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Employee Benefits | 9 Months Ended
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Sep. 30, 2023
Retirement Benefits [Abstract] |
Employee Benefits | Employee Benefits For detailed descriptions of the various defined benefit pension plans (qualified and non-qualified), post-retirement benefits plans and defined contribution plan we sponsor, see Note 11—Employee Benefits to the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II, Item 8 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. Net periodic benefit expense (income) for the Lumen Combined Pension Plan (the "Combined Pension Plan" or the "Plan") includes the following components:
| Combined Pension Plan
| Three Months Ended September 30, |  | Nine Months Ended September 30,
| 2023 |  | 2022(1) |  | 2023 |  | 2022(1)
| (Dollars in millions)
Service cost | $ | 7 |  |  | 11 |  |  | 19 |  |  | 34 |
Interest cost | 67 |  |  | 53 |  |  | 202 |  |  | 155 |
Expected return on plan assets | (72) |  |  | (100) |  |  | (215) |  |  | (302) |
Recognition of prior service credit | (2) |  |  | (3) |  |  | (5) |  |  | (8) |
Recognition of actuarial loss | 27 |  |  | 32 |  |  | 78 |  |  | 99 |
Net periodic pension expense (income) | $ | 27 |  |  | (7) |  |  | 79 |  |  | (22) |
______________________________________________________________________ (1)These amounts include pension costs related to the Lumen Pension Plan prior to the sale of the ILEC business on October 3, 2022. For additional information on the Lumen Pension Plan, see Note 11—Employee Benefits to the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II, Item 8 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. Net periodic benefit expense for our post-retirement benefit plans includes the following components:
| Post-Retirement Benefit Plans
| Three Months Ended September 30, |  | Nine Months Ended September 30,
| 2023 |  | 2022 |  | 2023 |  | 2022
| (Dollars in millions)
Service cost | $ | 1 |  |  | 3 |  |  | 4 |  |  | 8 |
Interest cost | 26 |  |  | 15 |  |  | 77 |  |  | 45 |
Recognition of prior service (credit) cost | (2) |  |  | 1 |  |  | (6) |  |  | 5 |
Recognition of actuarial gain | (5) |  |  | — |  |  | (15) |  |  | — |
Net periodic post-retirement benefit expense | $ | 20 |  |  | 19 |  |  | 60 |  |  | 58 |
Service costs for our pension plans and post-retirement benefit plans are included in the cost of services and products and selling, general and administrative line items on our consolidated statements of operations and all other costs listed above are included in other expense, net on our consolidated statements of operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022. Our Combined Pension Plan contains provisions that allow us, from time to time, to offer lump sum payment options to certain former employees in settlement of their future retirement benefits. We record an accounting settlement charge, consisting of the recognition of certain deferred costs of the pension plan associated with these lump sum payments only if, in the aggregate, they exceed or are probable to exceed the sum of the annual service and interest costs for the plan’s net periodic pension benefit cost, which represents the settlement accounting threshold. The amount of any future non-cash settlement charges will be dependent on several factors, including the total amount of our future lump sum benefit payments. Benefits paid by the Combined Pension Plan are paid through a trust that holds the Plan's assets. The amount of required contributions to the Combined Pension Plan in 2023 and beyond will depend on a variety of factors, most of which are beyond our control, including earnings on plan investments, prevailing interest rates, demographic experience, changes in plan benefits and changes in funding laws and regulations. Based on current laws and circumstances, we do not believe we are required to make any contributions in 2023 and we do not expect to make voluntary contributions to the trust for the Combined Pension Plan in 2023.

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