29 U.S.C. § 1389

Section 1389 · De minimis rule

This is § 4209 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974

Amended 1 time on record

Applied in 25 court decisions — leading case Connolly v. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (1986)

Most recently applied in Manhattan Ford Lincoln, Inc. v. UAW Local 259 Pension Fund (July 2018)

How often courts cite this section

citing decisions per year

Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.

(a) Reduction of unfunded vested benefits allocable to employer withdrawn from plan

Except in the case of a plan amended under subsection (b) of this section, the amount of the unfunded vested benefits allocable under section 1391 of this title to an employer who withdraws from a plan shall be reduced by the smaller of—

(1) 3/4 of 1 percent of the plan's unfunded vested obligations (determined as of the end of the plan year ending before the date of withdrawal), or

(2) $50,000,

reduced by the amount, if any, by which the unfunded vested benefits allowable to the employer, determined without regard to this subsection, exceeds $100,000.

(b) Amendment of plan for reduction of amount of unfunded vested benefits allocable to employer withdrawn from plan

A plan may be amended to provide for the reduction of the amount determined under section 1391 of this title by not more than the greater of—

(1) the amount determined under subsection (a) of this section, or

(2) the lesser of—

(A) the amount determined under subsection (a)(1) of this section, or

(B) $100,000,

reduced by the amount, if any, by which the amount determined under section 1391 of this title for the employer, determined without regard to this subsection, exceeds $150,000.

This section does not apply—

(1) to an employer who withdraws in a plan year in which substantially all employers withdraw from the plan, or

(2) in any case in which substantially all employers withdraw from the plan during a period of one or more plan years pursuant to an agreement or arrangement to withdraw, to an employer who withdraws pursuant to such agreement or arrangement.

(d) Presumption of employer withdrawal from plan pursuant to agreement or arrangement applicable in action or proceeding to determine or collect withdrawal liability

In any action or proceeding to determine or collect withdrawal liability, if substantially all employers have withdrawn from a plan within a period of 3 plan years, an employer who has withdrawn from such plan during such period shall be presumed to have withdrawn from the plan pursuant to an agreement or arrangement, unless the employer proves otherwise by a preponderance of the evidence.