410(a), ERISA 202(a), and the University Availablity Rule

[Guest Nabiyah1]

Help! Help!

I seem to be having a recurring bad dream. Similar issues continue to come up on my plans and I can't seem to get any sound feedback as to a reasonable direction to move in. I welcome and invite anyone that can provide some guidance on this issue to please respond.

- I have a plan 403b ERISA covered PNTSA.

- There are two plans of the the employer (PNTSA [ERISA]

& TSA [Non-ERISA]).

- The PNTSA plan has deferrals and a match.

- Everyone is allowed to defer to the TSA. However, those who

normally work less than 20 hours per week are excluded from

the PNTSA, the deferral piece as well as the employer piece.

My Understanding:

While the outside TSA covers the Universal Availability issue for the PNTSA. There is a potential violation of ERISA section 202(a). While 410(a) does not apply to a 403(B), ERISA states that

410(a) is applicable for the purposes of ERISA 202(a). I believe this may be a problem because the broadly available deferrals are not a part of the same plan.

Could someone please provide your thoughts on this.

Thanks

Nabiyah