I think I know the answer, based upon Rev Ruling 2004-13, but need someone to help clarify.

Safe harbor CODA (satisfies with 3% NE), no match but allows for and currently has ee's making after-tax contributions. Based on my research, it appears that the contribution of after-tax $'s would subject the plan to top heavy rules as this is a non-safe harbor 401(k)/401(m) contribution.

Thoughts??

What is the obligation / procedure for getting benefit information from a Pension Plan (this is a Teamster Plan in NY) in order to collect child support arrears?

My CSE agency was refused the information and dropped my case. I expect that I will need to get an attorney at this point, but would like to know if he/she will be able to get this information.

My ex- had disappeared for all the time my children were growing up; he resurfaced after he began to collect retirement benefits. I will not get help from him willingly.

Also, how is the amount to be deducted determined - is there a maximum that can be deducted from a pension benefit for child support arrears?

Assumptions: Salary reductions only. Fixed interest annuity.

Does the amount borrowed come from the general assets of the insurer or the individual's annuity account balance?

A controlled group has a single welfare benefits plan the covers multiple varieties of benefits, such as medical, dental, and life insurance and different versions of coverage for different companies in different states. For example, company A in Maine provides medical and dental insurance to its employees, and company B in Florida provides medical, dental and life insurance to its employees. The coverages and the insurance companies are different in Maine and Florida.

From "Section: Line-by-Line Instructions for the 2006 Form 5500and Schedules" of the instructions to Form 5500:

"A separate Form 5500, with box A(2) checked, must be filed by each employer participating in a plan or program of benefits in which funds attributable to to each employer are available to pay benefits only for that employer's employees, even if the plan is maintained by a controlled group.

A 'controlled group' is generally considered one employer for Form 5500 reporting purposes. A 'controlled group' is a controlled group of corporations under Code section 414(b), a group of trades or businesses under common control under section 414©, or an affiliated service group uner section 414(m)."

How does one reconcile these successive contradictory paragraphs? Does company A file a Form 5500 for its two coverage and company B file a Form 5500 for its three coverages? That squares with the first paragraph. But the second paragraph says that a controlled group is considered a a single employer for purposes of Form 5500, whcih suggests that one Form 5500 is sufficient.

Later instructions say to check box A(2) if the Form 5500 is for a single employer plan, also defined as "an employee benefit plan maintained by one employer ***." So does one plan, the umbrella plan for the controlled group, maintaineed by one employer (a collection of controlled companies), file more than one Form 5500?

Has anybody had this issue and come up with a correction method acceptable to the IRS?

The ADP test was done using the wrong compensation for the last several plan years (not what the Plan said to use). Refunds were made to HCEs to correct. Using the right compensation would have resulted in lower refunds to the HCEs.

Thanks.

Can a plan exclude "non-exempt" employees from a 401(k) plan, as long as 410b is satisfied?

If a DB & DC plan are permissively aggregated then under the (a)(4) regs does the vesting schedule have to expressly be the same under both plans, or just tested as non-discriminatory on the current avail/effective avail test ? I don't see in the (a)(4) regs where it states that they have to be the same. I would assume though that having only NHCEs in the DC plan and it having a lesser vesting schedule than the DB plan, though still a statutory schedule, would be discriminatory ? any thoughts ?

Can an employee max out her 401(k) contribution ($15,000) and then continue to put more after-tax money into the plan, as long as 415 is not exceeded (other ER contributions and forfeitures counting toward 415 as well)? Do after-tax contributions count toward the 402g limit?

Thanks

TPA firm in COLO interested in acquiring an additional TPA firm and having difficulty finding that type of information. Would anyone have any advise on direction, or know of any firms up for sale at this time?

For a plan that pays the full value of the accrued benefit on death at any time prior to actual retirement, how should the actuarial increase be calculated from age x to x+1 for a deferred retiree? It always seemed to me that the accumulation should be done using interest only, since there is no forfeiture on death. To accumulate with interest and mortality would be a double dip. But other people have recently told me otherwise, saying that the post-retirement actuarial equivalence factors include interest and mortality, so you have to accumulate with both because that's what the plan says.

Looking for clarification.

Determination Year = 2006

When I rank my employees by wages for 2005, the prior year, one employee who earned say $120k also terminated in 2005.

First - I assume I still include the terminated guy in my ranking.

Assuming I do that, I end up with say 10 employees that equal 20% and the guy that teminated in 2005 is included in that group.

Since one of the 10 employees terminated in 2005, do I take the next guy on the list to get to 10, or do I just have 9 HCEs for 2006?

Pete

Does anyone know if a DB plan has 401(h) accounts for post-NRA medical benefits, are the benefits ultimately distributed to the retirees considered taxable income to the participant ? or is it more like an employer-paid benefit that is non-taxable ?

Two questions on 410(b) testing:

First, if a U.S. citizen is transferred to a foreign subsidiary (say in Japan), my understanding has been that the employee need not be included in the ratio percentage test. However, a recent question has raised a question in my mind as to the authority for this result. Is this the correct result and can anyone provide the regulatory authority on this issue.

Second, if a foreign citizen transfers to the U.S. parent and is working in the United States, the foreign citizen becomes a resident alien employee and as an employee that is not a nonresident alien, my understanding has been that the employee must be included in the ratio percentage test. Is this the correct result?

The PPA extended the participant disclosure period for distribution notices and consents to a 30 to 180 day period. Can this same time period be applied to the safe harbor notice?

A PS plan has 2 different PS allocations. One gives a flat percentage to all eligible participants. The other one allocates on a service & comp weighted basis. The same group of participants share in each allocation. Would 410(b) be tested separately for each of these allocations, or can we combine and test together in 1 410b test?

Thanks

The church plan provisions in sections 865 to 867 of the Pension Protection Act took me by surprise. Can anyone satisfy my curiouslty as to the process by which they got into the legislation?

I am an financial advisor and was approached by a prospective client with a question I don't know the answer to. Hopefully somebody here can help.

He is a business owner and is the only employee in the business. He has a DB plan of which he is the only participant. The plan has a normal retirement age of 65, but he turned 70 in June of this year. When does he need to start receiving his benefit payments?

Thanks in advance.

I'm looking for help. Our investment services department wants to put together 404© notices for some clients. To meet the requirements to provide a general description of the investment objectives and risk and return characteristics of the investments they are going to lists the risks from the fund prospecus. Is this enough or should they be describing the risks as high, low moderate, etc.?

Does anyone have comments on the following?

I have a client that is a staffing company with salaried and temporary employees. They want to offer one type of medical coverage to the salaried employees and another to the temporary employees. The salaried people get the better plan; however, all employees will have to pay the same percentage towards the premium costs: 25% (through the 125) while the employer picks up the rest of the cost (obviously the employer will be paying more for the salaried folks but that is outside the 125 plan). Although I've told them I don't recommend it, it should be tested and could be discriminatory, they are putting up a huge argument it is not since all employees have to pay the same percentage. Do you have any private letter rulings or other code section you can refer to (other than the testing regulations) and I have to give them more concrete examples before they will set up the plan?

I have read excerpts from the PPA as well as many articles re the provisions of the Act. I have found references to several EGTRRA sunset provisions but none relating to the ESA contribution amounts. Has anyone found an extension of the EGTRRA contribution limit of $2,000? If so, please advise where it can be found. Thanks.