Such a description serves to alert participants that a comparison of total net assets with the total actuarial present value of accumulated plan benefits (or with the three minimum required categories of benefit information) does not necessarily indicate which benefits would be covered by plan assets in the event of plan termination. If material providing this information is otherwise published and made available to participants, the descriptions required by this paragraph may be omitted provided that reference to such other source is made and disclosure similar to the following is made in the financial statements.
    • Should the plan terminate at some future time, its net assets generally will not be available on a pro rata basis to provide participants' benefits. Whether a particular participant's accumulated plan benefits will be paid depends on both the priority of those benefits and the level of benefits guaranteed by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation at that time. Some benefits may be fully or partially provided for by the then existing assets and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation guaranty while other benefits may not be provided for at all.
  4. d
    The funding policy and any changes in such policy during the plan year. If significant costs of plan administration are being absorbed by the employer(s), that fact shall be disclosed. For a contributory plan, the disclosure shall state the method of determining participants' contributions. Plans subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act shall disclose whether the minimum funding requirements of the Act have been met. If a minimum funding waiver has been granted by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or if a request for a waiver is pending before the IRS, that fact shall be disclosed.
  5. e
    The policy regarding the purchase of contracts with insurance entities that are excluded from plan assets. The plan's dividend income for the year that is related to excluded contracts shall be disclosed, and for purposes of paragraph 960-30-45-2 may be netted against payments to insurance entities related to such contracts as provided in (g) of that paragraph.
  6. f
    The federal income tax status of the plan, if a favorable letter of determination has not been obtained or maintained. Disclosure of the plan's tax status is not proscribed in other circumstances.
  7. g
    Significant real estate or other transactions in which the plan and any of the following parties are jointly involved:
    1. 1
      The sponsor
    2. 2
      The employer(s)
    3. 3
      The employee organization(s).
  8. h
    Unusual or infrequent events or transactions occurring after the latest benefit information date but before the financial statements are issued or are available to be issued (as discussed in Section 855-10-25) that might significantly affect the usefulness of the financial statements in an assessment of the plan's present and future ability to pay benefits. For example, a plan amendment adopted after the latest benefit information date that significantly increases future benefits that are attributable to employees' service rendered before that date shall be disclosed. If reasonably determinable, the effects of such events or transactions shall be disclosed. If such effects are not quantified, the reasons why they are not reasonably determinable shall be disclosed. This guidance does not contemplate disclosure of normal changes after the benefit information date, such as benefits attributable to service rendered after that date.
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Although a funding policy disclosure incorporating the technical name of the actuarial cost method and the amortization period for the unfunded supplemental actuarial value may not be meaningful to most users, such disclosure is not proscribed. A brief description, in general terms and in layman's language, of how contributions are determined pursuant to the actuarial cost method may be more understandable and therefore more useful. Thus, the latter disclosure is preferable.
","snippet":"Although a funding policy disclosure incorporating the technical name of the actuarial cost method and the amortization period for the unfunded supplemental actuarial value may not be meaningful to most users, such discl…","pending":false,"provenance":{"source_url":"https://asc.fasb.org/","snapshot_version":"sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f","record_version":"sha256:148cdead0bd7c16c76fd579990023b3f186958f0eb49a9004a67fd7c60e4aad4","downloaded_from":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","last_downloaded_at":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","date_scope":"source_page","effective_as_of":null,"effective_as_of_status":"Not established by retrieval timestamps","source_key":"1943274/2147477273","source_sha256":"e440e3b1ab65f8bc11842df75eb64248a2a30d3b5dc6418fc38182599cc610b5"}},{"citation":"205-960-50-3","para":"50-3","html":"
Plans are encouraged to disclose information regarding the estimated future impact of the funding policy on an existing difference between the net asset and benefit information. However, such disclosure is not required.
","snippet":"Plans are encouraged to disclose information regarding the estimated future impact of the funding policy on an existing difference between the net asset and benefit information. However, such disclosure is not required.","pending":false,"provenance":{"source_url":"https://asc.fasb.org/","snapshot_version":"sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f","record_version":"sha256:04b2fd1623c5ccd87b1f2b72b5c1bde7269241f548332e5c88ea16986841e8a5","downloaded_from":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","last_downloaded_at":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","date_scope":"source_page","effective_as_of":null,"effective_as_of_status":"Not established by retrieval timestamps","source_key":"1943274/2147477273","source_sha256":"e440e3b1ab65f8bc11842df75eb64248a2a30d3b5dc6418fc38182599cc610b5"}}],"provenance":{"source_url":"https://asc.fasb.org/","snapshot_version":"sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f","record_version":"sha256:a22c1806c1d4d23bbc15f6a073933e4ee215adb5475f72ef4dc50e3f8a2b8868","downloaded_from":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","last_downloaded_at":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","date_scope":"source_page","effective_as_of":null,"effective_as_of_status":"Not established by retrieval timestamps","source_key":"1943274/2147477273","source_sha256":"e440e3b1ab65f8bc11842df75eb64248a2a30d3b5dc6418fc38182599cc610b5"}},{"block":null,"heading":"401(h) Accounts","paragraphs":[{"citation":"205-960-50-4","para":"50-4","html":"
Defined benefit pension plans shall disclose in the notes to financial statements the nature of the assets related to the 401(h) account, and the fact that the assets are available only to pay retiree health benefits.
","snippet":"Defined benefit pension plans shall disclose in the notes to financial statements the nature of the assets related to the 401(h) account, and the fact that the assets are available only to pay retiree health benefits.","pending":false,"provenance":{"source_url":"https://asc.fasb.org/","snapshot_version":"sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f","record_version":"sha256:6b2ad4b5136539581b7d09ec884e7edb1141cd8060c42179f0f78e27971b0d74","downloaded_from":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","last_downloaded_at":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","date_scope":"source_page","effective_as_of":null,"effective_as_of_status":"Not established by retrieval timestamps","source_key":"1943274/2147477273","source_sha256":"e440e3b1ab65f8bc11842df75eb64248a2a30d3b5dc6418fc38182599cc610b5"}},{"citation":"205-960-50-5","para":"50-5","html":"
Because the Employee Retirement Income Security Act requires 401(h) accounts to be reported as assets of the pension plan, a reconciliation of the net assets reported in the financial statements to those reported in Form 5500 is required. The reconciliation shall be accompanied by a discussion of the 401(h) account, explaining clearly that the assets in the 401(h) account are not available to pay pension benefits.
","snippet":"Because the Employee Retirement Income Security Act requires 401(h) accounts to be reported as assets of the pension plan, a reconciliation of the net assets reported in the financial statements to those reported in Form…","pending":false,"provenance":{"source_url":"https://asc.fasb.org/","snapshot_version":"sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f","record_version":"sha256:d087b59ba97f0231738aaf0dac6e9759e43a554acc4a6b92f53ae1ebab650ad2","downloaded_from":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","last_downloaded_at":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","date_scope":"source_page","effective_as_of":null,"effective_as_of_status":"Not established by retrieval timestamps","source_key":"1943274/2147477273","source_sha256":"e440e3b1ab65f8bc11842df75eb64248a2a30d3b5dc6418fc38182599cc610b5"}}],"provenance":{"source_url":"https://asc.fasb.org/","snapshot_version":"sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f","record_version":"sha256:93a2b5776965f3facefc032754a1caad259f73e1bdb62bf55b0f854150eef492","downloaded_from":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","last_downloaded_at":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","date_scope":"source_page","effective_as_of":null,"effective_as_of_status":"Not established by retrieval timestamps","source_key":"1943274/2147477273","source_sha256":"e440e3b1ab65f8bc11842df75eb64248a2a30d3b5dc6418fc38182599cc610b5"}}],"provenance":{"source_url":"https://asc.fasb.org/","snapshot_version":"sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f","record_version":"sha256:d0507755963f5719e7e785fed152ba63cdcf1285fe0e16e1588c25fa07c98f4f","downloaded_from":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","last_downloaded_at":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","date_scope":"source_page","effective_as_of":null,"effective_as_of_status":"Not established by retrieval timestamps","source_key":"1943274/2147477273","source_sha256":"e440e3b1ab65f8bc11842df75eb64248a2a30d3b5dc6418fc38182599cc610b5"}},"provenance":{"source_url":"https://asc.fasb.org/","snapshot_version":"sha256:15aea8165dff9f5ae47d9484f8470588b13b307f56e1d50801bf4d85ec190e3f","record_version":"sha256:d0507755963f5719e7e785fed152ba63cdcf1285fe0e16e1588c25fa07c98f4f","downloaded_from":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","last_downloaded_at":"2026-09-09T22:56:52.723Z","date_scope":"source_page","effective_as_of":null,"effective_as_of_status":"Not established by retrieval timestamps","source_key":"1943274/2147477273","source_sha256":"e440e3b1ab65f8bc11842df75eb64248a2a30d3b5dc6418fc38182599cc610b5"}}