I work for a manufacturing company in Wisconsin. Because of the large increases in our health insurance from the past year and no relief in site from large increases in the future, my company is looking into a partial self-funding medical plan. We have 145 employees and insure most of them and there families. While we are not a difficult company to insure, we are not a young company. Average age here is 30-50 years old and we have a low employee turnover rate. Considering our size and age, would a partial self-funding plan be a good way to reduce our insurance costs. Also, what are the pro's and con's, and what surprises could we run into. We are working with a broker who we have been workking with for 20 years.

My client is interested in knowing the percentage of §401(k) plans that are operating on a calendar year plan year. I have provided anecdotal statistics based on my personal observations (90%+) but the client would like something more definitive when presenting to "higher ups". Does anyone know of any source for an accurate answer to my client's question?

Client dies at 75 and had not yet taken their full RMD distribution for the year. Beneficiary is a non spouse; I know the RMD is taxable and payable to the beneficiary. Does the remaining RMD amount have to be removed before or after the assets are moved to a beneficial IRA account.

Thank You.

Are unallocated shares within a leveraged ESOP considered plan assets? If yes, where would you report this amount on the 5500?

Let's assume that an employer has a high plan-imposed limit on how much highly compensated employees can make as elective deferrals. Also assume that the plan almost never fails the ADP test. The plan has historically stopped ALL contributions once the participant's compensation exceeds the 401(a)(17) limit (i.e., $200,000 for 2002). Most top execs max out on the 401(a)(17) limit by mid-March when a bonus is paid. The question is: if the plan introduces catch-up contributions mid-year, can an exec who has contributed the maximum $11,000 elective deferral and reached the $200,000 limit on compensation before the catch-up contribution is introduced to the plan, be permitted to contribute the $1,000 catch-up contribution shortly after it is introduced under the plan?

Did EGTRRA address whether a distribution from a grandfathered 457 plan maintained by a credit union would be eligible for a rollover to an IRA in 2002 ? If EGTRRA did not address this any thoughts ????

A question was raised regarding mandatory employee education for 401(k) plans. The information I received is that there is a 2 hour per year requirement, found under Code 791. I have not been successful in locating any code regarding mandatory employee education. Has anyone heard of such a requirement?

Help!! I'm sorry, but I am not in my office and do not have access to any of my research materials. I have a participant in a 401(k) PS Plan who wants a distribution of only $3500.00. Her account balance is much greater than this. She is NRA. Her account, however, consists of after tax contributions with related earnings as well as 401(k) contributions and related earnings. HOw do I allocate the $3500 distribution among taxable and nontaxable amounts?

Software company.

Owners left the country, abandoning the business and 401K

They left no Successor Trustee

Pension Administrator is not helpful because there is no one to bill for the fees.

DOL is slow to help

I need to be named as Successor Trustee as quickly as possible. Is the DOL the only body that can help? Can 100% of plan participants vote to take an action?

Thank you for your help. R. Blair, Sacramento

We have an over 65 employee who voluntarily canceled our group health care coverage during annual enrollment in 1998 to go on a personal Medicare HMO risk plan. The HMO is pulling out of the Medicare business in the county where she lives 1/1/02. She has asked to enroll due to a loss of other coverage. We have incorporated the Section 125 events into our plan to allow enrollments mid-year. However, Section 125 states loss of other GROUP healthcare coverage as the event, not loss of personal coverage. I'm aware that HIPAA also states that there is a special enrollment period for someone who declines enrollment due to other coverage (including personal coverage, I presume). Any suggestions or advice on whether this is permitted, and what do you base it on?

If I have made non-deductible contributions to a regular IRA, are they eligible for conversion to a Roth? If so, any complications?

My company (Company A) purchased another company (Company b) effectively 1/18/00. This was an asset purchase. Company B's plan was terminated as of that date. The participants could immediately rollover their account balances into the Company A plan.

The acquired participants could also enroll at the next enrollment period which was 4/1/00. Some participants terminated between 1/18/00 and 4/1.....of these, some were HCEs. Should those terminated participants be part of Company A's ADP/ACP test?

Technically, they were employees of Company A, but left employment prior to enrolling.

This is specifically important in determining if some terminated HCEs of Company B should be included in Company A's test. Any advice would be much appreciated. I've been told this is a "gray area of the law". Thank you in advance.

Can a 457(f) deferred compensation plan condition reciept of plan benefits upon a participant's agreement to render consulting services to the employer, after benefits have vested?

If the participant refuses to do so, can the plan call for "forfeiture" of already vested benefits?

This doesn't sound right to me.

A plan requires that the act equiv mortality table be the 1971 GAM for males projected to 1978 using scale E.

I applied the scale incorporated in my spreadsheet program and it resulted in a small change in the q's, relatively, and a small change in for eg. the age 65 annuity. I don't recall exactly, but I believe the impact on the age 65 annuity was maybe 1% or so.

My questions are:

1. Does it make sense that the impact would be this small?

2. Does anyone have a copy of the scale E and know where it originated?

Perhaps it wasn't applied correctly. My feeling is that applying a mortality projection scale requires the factor (less than one) to be multiplied by the nth power, where n is the number of years projected out. i.e. in my case it would be 7 (1971 to 1978). Finally this factor is applied to the q's resulting in lower q's, thus higher annuity factors.

Any comments?

Calendar year MPP, client does not want to fund the 10% formula contribution in 2001. Since it's past the date when full-time ees have worked 1,000 hours (non-std plan with 1,000 hour and last day provisions), I don't think he can amend the plan to reduce (or change to 0%) the formula. Is there some way to do this that I may have missed? If not, has anyone ever gone the IRS waiver route, and was it successful?

Thanks. Tom

Can anyone help me to identify an appropriate training course/seminar for staff who need to learn the basics of 401k plan administration. I'm speaking of a primer that literally will start with the ABC's on up. Thanks.

We are winding down the assets of a plan that was terminated several years ago (we have missing participants). Does the plan still need to be amended for GUST?

Sarah Richards

Is it necessary to have participants make positive elections as to whether they will make catch up contributions and to specify the dollar amount?

For a new 401(k) plan in 2001 (1/1/01 to 12/31/01 plan year) which key employee definition do you use to determine the top-heavy status of the plan for the 2001 plan year? It is my understanding that the new definition of key employee under EGTRRA can be used to determine if the plan is top-heavy for the 2002 plan year. Can this new definition also be used for a 1st year plan to determine the top-heavy status for 2001 or will 2 top-heavy determinations have to be done for the 1st year 2001 plan?

Any guidance will be appreciated.

Thank you.

An employer has designed and launched its own private mutual fund which they want to offer as an investment option to its participants of its 401(k) plan. If the employer complies with Section 404© and offers other investment options, are there any restrictions on them including this investment in their 401(k) Plan?