PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 50

PS COACH
It Could Be Time to De-Clutter
Tips for storing and disposing of old documents and amendments
W
hen file cabinets begin to
overflow with retirement
plan documents, or electronic
storage servers require added space, plan
sponsors may find themselves questioning,
for compliance purposes, how long
those files need to kept.
First, it is important to know what
these forms provide: The plan document
outlines how the retirement plan
works and helps administrators and
employers understand the plan's terms.
The summary plan description (SPD)
is a document that the administrator is
legally obligated to provide to participants.
It summarizes the plan and is amended
and sent to participants when the plan
changes. Other documents include the
summary of material modifications
(SMM), the investment policy statement
(IPS), committee meeting minutes and
perhaps a loan policy statement.
" Many plan sponsors think of the
plan document as paperwork no one looks
at. But that's the bible of their plan that
tells them what to do. It's important for
those who administer the plan to know
what the plan says, " says Ilene Ferenczy,
an Employee Retirement Income Security
Act (ERISA) attorney with Ferenczy
Benefits Law Center in Atlanta, and
author of the Qualified Plan eSource, an
online encyclopedia for ERISA professionals
from ERISApedia.com.
Before sponsors should think about
filing a document away, however, they
must ensure it has been properly signed,
experts note. If not, the validity of the plan
could be questioned. " We often find plan
sponsors have the right documents, but
50 PLANSPONSOR.com October - November 2019 Art by Hayden Maynard
they don't have the actual signed documents, "
says Steve Beasy, a partner in
Kruggel Lawton CPAs [Certified Public
Accountants] in Elkhart, Indiana. " Then
the question becomes whether that's actually
the right plan provision. Or, in some
cases, that's not the final version of the
document. They are legal documents,
so if they are not signed, the question
becomes whether there is truly a plan, or
have changes in provisions been adopted. "
According to Beasy, only authorized
persons, including the owner of
the company, the chief financial officer
(CFO), controller or the plan sponsor,
can sign the plan document. The plan
sponsor must designate these persons
before they may sign.
Next, sponsors have to keep in mind
how long any of the documents-new or

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PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019

Investment-Driven
2019 DC Survey: Plan Benchmarking
Projecting Participant Outcomes
Just Around the Corner?
The Search for Basis Points
It Could Be Time to De-Clutter
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - C1
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - FC1
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - FC2
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - C2
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 1
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 2
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 3
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 4
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 5
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 6
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 7
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 8
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 9
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 10
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 11
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 12
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 13
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 14
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 15
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 16
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 17
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 18
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 19
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 20
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 21
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 22
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 23
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 24
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 25
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - Investment-Driven
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 27
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 28
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 29
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 30
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 31
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 2019 DC Survey: Plan Benchmarking
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 33
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 34
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 35
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 36
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 37
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 38
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 39
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - Projecting Participant Outcomes
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 41
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 42
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 43
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - Just Around the Corner?
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 45
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 46
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 47
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - The Search for Basis Points
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 49
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - It Could Be Time to De-Clutter
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 51
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 52
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 53
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 54
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 55
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - 56
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - C3
PLANSPONSOR - October/November 2019 - C4
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