9. NET PERIODIC BENEFIT COSTS

On January 31, 2008, the Bank froze its defined benefit pension plan. The plan covered substantially all Bank employees. The plan provides benefits that are based on the employees’ compensation and years of service. Under the freeze, eligible employees will receive, at retirement, the benefits already earned through January 31, 2008, but have not accrued any additional benefits since then. As a result, service cost is no longer incurred.

The Bank uses an actuarial method of amortizing prior service cost and unrecognized net gains or losses which result from actual expense and assumptions being different than those that are projected. The amortization method the Bank used recognized the prior service cost and net gains or losses over the average remaining service period of active employees.

The Bank also maintains a nonqualified supplemental executive retirement plan covering certain members of the Company’s senior management. The Bank uses an actuarial method of amortizing unrecognized net gains or losses which result from actual expense and assumptions being different than those that are projected. The amortization method the Bank uses recognizes the net gains or losses over the average remaining service period of active employees.

The following table presents the net periodic cost for the Bank’s defined benefit pension plan and supplemental executive retirement plan for the three months ended March 31, 2020 and 2019:




		Three months ended March 31,
		(in thousands)

					Supplemental Executive
	Pension Benefits				Retirement Plan

	2020		2019		2020		2019

Service cost	$	-	$	-	$	39	$	36
Interest cost		50		55		38		50
Expected return on plan assets		(81)		(69)		-		-
Amortization of prior service cost		-		-		8		8
Amortization of the net loss		25		24		88		59
Net periodic cost (benefit)	$	(6)	$	10	$	173	$	153

The components of net periodic benefit cost other than the service cost component are included in the line item “other expense” in the income statement.