(1) What am I responsible for as a Plan 3 member? As a Plan 3 member your responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
(a) Adhering to time frames;
(b) Making investment decisions for your defined contribution account;
(c) Reviewing account information provided on statements, such as quarterly statements, and notifying the correct organization of any errors;
(d) Filling out the correct form for a requested action;
(e) Correctly completing the appropriate form for a requested action and submitting the form to the correct organization as directed on each form; and
(f) Monitoring to ensure contributions do not exceed Internal Revenue Code limits (see WAC
415-111-111).
(2) What can happen if I do not fulfill my Plan 3 responsibilities? If you do not fulfill your responsibilities, the consequences may include, but are not limited to:
(a) You may not qualify for certain benefits, such as the transfer payment;
(b) You may have a delay in the correction of errors on your account;
(c) You may have a delay in the processing of your request for a defined contribution withdrawal; or
(d) You may have a delay in the investment of your account as directed.
(3) What responsibilities do employers have? Employers' responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
(a) Adhering to Plan 3 administrative requirements, including the respective roles of employers and employees, communicated to employers by the department in written materials and formal training;
(b) Maintaining a supply of Plan 3 forms;
(c) Reporting an employee's Plan 3 transfer decision as soon as possible after receipt of the appropriate form from the employee;
(d) Submitting to DRS the form on which the member made the Plan 3 transfer decision as soon as possible after receipt of the appropriate form;
(e) Reporting an employee's contribution rate decision as soon as possible after receipt of the appropriate form from the employee;
(f) Reporting an employee's investment program as soon as possible after receipt of the appropriate form from the employee;
(g) Monitoring to ensure that a member's contributions do not exceed Internal Revenue Code limits (see WAC
415-111-111); and
(h) Submitting contributions to the department as soon as reasonable and at least in accordance with RCW
41.50.120, "reasonableness" will be based on the facts and circumstances.
Example
Assume the following:
■ An employer has one payroll system;
■ Payroll checks are issued semimonthly;
■ At the same time checks are cut, the payroll department produces a data tape of employee contributions that has to be checked for accuracy, and checking the tape takes four days;
■ Once the accuracy of the data tape is confirmed, a check for the aggregate amount of employee contributions is sent by the employer to DRS; and
■ The entire process, from the cutting of payroll checks to the cutting of the aggregate employee contribution check takes eight days.
In this situation, eight days is a "reasonable" period of time.
(4) What can happen if my employer does not fulfill its responsibilities?
(a) If your employer does not fulfill its responsibilities, the consequences may include, but are not limited to:
(i) Your employer may have to make your member account whole;
(ii) Your employer may be subject to penalties assessed by the department; or
(iii) Your employer may be subject to penalties assessed by the Internal Revenue Service.
(b) If the department determines that an employer has erred in its administrative role, such that an employee incurs an investment loss, the department will determine the amount of loss and bill the employer.