Advisory Opinions

Requests for interpretations and other rulings under Title 1 of ERISA are handled by the Office of Regulations and Interpretations under the provisions established by ERISA Procedure 76-1. The office answers inquiries from individuals and organizations in the form of advisory opinions, which apply the law to a specific set of facts, or information letters, which merely call attention to well established principles or interpretations.

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**1997**
AO/ Date/ Reference	Recipient	Description of Request
1997-09A 03/21/1997 3(33)	I. Lee Falk, Esquire Morgan, Lewis & Bockius 2000 One Logan Square Philadelphia, PA 19103-6993	Whether benefit plans sponsored by Tressler Lutheran Services are “church plans” within the meaning of ERISA section 3(33) and therefore excluded from coverage by ERISA section 4(b)(2).
1997-08A 03/14/1997 3(1)	Mr. Harold G. Korbee Wood & Lamping 2500 Cincinnati Commerce Center 600 Vine Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-2409	Whether the Board of Trustees of the Pipe Fitters Union Local No. 392 Drug Free Workplace Trust Fund, which pays for annual drug testing of union members, is an “employee welfare benefit plan” within the meaning of ERISA section 3(1).
1997-07a 02/27/1997 3(33)	Ms. Kathleen M. Perillo Morgan, Lewis & Bockius 2000 One Logan Square Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103-6993	Whether a pension and two welfare plans maintained by Mercy Hospital of Watertown are “church plans” within the meaning of ERISA section 3(33) and, therefore excluded from coverage by ERISA section 4(b)(2).
1997-06a 02/12/1997 407(d)(3 )(C) 407(d)(9)	Mr. Richard J. Razook Thomson, Muraro, Razook & Hart, P.A. One Southeast Third Avenue 17 Floor Miami, Florida 33131	Request for guidance concerning the application of section 9345(a)(3) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 to the proposed amendment of two defined benefit plans to provide that all eligible employees receive certain minimum benefits. The defined benefit plans and an employee stock ownership plan together make up a floor-offset arrangement established prior to December 17, 1987.
1997-05a 02/12/1997 3(32)	Scott M. Lepak, Esq. Barna, Guzy & Steffen, Ltd. 400 Northtown Financial Plaza 200 Coon Rapids Boulevard Minneapolis, MN 55433-5894	Whether the Sheriff's Youth Programs of Minnesota 403(b) Annuity Program is a “governmental plan” within the meaning of ERISA section 3(32) and, therefore, is excluded from coverage by ERISA section 4(b), or, alternatively, whether it operates within the 29 C.F.R. 2510.3-2(f),"safe harbor" criteria.
1997-04A 02/07/1997 3(33)	Ms. Anne E. Moran Miller & Chevalier 655 Fifteenth Street, N.W. Suite 900 Washington, D.C. 20005-5701	Whether the St. Margaret Mercy Healthcare Centers, Inc. Medical and Dental Plan for Employees and Amended Employees Retirement Plan are "church plans," as defined in ERISA section 3(33), and therefore excluded from coverage by ERISA section 4(b)(2).
1997-03A 01/23/1997 403(c )(1) 404(a)(1)(A)	Mr. Samuel Israel Cohen, Primiani & Foster 2029 Century Park East Suite 480 Los Angeles, CA 90067	Whether various fees and expenses for services engaged by the Insurance Commissioner of the State of California in connection with terminating a plan would be appropriate expenses of the plan; and also whether the amendment of a plan to allow it to pay expenses would be an appropriate and permissible amendment.
1997-02A 01/06/1997 3(32) 4(b)(1)	Mr. Russell A. Hollrah Littler, Mendelson, Fastiff, Tichy & Mathiason 1225 "I" Street, N.W., Suite 1000 Washington, D.C. 20005	Whether the California State University, Hayward Foundation, Inc. may contract with the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) to provide for the participation of its employees as members without affecting the status of CalPERS as a “governmental plan” under ERISA section 3(32).
1997-01A 01/06/1997 3(33)	Ms. Helen M. Morrison McDermott, Will & Emery 227 West Monroe Street Chicago, IL 60606-5096	Whether the ServantCor Corporate Retirement Plan and certain welfare benefit plans maintained by ServantCor are "church plans," as defined in ERISA section 3(33), and therefore excluded from coverage by ERISA section 4(b)(2).

**1996**
AO/ Date/ Reference	Recipient	Description of Request
1996-26a 12/04/1996 401(b)	Mr. Jacob I. Friedman Proskauer Rose Goetz & Mendelsohn 1585 Broadway New York, NY 10036	Request for guidance concerning the determination of venture capital operating company status under 29 C.F.R. §2510.3-101.