External Counsel Services

The vendor is required to provide outside counsel service for specialized legal advice regarding the state retirement systems and the state 401(k) and state 457 plans, respectively.
- Analysis and advice to the retirement systems division and the supplemental retirement plans may be formal (determination letters, private letter rulings, memos) or informal (email).
- Retirement systems include:
• Return to work issues
• Separation from service issues
• Trust-to-trust asset transfers
• Tribal employers in governmental plans
• Review of employee leasing arrangements when the employers are in different defined benefit plans, or one employer does not participate in a defined benefit plan
• Tax withholding questions
• Correction of administrative errors
• Review of proposed legislative provisions for internal revenue code (code) compliance
• Review of proposed employer compensation practices for impermissible cash-or-deferred arrangements
• Statewide cost allocation plan (SWCAP) reimbursement issues with the federal government
• Review of employer mergers with the surviving employer offering a choice of retirement programs
• Non-profits participation in plans
• Taxation on overpayments of benefits
• Taxation on retroactive payments
• Bankruptcy issues
• Participation of nonprofits
• Other code section 401(a) compliance matters
- Plans:
• Advice on corrections regarding employee deferrals, employer contributions, eligibility, and loans, including through the service voluntary correction program and self-correction program (SCP)
• Implementation of act
• Voluntary correction program (VCP) filings
• Issues related to multiple employer plans
• Responses to internal revenue service (IRS) audit
• Eligibility issues
• Required minimum distributions issues
• Structure of employer contributions
• Review of state legislative proposals
• Other code compliance matters.
- Contract Period/Term: 3 years