It is not subject to Internal Revenue Code section 411, which contains the anticutback rules for private plans. However, the impairment of contracts language of
Article I, Section 10 of the US Constitution has been held by many courts to impose an even more stringent anticutback rule on plans maintained by the federal government, or the government of any state or locality. Under this standard, not only must benefits already accrued be protected, but an employee may have a protected right to continue to accrue benefits in the future under at least as favorable a method as the most favorable one used for earlier periods of employment. Obviously, this is merely a general statement, and different facts or different courts may result in differing interpretations.