During the second round of deliberations, the FASB eliminated a proposal that would require employers to disclose their withdrawal liability to all participating plans or provide a "point-in-time" estimate of its obligations with respect to the underfunded status of individual plans.

Many who commented on the FASB's multiemployer plan proposal told the board that the withdrawal liability would not be a suitable alternative for an employer's comparative share of the underfunded status of the plan. Instead, they said the employer's share of the underfunded status of the plan can only be determined based on the collective bargaining process. They advised the FASB to not require a point-in-time estimate of an employer's obligations regarding underfunding.

The FASB's new disclosures will include:

• An employer contribution's total that was made to each significant plan and each plan in the aggregate.
• A sign of whether the employer's contribution's denotes more than 5 percent of total contributions to the plan.
• A sign of which plans, if any, are exposed to a funding improvement plan.
• Any expiration dates for collective bargaining agreements and minimum funding arrangements.
• The plan's most recent certified funded status, as determined by the plan's "zone status," which is required by the Pension Protection Act of 2006. An employer will have to disclose whether the plan is less than 65 percent funded, between 65 percent and 80 percent funded, or greater than 80 percent funded if the zone status is not available.
• A description of the nature and effect of all changes that affect comparability for each period in which a statement of income is offered.

The FASB anticipates that the new standards will be finalized in September 2011. Public entities' enhanced disclosures will be required in fiscal years ending after Dec. 15, 2011, while nonpublic entities' enhanced disclosures will be required in fiscal years ending after Dec. 15, 2012.