Comerica 2014 Annual Report Download - page 134

NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Comerica Incorporated and Subsidiaries
F-97
There were no assets in the non-qualified defined benefit pension plan at December 31, 2014 and 2013. The postretirement
benefit plan is fully invested in bank-owned life insurance policies. The fair value of bank-owned life insurance policies is based
on the cash surrender values of the policies as reported by the insurance companies and is classified in Level 2 of the fair value
hierarchy.
Cash Flows
The Corporation currently expects to make no employer contributions to the qualified and non-qualified defined benefit
pension plans and postretirement benefit plan for the year ended December 31, 2015.
Estimated Future Benefit Payments
(in millions)
Years Ended December 31
Qualified
Defined Benefit
Pension Plan
Non-Qualified
Defined Benefit
Pension Plan Postretirement Benefit Plan (a)
2015 $ 67 $ 11 $ 6
2016 72 11 6
2017 78 12 6
2018 84 12 6
2019 89 13 6
2020 - 2024 529 70 25
(a) Estimated benefit payments in the postretirement benefit plan are net of estimated Medicare subsidies.
Defined Contribution Plans
Substantially all of the Corporation’s employees are eligible to participate in the Corporation’s principal defined
contribution plan (a 401(k) plan). Under this plan, the Corporation makes core matching cash contributions of 100 percent of the
first 4 percent of qualified earnings contributed by employees (up to the current IRS compensation limit), invested based on
employee investment elections. Employee benefits expense included expense for the plan of $22 million, $21 million and $20
million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively.
The Corporation also provides a profit sharing plan for the benefit of substantially all employees who work at least 1,000
hours in a plan year and are not accruing a benefit in the defined benefit pension plan. Under the profit sharing plan, the Corporation
makes an annual discretionary allocation to the individual account of each eligible employee ranging from 3 percent to 8 percent
of annual compensation, determined based on combined age and years of service. The allocations are invested based on employee
investment elections. The employee fully vests in the defined contribution pension plan after three years of service, at age 65 if
still employed, or in the event of death while an employee. Before an employee is eligible to participate, the plan requires the
equivalent of one year of service. The Corporation recognized $10 million, $7 million and $7 million in employee benefits expense
for this plan for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively.
Deferred Compensation Plans
The Corporation offers optional deferred compensation plans under which certain employees may make an irrevocable
election to defer incentive compensation and/or a portion of base salary until retirement or separation from the Corporation. The
employee may direct deferred compensation into one or more deemed investment options. Although not required to do so, the
Corporation invests actual funds into the deemed investments as directed by employees, resulting in a deferred compensation
asset, recorded in “other short-term investments” on the consolidated balance sheets that offsets the liability to employees under
the plan, recorded in “accrued expenses and other liabilities.” The earnings from the deferred compensation asset are recorded in
“interest on short-term investments” and “other noninterest income” and the related change in the liability to employees under the
plan is recorded in “salaries” expense on the consolidated statements of income.
NOTE 18 - INCOME TAXES AND TAX-RELATED ITEMS
The provision for income taxes is calculated as the sum of income taxes due for the current year and deferred taxes.
Income taxes due for the current year is computed by applying federal and state tax statutes to current year taxable income. Deferred
taxes arise from temporary differences between the income tax basis and financial accounting basis of assets and liabilities. Tax-
related interest and penalties and foreign taxes are then added to the tax provision.