DOL ERISA Annual Report Requirement - Request for Comments
Summary
The Department of Labor (DOL) has submitted an information collection request (ICR) for the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) Summary Annual Report (SAR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. The DOL is inviting public comments on this request.
What changed
The Department of Labor (DOL) is seeking Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for an information collection request (ICR) related to the ERISA Summary Annual Report (SAR) requirement. This notice serves as a request for public comments on the ICR, which is sponsored by the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA). The current ICR pertains to the content, format, and delivery of SARs as mandated by ERISA Section 104(b)(3) and 29 CFR 2520.104b-10, and it includes estimates for respondents, responses, time burden, and costs.
Regulated entities, primarily employers administering employee benefit plans, should review the ICR and submit comments to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain by April 10, 2026. Comments should focus on the necessity, utility, accuracy of burden estimates, and potential improvements to the collection of information. While this is a notice and request for comments, failure to comply with information collection requirements that lack a valid OMB Control Number can result in penalties, as noted in the supplementary information.
What to do next
- Review the ERISA Summary Annual Report Requirement ICR.
- Submit comments to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain by April 10, 2026.
- Ensure compliance with OMB Control Number 1210-0040 once approved.
Penalties
Subject to penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information that does not display a valid OMB Control Number.
Source document (simplified)
Content
ACTION:
Notice of availability; request for comments.
SUMMARY:
The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting this Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)-sponsored information collection
request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995 (PRA). Public comments on the ICR are invited.
DATES:
The OMB will consider all written comments that the agency receives on or before April 10, 2026.
ADDRESSES:
Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication
of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting “Currently under 30-day Review—Open for Public Comments” or by using
the search function.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Michael Howell by telephone at 202-693-6782, or by email at DOLPRAPUBLIC@dol.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
ERISA Section 104(b)(3) and the regulation published at 29 CFR 2520.104b-10 require, with certain exceptions, that administrators
of employee benefit plans furnish annually to each participant and certain beneficiaries a summary annual report (SAR) meeting
the requirements of the statute and regulation. The regulation prescribes the content and format of the SAR and the timing
of its delivery. The SAR provides current information about the plan and assists those who receive it in understanding the
plan's current financial operation and condition. It also explains participants' and beneficiaries' rights to receive further
information on these issues. For additional substantive information about this ICR, see the related notice published in the
Federal Register
on July 11, 2025 (90 FR 30984).
Comments are invited on: (1) whether the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Department, including
whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimates of the burden and cost of
the collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality,
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on
those who are to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
This information collection is subject to the PRA. A Federal agency generally cannot conduct or sponsor a collection of information,
and the public is generally not required to respond to an information collection, unless the OMB approves it and displays
a currently valid OMB Control Number. In addition, notwithstanding any other provisions of law, no person shall generally
be subject to penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information that does not display a valid OMB Control Number. See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and 1320.6.
DOL seeks PRA authorization for this information collection for three (3) years. OMB authorization for an ICR cannot be for
more than three (3) years without renewal. The DOL notes that information collection requirements submitted to the OMB for
existing ICRs receive a month-to-month extension while they undergo review.
Agency: DOL-EBSA.
Title of Collection: Employee Retirement Income Security Act Summary Annual Report Requirement.
OMB Control Number: 1210-0040.
Affected Public: Private sector.
Total Estimated Number of Respondents: 839,758.
Total Estimated Number of Responses: 209,869,516.
Total Estimated Annual Time Burden: 15,209,906 hours.
Total Estimated Annual Other Costs Burden: $46,945,095.
(Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D))
Michael Howell, Senior Paperwork Reduction Act Analyst. [FR Doc. 2026-04717 Filed 3-10-26; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4510-29-P
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