29 U.S.C. § 1301 — Definitions

(a) For this subchapter, the following terms mean:

(1) “Administrator” means the person or persons described in 29 U.S.C. § 1002(16).

(2) “Substantial employer,” for a plan year^* of a single-employer plan, means one or more persons who: (A) are contributing sponsors of the plan during that plan year; (B) are members of the same controlled group at some time during that plan year; and (C) have required contributions for each plan year that is either one of the 2 immediately preceding plan years or the first 2 of the 3 immediately preceding plan years, with those contributions totaling at least 10 percent of all contributions required to be paid to or under the plan for that plan year.

(3) “Multiemployer plan” means a plan: (A) to which more than one employer must contribute; (B) maintained under one or more collective-bargaining agreements between one or more employee organizations and more than one employer; and (C) meeting any other requirements the Secretary of Labor sets by regulation. A plan is treated as a multiemployer plan on and after its termination date if it was one for the preceding plan year. For a plan year that began before September 26, 1980, the term means a plan described in 26 U.S.C. § 414(f) as that provision existed immediately before that date.

(4) “Corporation,” unless the context clearly requires otherwise, means the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation established under 29 U.S.C. § 1302.

(5) “Fund” means the appropriate fund established under 29 U.S.C. § 1305.

(6) “Basic benefits” means benefits guaranteed under 29 U.S.C. § 1322, except § 1322(c), or under § 1322a, except § 1322a(g).

(7) “Non-basic benefits” means benefits guaranteed under § 1322(c) or § 1322a(g).

(8) “Nonforfeitable benefit,” for a plan, means a benefit for which a participant has met the plan’s conditions for entitlement or this chapter’s requirements. This does not require a formal application, retirement, completion of a required waiting period, or death when the benefit returns all or part of the participant’s accumulated required employee contributions upon death. The benefit is nonforfeitable even if it may later be reduced or suspended by a plan amendment, a condition that occurs, or operation of this chapter or title 26.

(9) Repealed.

(10) “Plan sponsor,” for a multiemployer plan, means: (A) the plan’s joint board of trustees; or (B) if there is no joint board, the plan administrator.

(11) “Contribution base unit” means a unit for which an employer must contribute under a multiemployer plan, as defined by Treasury Secretary regulations.

(12) “Outstanding claim for withdrawal liability” means a plan’s claim for an unpaid withdrawal-liability balance determined under part 1 of subtitle E, after demand has been made, valued under Corporation regulations.

(13) “Contributing sponsor,” for a single-employer plan, means a person described in 29 U.S.C. § 1082(b)(1), without regard to § 1082(b)(2), or in 26 U.S.C. § 412(b)(1), without regard to § 412(b)(2).

(14) For a single-employer plan:

(A) “Controlled group,” in connection with a person, means that person and all other persons under common control with that person.

(B) Whether two or more persons are under “common control” is determined under Corporation regulations consistent and coextensive with Treasury Secretary regulations for similar purposes under 26 U.S.C. § 414(b) and (c).

(C) (i) Despite other provisions of this subchapter, while an individual directly or indirectly has power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of an affected air carrier of which the individual was an accountable owner—whether through voting-stock ownership, contract, or otherwise—the carrier is treated as under common control not only with persons described in (B), but also with all related persons.

(ii) For this subparagraph:

(I) “Affected air carrier” means an air carrier, as defined in 49 U.S.C. § 40102(a)(2), that held a certificate of public convenience and necessity under 49 U.S.C. § 41102 for route number 147 on November 12, 1991.

(II) “Related person” means a person under common control, as determined under (B), with an affected air carrier on October 10, 1991, or a successor to that person.

(III) “Accountable owner” means an individual who on October 10, 1991, directly or indirectly through 26 U.S.C. § 318, owned more than 50 percent of the total voting power of an affected air carrier’s stock.

(IV) “Successor” means a person that directly or indirectly through 26 U.S.C. § 318 acquires more than 50 percent of a related person’s total voting power, total security value as defined in 29 U.S.C. § 1002(20), or total asset value, or a person into which the related person merges or consolidates.

(V) “Individual” means a living human being.

(15) “Single-employer plan” means any defined-benefit plan, as defined in 29 U.S.C. § 1002(35), that is not a multiemployer plan.

(16) “Benefit liabilities” means the benefits of employees and their beneficiaries under the plan, within the meaning of 26 U.S.C. § 401(a)(2).

(17) “Amount of unfunded guaranteed benefits,” for a participant or beneficiary on a date under a single-employer plan, means the excess of: (A) the actuarial present value on that date of the participant’s or beneficiary’s plan benefits guaranteed under § 1322, using assumptions the Corporation prescribes for § 1344; over (B) the plan assets’ current value on that date that must be allocated to those benefits under § 1344.

(18) “Amount of unfunded benefit liabilities” means, on a date, any excess of: (A) the value on that date of the plan’s benefit liabilities, using assumptions the Corporation prescribes for § 1344; over (B) the plan assets’ current value.

(19) “Outstanding amount of benefit liabilities,” for a plan, means any excess of: (A) the value of the plan’s benefit liabilities on the termination date, using assumptions the Corporation prescribes for § 1344; over (B) the value that would be determined by counting only benefits guaranteed under § 1322 or benefits to which plan assets are allocated under § 1344.

(20) “Person” has the meaning in 29 U.S.C. § 1002(9).

(21) “Affected party,” for a plan, means: (A) each plan participant; (B) each plan beneficiary who is the beneficiary of a deceased participant or an alternate payee under an applicable qualified domestic-relations order; (C) each employee organization representing plan participants; and (D) the Corporation. When a required notice is involved, if an affected party has designated another person in writing to receive the notice, a reference to the affected party means that designated person.

(b) (1) An individual who owns all of an unincorporated trade or business is treated as the individual’s own employer. A partnership is treated as the employer of each partner who is an employee under 26 U.S.C. § 401(c)(1). Under Corporation regulations, all employees of commonly controlled trades or businesses, whether incorporated or not, are treated as employed by one employer, and all those businesses are treated as one employer. Those regulations must be consistent and coextensive with Treasury Secretary regulations for similar purposes under 26 U.S.C. § 414(c).

(2) For subtitle E: (A) unless subtitle E provides otherwise, contributions or other payments count as made under a plan for a plan year if made within the period prescribed under 26 U.S.C. § 412(c)(10). For a terminated plan, determine that period as if the plan continued after its termination date; and (B) “Secretary of the Treasury” means the Secretary of the Treasury or that Secretary’s delegate.