Standing Technical Advisory Committee for Defined Benefit Single Employer Pension Plans (SEPP)

Meeting summary

Date: Tuesday, October 24, 2023
Time: 1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Location: Videoconference

This summary sets out the key points discussed at the October 24, 2023 meeting.

General items

  • The committee discussed the requirement to include PBGF exposure in Actuarial Valuation Reports. Plan-level member information gathered on Annual Information Returns was also discussed.

Member-Focused work

  • FSRA discussed with the committee the upcoming Pension Awareness Day in February 2024 and ways to increase its reach.

Guidance updates

  • FSRA provided updates on upcoming pension-specific guidance documents, including guidance related to plan amendments and guidance on roles and responsibilities, as well as an upcoming consultation on rule-making authority with respect to family law.  The proposed all-sector guidance on general Administrative Monetary Penalties was discussed.

Improving regulatory harmonization across Canada

  • FSRA provided an update to the committee on the progress of work on various CAPSA guidelines.

Examinations

  • FSRA provided an update to the committee on the pilot examinations program which uses a risk-based and outcomes-focused approach.

Commuted value calculations

  • FSRA and the committee discussed how plan administrators communicate how commuted values are calculated and when recalculations occur.

Brewers retail decision

  • FSRA updated the committee on the court’s ruling. This was fact-specific and FSRA will continue to reject void amendments.

Annuity discharge filings

  • FSRA discussed the upcoming change to annuity discharge filing requirements; FSRA will ask for request for proposal/quotation beginning in January 2024 to confirm plan provisions are replicated.

Next meeting

The next meeting of the committee is scheduled for Spring 2024.

Attendance record

Invited/Attended

Company name

Attendance status
(A)ttended; (R)egrets; (S)ubstitute; (VC)Videoconference; (P)Phone

Claire Woodcock

FSRA – Director, Pension Plan Operations and Committee Co-Chair

A

Mitch Frazer

Torys LLP and Committee Co-Chair

VC

Andrea Boctor

Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP

VC

Jason Vary

Actuarial Solutions Inc.

VC

Jennifer Agnew

BMKP Law LLP

VC

Kimberly Houston

PBAS

A

Louis Duranleau

Norman Beaudry

VC

Rohan Kumar

Willis Towers Watson

VC

Sandeep Kakan

Unifor

VC

Simon Nelson

Eckler Ltd.

VC

Steve Wilson

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

R

Tejash Modi

Morneau Shepell

VC

William Jones

Canadian Federation of Pensioners

VC

Winston Woo

AGS Automotive/Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters

VC

David Bartucci, Daniel Padro, Dillon De Coteau, Elissa Sinha, Jennifer Mullen, Jesse Heath-Rawlings, Karima Shajani, Lester Wong, Paul Dempsey, Stephanie Babb, Tim Thomson

FSRA

VC

Jeff Sweeting, Krista Teichroeb

MOF

VC

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