Advisory Opinions

Whether certain collective investment vehicles established by Scudder Trust Company are and would continue to be viewed as pooled investment funds "maintained by a bank or trust company" within the meaning of the statutory exemptions in ERISA section 408(b)(8) and Internal Revenue Code section 4975(d)(8) and PTE 91-38 if the Trust Company retains its parent company to manage the Funds.

Whether a schedule of "usual and customary" fees, which is used as a basis for determining the dollar amount that will be paid for health claims made under a welfare benefit plan, must be made available for examination and/or furnished by the plan administrator upon the request of a plan participant or beneficiary under ERISA sections 104(b)(2) and 104(b)(4).

Whether the La Salle College High School 403(b) Retirement Plan and the La Salle College High School Flexible Compensation Plan are “church plans” within the meaning of ERISA section 3(33) and therefore exempt from coverage under Title I of ERISA by section 4(b)(2).

Whether the Topco Associates, Inc. Pre-Tax Premium Plan, is an “employee welfare benefit plan” within the meaning of ERISA section 3(1) when Topco employees may pay the required employee contributions under the Topco Group Health Plan on a pre-tax basis.

Whether the Retirement Plan for Employees of Mercy Psychiatric Hospital is a “church plan” within the meaning of ERISA section 3(33) and therefore exempt from coverage under Title I of ERISA by section 4(b)(2).

Whether the Lutheran Home Care Services, Inc. Group Health Plan and the Lutheran Home Care Services, Inc. Tax- Sheltered Annuity Retirement Plan are “church plans” within the meaning of ERISA section 3(33) and therefore exempt from coverage under Title I of ERISA by section 4(b)(2).

Whether the Christian Brothers Employee Retirement Plan is a “church plan” within the meaning of ERISA section 3(33).

Whether the ERISA section 407(d)(5) definition of "qualifying employer security" applies for purposes of the prohibited transaction exemption in Internal Revenue Code section 4975(d)(13).

Whether the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh is a governmental entity described in ERISA section 3(32) such that any employee benefit plans established or maintained by the Bank for its employees would be excluded from coverage under ERISA section 4(b)(1).

Whether the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, California Health & Safety Code Section 1340 et seq., would be preempted by ERISA section 514(a) if applied to prohibit a welfare benefit plan from providing participants with incentives to influence their choices among alternative benefits under the plan.