Employee Benefit Plans

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2012

Employee Benefit Plans [Abstract]

Employee Benefit Plans

(8) Employee Benefit Plans

The Company sponsors noncontributory qualified pension plans and post-retirement healthcare plans which provide certain cash payments and medical and dental benefits to covered retired employees and their beneficiaries and covered dependents. These plans were assumed as part of the acquisition of the Northern New England operations from Verizon. The pension plan and the post-retirement healthcare plan which cover non-represented employees are frozen, therefore no new benefits are being earned by participants nor are new participants becoming eligible for benefits in these plans. Participants in the pension plan and the post-retirement healthcare plan covering represented employees continue to accrue benefits in accordance with the respective plan documents and contractual requirements in the collective bargaining agreements. Eligibility to participate in the plans is based on an employee’s age and years of service. The Company makes contributions to the pension plans in amounts sufficient to meet minimum ERISA funding requirements. Payments of benefits under the post-retirement healthcare plans are funded by the Company as the benefits are paid.

Annually, the Company remeasures the net liabilities of its pension and other post-retirement healthcare benefits, in accordance with the Compensation—Retirement Benefits Topic of the ASC. As of December 31, 2011, these remeasurements were based on a weighted average discount rate of approximately 4.65%, as well as certain other valuation assumptions.

Components of the net periodic benefit cost related to the Company’s pension and post-retirement healthcare plans for the three months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, the six months ended June 30, 2012, the 157 days ended June 30, 2011 and the 24 days ended January 24, 2011 are presented below (in thousands).

	Three Months Ended June 30, 2012						Three Months Ended June 30, 2011
	Qualified Pension			Post- retirement Healthcare			Qualified Pension			Post- retirement Healthcare
Service cost	$	4,096		$	6,784		$	3,177		$	4,310
Interest cost		3,637			6,183			3,655			4,813
Expected return on plan assets		(3,252	)		(9	)		(3,634	)		(3	)
Amortization of actuarial loss		525			1,682			—			—
Net periodic benefit cost	$	5,006		$	14,640		$	3,198		$	9,120

													Predecessor Company
	Six Months Ended June 30, 2012						One Hundred Fifty-Seven Days Ended June 30, 2011						Twenty-Four Days Ended January 24, 2011
	Qualified Pension			Post- retirement Healthcare			Qualified Pension			Post- retirement Healthcare			Qualified Pension			Post- retirement Healthcare
Service cost	$	8,192		$	13,568		$	5,295		$	7,183		$	849		$	1,167
Interest cost		7,299			12,365			6,092			8,022			934			1,252
Expected return on plan assets		(6,531	)		(17	)		(6,056	)		(5	)		(1,089	)		(1	)
Amortization of prior service cost		—			—			—			—			98			276
Amortization of actuarial loss		1,042			3,364			—			—			283			368
Plan settlement		356			—			—			—			—			—
Net periodic benefit cost	$	10,358		$	29,280		$	5,331		$	15,200		$	1,075		$	3,062

The Company expects to contribute approximately $19.8 million to its qualified pension plans and $4.7 million to its post-retirement healthcare plans during 2012. The Company has contributed $11.5 million to its qualified pension plans and $1.5 million to its post-retirement healthcare plans during the first six months of 2012. The Company’s pension plan funding requirements are based on the Pension Protection Act of 2006. Certain contributions to the post-retirement healthcare plans’ plan assets are required as a result of the New Hampshire Merger Order; however, those requirements will be eliminated effective August 10, 2012.

On July 6, 2012, the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21^st Century Act was signed into law. The Act contains a pension funding stabilization provision which allows pension plan sponsors to use higher interest rate assumptions in determining funded status and funding obligations.

For the three and six months ended June 30, 2012 and 2011, the actual return on the pension plan assets were (losses) gains of approximately (1.9%) and 3.6%, respectively, and 1.8% and 5.0%, respectively. Net periodic benefit cost for 2012 assumes a weighted average annualized expected return on plan assets of approximately 7.52%. Should the Company’s actual return on plan assets continue to be lower than the expected return assumption, the net periodic benefit cost may increase in future periods and the Company may be required to contribute additional funds to its qualified pension plans.