The Accrued Benefit & Rounding topic is a part of career average and cash balance accrual definitions. The accumulation of basis and rates (with interest, for cash balance definitions) defines the growth of the accrued benefit after the effective date (or the stop date of a start/stop array) for the accrued benefit, where the starting accrued benefit is defined on this screen.

The database field option is used when the accrued benefit exists on the census database. The database field specified must be an array field. ProAdmin will build the future accrued benefit starting with the accrued benefit in the database field as of the most recent relevant date.

For career average accrual definitions, any calculation date less than or equal to the last benefit commencement date is a relevant date.  For cash balance accrual definitions (not daily crediting), any interest crediting date within the range of calculation dates but less than the last benefit commencement date is a relevant date.  For daily interest crediting, any calculation date less than or equal to the last benefit commencement date is a relevant date.  If crediting more frequent than annually, adjusting the crediting rate geometrically for periods less than one year, but using an arithmetic rate for current plan year accruals, then only plan year ends less than the last benefit commencement date are relevant dates. When no accrued benefit in the specified array field has a relevant date, the expected value option is used to determine an expected accrued benefit (see below) and a warning is issued. A warning is also issued if the benefit with the most recent relevant date is not the most recent benefit in the field.

In some cases, an accrual definition should have a value of zero at a certain effective date. This is often appropriate when several benefit formula components will be added together. In these cases, selecting the Zero-out empirical accrued benefit check box will set the accrued benefit to zero and should eliminate double-counting of the accrued benefit.

The expected value option is used whenever you wish ProAdmin to generate the accrued benefit according to the Basis Formula and Rates topics. ProAdmin will generate a sequence of expected accrued benefit values for each calculation date beginning with the date of hire.

The Round crediting period end balance to cents checkbox allows you to round the accumulation of the prior period balance plus any current period accruals to cents.

The Round period accrual to cents checkbox allows you to round each crediting period accrual prior to the addition of interest credits in determining the period end balance.