Earlier this year, employers who are retirement plan administrators received relief from the minimum distribution requirements for 2009. The law generally requires an employer’s pension plan to make a distribution to a plan participant the year the participant reaches age 70½. The Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008 waived the required minimum distributions for 2009 for certain retirement plans.
The Internal Revenue Service has just issued guidance Notice 2009-82 , implementing this provision. Notice 2009-82 provides two sample plan amendments that plan sponsors may adopt or use to amend their plans to either stop or continue 2009 required minimum distributions. Also, both sample amendments allow the employer to offer direct rollover options of certain 2009 required minimum distributions.
—Dillon Taylor, Assistant Chief Cousel