Waiving automatic enrollment

[Guest George Chimento]

To be an EACA, an affirmative election must be in place or automatic enrollment occurs. If a participant signs a one-time election that he or she should never be auto-enrolled, is that permissible? Or does the participant also have to have an election that specifically says (for each year) the amount to contribute (or not contribute)?

It's a subtle distinction. Ideally, people should just be allowed once to say: I don't want auto enroll, and if I don't make an election, just let me be.

The model amendment in 2009-65 seems to indicate that there must be an opportunity for choice after each annual notice, and that automatic enrollment must occur unless the participant makes a choice after receiving the notice. That creates a nightmare if you have to auto-enroll people who you know don't want it, but who haven't responded each year with an affirmative election. Has anyone seen a discussion of this?