Answer:
d.$3222000
Step-by-step explanation:
This is the amount at which companies are liable to pay employees as benefits they get besides in addition to the employees salaries therefore pension expense is part of employee benefits so the formula to calculate pension expense is:
Pension expense = Current service cost + interest on projected benefit obligation cost - expected return on plan assets + amotization of past due service cost due to increase in benefits+ amotization of net gain.
so we substitute the given values:
Pension expense=$2300000+ $845000- $568000+$420000+ $225000
= $3222000 will be the pension expense so we do not include the actual return on plan assets because it adjusts the previous years expected return on plan assets ( for 2017)