Employee Benefit Plans

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2011

Employee Benefit Plans [Abstract]

Employee Benefit Plans

6. Employee Benefit Plans

Included as charges against income for the three and six months ended June 30, 2011 and 2010 are the following amounts for pension and postretirement benefit plans maintained by the Company:

				Pension Benefits
	Three months ended						Six months ended
	June 30,						June 30,
(in thousands)	2011			2010			2011			2010
Service cost	$	—		$	1,257		$	—		$	1,614
Interest cost		1,163			1,134			2,289			2,169
Expected return on plan assets		(1,558	)		(1,362	)		(3,118	)		(2,725	)
Recognized net actuarial loss		247			892			470			1,316
Benefit (income) cost	$	(148	)	$	1,921		$	(359	)	$	2,374

				Postretirement Benefits
	Three months ended						Six months ended
	June 30,						June 30,
(in thousands)	2011			2010			2011			2010
Service cost	$	136		$	114		$	277		$	233
Interest cost		325			306			643			606
Amortization of prior service cost		(136	)		(127	)		(272	)		(255	)
Recognized net actuarial loss		242			187			451			345
Benefit cost	$	567		$	480		$	1,099		$	929

In March 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“PPACA”) was signed into law. One of the provisions of the PPACA eliminates the tax deductibility of retiree health care costs to the extent of federal subsidies received by plan sponsors that provide retiree prescription drug benefits equivalent to Medicare Part D coverage. As a result, the Company was required to make an adjustment to its deferred tax asset associated with its postretirement benefit plan in the amount of $1.5 million during the first quarter of 2010. The offset to this adjustment was included in the provision for income taxes on the Company’s Consolidated Statement of Income.