egtra doc?

[Guest New to the biz]

I am brand new to this business & wonder if the following is a practice thru-out the industry. The company I work for has clients sign the document pages for egtra but has not completed the document or provided it to the client including the summary. It is my understanding documents were to be completed by 04-30-10 - so they were signed by the due date but a final document hasn't been completed or provided to the client. Is this an industry wide practice to help manage the influx of document work? Surprised people signed without knowing what the document contained. . .thoughts?

[ETA Consulting LLC]

No. That is not consistent with any practice I'm familiar with; it borders on incompentence.

Good Luck!

[Kevin C]

I hope it isn't common. I've heard of it being done with a document or two, but not on a large scale, until now. It's a way of back-dating a document without having to ask the client to sign using a prior date. If you are saying the EGTRRA restatements are still not done 14+ months after the deadline, that's even worse.

Good luck and CYA.

[EPCRSGuru]

Sorry, but not at all reasonable or reputable. I might be able to understand it if it were a question of a day or two, but if you have clients who are operating their Plans without current documents more than a year after they were due, you have problems. Operationally, trying to run a plan without a document is fraught with potential for administrative error. And what about SPDs for participants?

I second Kevin C's motion to CYA. Good luck, and I am glad to see that you asked the question.

[Guest New to the biz]

Thank you for the responses. The practice didn't seem correct but I was hopeful that there would be a valid reason for what is or I guess is not happening. . . . . The lack of providing Summary's seems to be a huge issue imho. Is there somewhere I could reference on how often Summary's must be provided to employees?

[John Feldt ERPA CPC QPA]

I'd say the SPD was due within 210 days after the end of the plan year in which the change was adopted, unless all of your plans consist of only owner-only plans, government plans, non-ERISA 403(b) plans, non-ERISA church plans, etc. (since these non-ERISA plans aren't subject to these same SPD rules).

ERISA Section 104.

(b) Publication of Summary plan description and annual report to participants and beneficiaries of plan.—Publication of the summary plan descriptions and annual reports shall be made to participants and beneficiaries of the particular plan as follows:

(1) The administrator shall furnish to each participant, and each beneficiary receiving benefits under the plan, a copy of the summary, plan description, and all modifications and changes referred to in section 102(a)—

(A) within 90 days after he becomes a participant, or (in the case of a beneficiary) within 90 days after he first receives benefits, or

(B) if later, within 120 days after the plan becomes subject to this part.

The administrator shall furnish to each participant, and each beneficiary receiving benefits under the plan, every fifth year after the plan becomes subject to this part an updated summary plan description described in section 102 which integrates all plan amendments made within such five-year period, except that in a case where no amendments have been made to a plan during such five-year period this sentence shall not apply. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the administrator shall furnish to each participant, and to each beneficiary receiving benefits under the plan, the summary plan description described in section 102 every tenth year after the plan becomes subject to this part. If there is a modification or change described in section 102(a) (other than a material reduction in covered services or benefits provided in the case of a group health plan (as defined in section 733(a)(1)), a summary description of such modification or change shall be furnished not later than 210 days after the end of the plan year in which the change is adopted to each participant, and to each beneficiary who is receiving benefits under the plan. If there is a modification or change described in section 102(a) that is a material reduction in covered services or benefits provided under a group health plan (as defined in section 733(a)(1)), a summary description of such modification or change shall be furnished to participants and beneficiaries not later than 60 days after the date of the adoption of the modification or change. In the alternative, the plan sponsors may provide such description at regular intervals of not more than 90 days. The Secretary shall issue regulation within 180 days after the date of enactment of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, providing alternative mechanisms to delivery by mail through which group health plans (as so defined) may notify participants and beneficiaries of material reductions in covered services or benefits.

(2) The administrator shall make copies of the latest updated summary plan description and the latest annual report and the bargaining agreement, trust agreement, contract, or other instruments under which the plan was established or is operated available for examination by any plan participant or beneficiary in the principal office of the administrator and in such other places as may be necessary to make available all pertinent information to all participants (including such places as the Secretary may prescribe by regulations).

(3) Within 210 days after the close of the fiscal year of the plan, the administrator (other than an administrator of a defined benefit plan to which the requirements of section 101(f) applies) shall furnish to each participant, and to each beneficiary receiving benefits under the plan, a copy of the statements and schedules, for such fiscal year, described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section 103(b)(3) and such other material (including the percentage determined under section 103(d)(11)) as is necessary to fairly summarize the latest annual report.

(4) The administrator shall, upon written request of any participant or beneficiary, furnish a copy of the latest updated summary plan description, and the latest annual report, any terminal report, the bargaining agreement, trust agreement, contract, or other instruments under which the plan is established or operated. The administrator may make a reasonable charge to cover the cost of furnishing such complete copies. The Secretary may by regulation prescribe the maximum amount which will constitute a reasonable charge under the preceding sentence.

(5) Identification and basic plan information and actuarial information included in the annual report for any plan year shall be filed with the Secretary in an electronic format which accommodates display on the Internet, in accordance with regulations which shall be prescribed by the Secretary. The Secretary shall provide for display of such information included in the annual report, within 90 days after the date of the filing of the annual report, on an Internet website maintained by the Secretary and other appropriate media. Such information shall also be displayed on any Intranet website maintained by the plan sponsor (or by the plan administrator on behalf of the plan sponsor) for the purpose of communicating with employees and not the public, in accordance with regulations which shall be prescribed by the Secretary.