Our 401k plan includes a company stock fund. In voting the shares, the plan document specifies that the trustee will vote the share in accordance with participant instructions. The plan document is silent on what is to be done for shares of stock where no voting instructions have been provided. Is there a problem with instructing the trustee to vote these remaining shares proportionally in accordance with the instructions received? Should the shares be unvoted?

Has anyone seen a sample 401(a) that is written specifically as a governmental plan without all the ERISA language? I have the list of what is applicable and what is not, but it would be nice to see it all in one document.

Client has assets as follows:

IRA 1,000,000

House 400,000

Lots, cash 200,000

Total Assets $ 1,600,000

This is a married couple, community property. When the first spouse dies, which assets would you put into the Bypass trust?

If it is the house, the opportunity to not pay income tax on gain at sale is lost.

If it is the IRA - I didn't think the IRA could be put into a trust because it was already a trust. Wrong? And if the trust is named as beneficiary what are the consequences?

How would you fund this bypass trust? Or what steps would you take now to insure that it could be funded properly when the time comes?

Appreciate any comments.

This may be more of an administrative question than a Quantech question, but who better to answer than Quantech users.

In an ANNUAL money purchase plan, an employer makes a quarterly contribution for eligible payroll. The plan has a provision that you must be employed on the last day of the plan year in order to receive a contribution. The employer contributes all year for employees that are not employed on the last day of the plan year and is not allocated a contribution. What happens to those monies? Do they just appear on the plan's financials as over-contributions? Are they returned to the employer? Do most employers keep track and not contribute for those? Is the Quantech "Suspense" account utilized for these types monies. Should these monies be included in the allocation of interest?

If EAP benefits are considered medical benefits, are they portable? Have smaller employers been receptive to this portability (from job to job and from job to home)? How are EAP "benefits" funded when they are subject to COBRA?

Does anyone know the details of IBM's new cash balance plan. Also, does anyone know where I could get a copy of that plan?

The notice and consent typically do not appy if a participant's vested balance in under $5,000. However Treas. Reg 1.411(a)-11©(3) and 1.417(e)-a(B)(2)(i) specifies that if a participant took a partial distribution when the vested balance was over $5,000 his vested benefit is deemed to exceed %5,000 for all future distributions to determine whether the notice and consent requirements apply.

I've recently seen regulations that propose to eliminate this 'lookback' process. Have these regs been passed?

I have an employee who insists that he should be reimbursed for services that were incurred before he became our employee. He has asked that I point to the section of the IRC that prohibits this. My position is that allowing reimbursement for claims incurred prior to enrollment would eliminate the required "risk" in participation, making it ineligible for pre-tax status. Is there anything else I can refer to?

An employer established a new cafeteria plan (plan 501) effective 1/1/94. In 1996 the employer decided to change insurance carriers for 1997 and succeeding plan years. The insurance company drew up a new plan document, showing 1/1/97 as the effective date and 1997 as the first plan year. The new plan document contained no plan number. The employer continued to file 5500 C/R in 1997, using 501 as the plan number and 1/1/94 as the plan's effective date. What can or should be done to cure this situation?

Company has a nonaccount balance nonqualified SERP where participant is vested after 10 years of service. No FICA was withheld during those years of service. From the period 1993-1996, several participants began to receive annuity payments when they retired and FICA was withheld from the annuitized amount each year they received the annuity. Company should have withheld all of the FICA at once by calculating the present value of the annuity at retirement. Many of the participants had offsetting income at that time so that only the HI portion would have been taxable. May Company request refund for FICA that was overwithheld? What authority in the regulations?

I am working of implementing a STD policy (we currently only offer LTD after a 90 day wait) and am looking for typical plan designs. Can you help by sharing how your plan operates?

Plan A covers all employees of member A of a controlled group (plan does not apply any minimum age and service requirement). Plan B covers all employees of member B of the same controlled group. Plan B' employees must satisfy the minimum age and service requirement of 21 years and one year of service. For the 410(B) minimum coverage ratio percentage testing, are any employees excluded from testing? Cites?

Is there a ruling applicable to NQDC of non-governmental, taxable employers that allows participants to make a one time election to defer receipt of distributions beyond the date of original distribution? I know that 457 plans have this feature.

PLEASE HELP!!!

Thanks!

Previously PLR's carried a statement at the end of the ruling that the ruling could not be cited as precedent. The more recent PLR's do not carry that statment (at least as reported by CCH or RIA). They also seem to be released as TAM's as well as PLR's.IRC Section 6110(k)(3) indicates that a written determination may not be cited as precedent. IRC Section 6110(B)(1) provides that a "written determination" means a ruling, determination letter, technical advice memorandum or chief counsel memorandum.

Could anyone help me to understand the status of PLR's being cited as precedent, and the technical/practical effect of also issuing the PLR as a TAM. Thanks for your assistance

JD Colville

Can I have 2 plans integated with social security? (a 401k profit sharing and a money purchase) I am assuming they will exceed the 5.7% for $ over twb.

Is it o.k. if they pass the same non-discr tests as a cross tested plan?

5% owner is required to take a 70 1/2 in 1999. The owner has completed a Form W-4P showing 2 exemptions (he and spouse)of which withholding is to be calculated.

MRD = $15,000+

In order to calc w/holding, do we use payroll table for married person?

Thanks for any info.

I wish to roll over my 401k that I had with a previous employer to an existing IRA. The bank administering the IRA needs some information, mainly the name of the custodian and the account number. The ex-employer refuses to provide that information, so I have no way to access my 401k money. Is there any way that I can force the ex-employer to reveal the information, short of a civil lawsuit?

How many time within a two year time frame is a company allowed to redraw the closing bonus agreement?

I know a place that's going on four, so far. None of us will be suprised when it's extended again.

Is there a limit by law or not?

I am looking for a comprehensive employee benefit administration (pension, flex, cobra, etc.) and human resource, and payroll administration system that is contained within one package. We administer various plans for over 1,000 clients but we are using to many different systems. What is out there that would help us?

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Eric Parmenter

The NYC Board of Education offers only one 403(B) carrier; the TRS of the City of New York. The TRS offers only two investment options: a. a fixed interest account. and b. a general equities account. A participant may change future contributions every three months. Accumulations may be transferred no more rapidly than 1/12 of the account balance over 12 months. The employer says "take it or leave it".

I want to start a class action to force the Board of Education to offer more investment choices. Please recommend three lawyers.

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[This message has been edited by jlf (edited 05-15-99).]