Note 16 - Employee Benefit Plans

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Notes to Financial Statements

Compensation and Employee Benefit Plans [Text Block]

(

16

) Employee Benefit Plans

Bancorp has a combined employee stock ownership and profit sharing plan (

“KSOP”). The plan is a defined contribution plan and is available to all employees meeting certain eligibility requirements. In general, for employees who work more than

1,000

hours per year, Bancorp matches employee contributions up to

6%

of the employee’s salary, and contributes an amount of Bancorp stock equal to

2%

of the employee’s salary. Employer matching expenses related to contributions to the plan for

2017,

2016,

and

2015

were

$2.0

million,

$1.9

million and

$1.8

million, respectively, and are recorded on the consolidated statements of income within employee benefits. Employee and employer contributions are made in accordance with the terms of the plan. As of

December 

31,

2017

and

2016,

the KSOP held

577

thousand and

567

thousand shares of Bancorp stock, respectively.

In addition Bancorp has non-qualified plans into which directors and certain senior officers

may

defer director fees or salary/incentives. Bancorp matched certain executives

’ deferrals into the senior officers’ plan amounting to approximately

$232

thousand,

$293

thousand and

$171

thousand in

2017,

2016

and

2015

respectively. At

December 31, 2017

and

2016,

the amounts included in other liabilities in the consolidated financial statements for this plan were

$8.2

million and

$5.6

million, were comprised primarily of participants’ contributions, and represented the fair value of mutual fund investments directed by participants.

Bancorp sponsors an unfunded non-qualified defined benefit retirement plan for

three

key officers (

two

current and

one

retired), and has

no

plans to increase the number of or the benefits to participants. Benefits vest based on

25

years of service.

Participants are fully vested. Bancorp uses a

December 31

measurement date for this plan. The accumulated benefit obligation for the plan included in other liabilities in the consolidated financial statements was

$2.2

million and

$2.1

million as of

December 31, 2017

and

December 31, 2016,

respectively. Discount rates of

3.59%

and

4.10%

were used in

2017

and

2016,

respectively, in determining the actuarial present value of the projected benefit obligation. Actuarially determined pension costs are expensed and accrued over the service period, and benefits are paid from Bancorp’s assets. Bancorp maintains life insurance policies, for which it is the ultimate beneficiary, on participants and certain former executives. Income from these policies helps offset the cost of benefits. The liability for Bancorp’s plan met the benefit obligation as of

December 31, 2017

and

2016.

Information about the components of the net periodic benefit cost of the defined benefit plan, recorded in salaries and employee benefits, is as follows:

	Year ended December 31,
( In thousands)	201 7		2016		2015
Components of net periodic benefit cost:
Service cost	$	–	$	–	$	–
Interest cost		79		87		83
Expected return on plan assets		–		–		–
Amortization of prior service cost		–		–		–
Amortization of net losses		71		47		59
Net periodic benefit cost	$	150	$	134	$	142

B

enefits expected to be paid in each year from

2018

to

2020

and beyond are listed in the table below.

(In thousands)
2018	$	84
2019		84
2020		84
Beyond 2020		3,278
Total future payments	$	3,530

E

xpected benefits to be paid are based on the same assumptions used to measure Bancorp’s benefit obligation at

December 

31,

2017.

There are

no

obligations for other post-retirement and post-employment benefits.