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Employee Benefit Plans
 9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2015
Defined Benefit Pension Plans and Defined Benefit Postretirement Plans Disclosure [Abstract]  
Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits Disclosure [Text Block]
(6)
Employee Benefit Plans

Net periodic benefit cost for the pension and other postretirement benefit plans included the following components (in millions):

 
 
Three-Month Periods
 
Nine-Month Periods
 
 
Ended September 30,
 
Ended September 30,
 
 
2015
 
2014
 
2015
 
2014
Pension:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Service cost
 
$
1

 
$
2

 
$
3

 
$
4

Interest cost
 
13

 
14

 
40

 
42

Expected return on plan assets
 
(19
)
 
(19
)
 
(58
)
 
(57
)
Net amortization
 
10

 
7

 
31

 
22

Net periodic benefit cost
 
$
5

 
$
4

 
$
16

 
$
11

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Other postretirement:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Service cost
 
$
—

 
$
1

 
$
2

 
$
4

Interest cost
 
4

 
7

 
12

 
21

Expected return on plan assets
 
(5
)
 
(8
)
 
(17
)
 
(23
)
Net amortization
 
(1
)
 
1

 
(3
)
 
2

Net periodic benefit cost
 
$
(2
)
 
$
1

 
$
(6
)
 
$
4



Employer contributions to the pension and other postretirement benefit plans are expected to be $4 million and $1 million, respectively, during 2015. As of September 30, 2015, $3 million and $1 million of contributions had been made to the pension and other postretirement benefit plans, respectively.

Utah Mine Disposition and Labor Agreement

In conjunction with the Utah Mine Disposition described in Note 4, in December 2014, Energy West Mining Company reached a labor settlement with the UMWA covering union employees at PacifiCorp's Deer Creek mining operations. As a result of the labor settlement, the UMWA agreed to assume PacifiCorp's other postretirement benefit obligation associated with UMWA plan participants in exchange for PacifiCorp transferring $150 million to a fund managed by the UMWA. Transfer of the assets and settlement of this obligation occurred in May 2015 and resulted in a remeasurement of the other postretirement plan assets and benefit obligation. As a result of the remeasurement, PacifiCorp recognized a $9 million settlement loss, with the portion that is probable of recovery deferred as a regulatory asset.

Multiemployer Pension Plan

PacifiCorp's subsidiary, Energy West Mining Company, triggered involuntary withdrawal from the UMWA 1974 Pension Plan in June 2015 when the UMWA employees ceased performing work for PacifiCorp. PacifiCorp recorded its best estimate of the withdrawal obligation in December 2014 when withdrawal was considered probable and deferred the portion of the obligation considered probable of recovery to a regulatory asset.