"Question on late retirement increases. Assume everything above board re: more recent DOL guidance (late retirement increase required for TVs, and for actives where plan either [1] doesn't have suspension of benefits language, or [2] has the language but notice not provided.
In this case, the plan has SOB language (touching only on the rehire circumstance and suspending benefits then but treating the benefits for actuarial adjustment purposes as if they've stayed in payment) and client has been providing notices to participants past NRD, but only restarted doing so in recent years.
The case circulated through a few different actuaries, administrators after splitting from another plan eons ago. Other plan stayed with same counsel the entire time and language is clear (This is for background, not implying that another plan's language has bearing on this
plan)--benefits suspended at normal retirement date if participant continues to work and benefits at a later date will be those earned at actual retirement, including service and pay).
However, the subject plan has been 'boilerplated' and sloppily so by previous actuary/administrator (I can't imagine legal counsel put the doc together). SPD and document only discuss rehire for SOB, and plan document says late retirement (again, boilerplate language) will be NRD benefit plus greater of new benefits earned or 'Late Adjustment' required under the plan. Late Retirement is not capitalized, no verbiage elsewhere and assuming that's also boilerplate as it wasn't in the original doc before split. No definition of Late Adjustment method that's capitalized -- assuming either the description was taken out elsewhere since no definition or detail refers to this
anywhere else.
SPD in this case is short, also boilerplate in nature (looks like bits and pieces thrown together). SOB language is old school 'if you return to work, your benefit will be suspended', and no mention of what participant will get except for early and normal retirement.
Please pick apart my conclusion (waiting for green light to get opinion from legal counsel). More important in this plan than some others (in terms of the decision) due to the proportion of over 65 participants.
SOB language only talks about rehires, but in general, that still counts in determining if plan allows SOB at normal retirement and no actuarial increase
- since the mother plan more clearly describes no late increase until 401a9 required, I'd like to see far more in terms of intentional adding of a late retirement adjustment (including an actual adjustment
description or method that appears to be missing)
- with a combination of the two, applying actuarial increase through the date that SOB notices were restarted, and then for older participants who work well past 70, starting again at what would have been RBD (4/1 after CY that 70-1/2 is attained)."