When you are developing your own benefits administration forms for participant communications and elections as well as other reporting and disclosure requirements, what sources do you use for getting sample/model forms to develop? Any recommendations?

An IRA account holder died in February '05. The deceased person's spouse would like to make a 2004 contribution into the existing IRA on his behalf since he was alive for all of 2004. I've been under the impression that a contribution cannot be made after the account holder dies, even if he was alive for the entire tax year. Can anyone tell me if I can find that in writing somewhere, or if she can make the contribution after all?

recently acquired client (takeover plan) that has "old" match forfeitures. according to plan document, match forfeitures are used to reduce the matching contribution, but client has been a safe harbor plan (basic match formula) for several years, and continues to do so. can client use these match forfeitures to reduce the safe harbor match contributions?

Client has startup plan effective 5/1. First plan year will be short year 5/1 -12/31. Thereafter it is a calendar year plan. Entry dates are plan year quarter. The plan year is defined as the 12 month period commencing on January 1 and ending on December 31. Eligibility reqt's are 3 month period of service and age 21. Question is, someone is hired in July and therefore would complete the 3 month period in October. When does this person enter? What are the entry dates for the first short year if they are quarterly? Are they 5/1, 8/1, and 11/1? Or are they 5/1, 7/1, and 10/1? If it is the latter then this person wouldn't enter until 1/1/05 and would not have to receive an allocation of the contribution for the first year, otherwise they would enter 11/1 and would have to benefit. Since the entry date is plan year quarter and the plan year is a calendar year except for the first year, shouldnt' the entry dates correspond also to the calendar year quarters?

Can I use Revenue Ruling 74-307 (the 1/2 of the ILP premium rule) in a traditional DB plan, i.e., a non-412(i) plan and still meet the incidentally rule?

If the answer is yes and the participant dies prior to retirement, can the death benefit be equal to the face amount of the policy PLUS the PVAB, (assuming of course that the plan document so states) without regard to the maximum 415 lump sum?

I think Mike Preston has already answered this question before but I want to be sure. Thanks.

We have a client that did not elect to adopt the EGTRRA increase in compensation limit to the $200,000 effective in 2002. Their document indicates that the compensaiton limit after 2001 would be continued in the same manner as pre-2002 (preEGTRRA).

Does anyone have a spreadsheet, or access to the appropriate COLA's to determine what the comp limits would have been for 2002, 2003, 2004 etc assuming the arbitrary jump to 200,000 in 2002 did not occur?

For a DB plan which allows a non spouse designated beneficiary, the beneficiary is age 26, the retiree 55. Applying the standard factor for 50% J&S benefit form, the benefit does not seem to get as small as was thought. Is there some kind of adjustment which would need to be made?

We need a Consumers Report style analysis of the HSA options available to consumers. Integration of the HSA account with your medical providers seems to me to be a big issue and a well designed backend processing system could make HSA's user friendly. I don't relish managing my deductibles etc.... Some companies propose using a debit card for your health care purchases that automatically withdraws money from your HSA until you meet your deductible.

I am currently considering Golden Rule and American Community. Should I be considering others? Are there any winners / losers out there?

Tim in MI

Recently I meet with the new owner of a DC plan client. He surprised me by saying he wants to create a private security and bring it into the plan as an investment option for the HCE / owner group. These are shareholders. His plan seems to be a form of arbitrage using a life insurance policy on the life of an 82-year-old ex-owner who has agreed to this. I'm still trying to understand and get details on the structure, but I am asking the forum if anyone has experience with this in the plan document area, filing for determination, basic operational questions, pension law, etc. THANKS

Is a Waterpik system reimbursable from a health FSA? All the information that i can find pertains to a battery powered or electric toothbrush, but I don't know if this would fall under the same guidelines. Any opinions??

Just curious what this is, why it is constantly on the Boards (the Google site say it roams and you might see it once in a while) and why it might be viewing a user's profile right now.

This is a short plan year question. I found the other threads but they did not appear to have a definitive answer (probably because there is not one).

Plan year 10/1/2004 through 12/31/2004

My thought is that the only payment date is 1/15/2005. This is 15 days after the first quarter (kind of).

Alternatively, the full plan year would have been 1/1/2004 to 12/31/2004 and therefore dates of 10/15/2004 and 1/15/2005 would fall after the initial effective date.

What about if the plan year was 9/1/2004 through 12/31/2004??

a) 12/15/2004

b) 10/15/2004 and 1/15/2005

Any opinions??

we have a client that made a nondeductible contribution to his DB plan, well in excess of 25,000. the only way i can see to get the money out and avoid the excise tax is to follow rev proc. 90-49 and get a Private Letter Ruling. is this the only way to do this?

Does anyone know of any web site or publication that may list all locales that have registration for domestic partners other than California, Massachusetts or the Vermont civil union act?

I have a plan with a fully subsidized joint and 100% survivor annuity for married participants. Participants can elect single sum distribution option which is equivalent to this subsidized form of benefit. Participant claims that spouse abandoned him 3 years ago. We intend to have him provide the plan administrator with the police report and proof of the use of a professional locator as evidence of his good faith attempt to locate her. We also intend to have him sign off that he is responsible for claims made against the Plan for the survivor annuity and court costs. He has indicated that he intends to roll over his distribution to a qualified 401(k) plan. I am trying to determine if his single sum distribution should be equivalent to the straight life annuity or the joint and survivor annuity (which would yield an increase of nearly 30%). Is anyone aware of any case law or legal authority to justify the amount of his distribution? Thank you very much!

Client is adopting a new SEP plan with an effective date of 7-1-2004 to coincide witrh beginning of fiscal year. 2 employees who would have been eligible for the plan have terminated employment. Is the employer required to make a contribution for them? Didn't know if the fact that the plan is being adopted retroactive had any bearing.

the safe harbor contribution plus discretionary profit sharing calculated for 2003 was handled by accountant as a payable (which is ok) and told TPA it would be paid in before 3-15-04. Now it appears this payable was overlooked and just now noticed it still on the books, and of course never paid in.

what is to be done? can employer just send in contribution anyway? should there be a reasonable interrest rate added to the contribution? is this something that needs to go to correction? (and which one, if so)

We have an employee named Jim that had family health coverage. He terminated employment and elected COBRA for his family in July 2004. He was on active military duty Oct 2004 through February 2005. During the time of active duty, the health insurer took Jim off of the plan and placed the coverage in Jim's wife's name, who continue family coverage. Jim has returned from Iraq and is no longer on active duty. He wants to be included on the family coverage.

The health insurer has asked if they should just put him back on the Plan and the 18 month period continues to run (from July 2004)?

OR

Is Jim entitled to additional months of COBRA coverage for the time he was on active duty?

Thanks.

I have a DB plan that has an asset smoothing method in practice for the valuation assets. This has only been in effect for 3 or 4 years. Can I go back to Fair Value without consequence and how often can you jump between asset valuation methods since they are all categorized as automatically approved?

Plan covers employees who are also subject to Puerto Rico tax law. Since these employees are not able to make catchup contributions under Puerto Rico law, does this mean that when they are tested in the US plan (US plan allows for these contributions), they cannot have catchup contributions apply to correct any excesses (e.g. - adp refund, plan limit excess)?