1. Termination of the Plan and Trust. The plan sponsor intends to continue to sponsor the Master Plan and trust indefinitely but shall have the right, at any time, to terminate its sponsorship of the Master Plan and to distribute the assets of the trust to the participating employers in accordance with their appropriate shares as of the date of such distribution. Any such dissolution of the trust shall terminate the relationship between the trustee and the participating employers but shall not be deemed to constitute the termination of any participating employer's plan for its employees, absent formal action taken by such employer.
2. Termination of an Employer's Participation in the Master Plan and Trust. It shall be the present intention of each participating employer to maintain its plan indefinitely. Nevertheless each employer reserves the right, at any time, to permanently discontinue further contributions to the trust or to terminate its entire participation under the Master Plan and trust by a written instrument filed with the Administrator. Such action shall not necessarily constitute a termination of the plan of the employer, but if such a Plan termination occurs, then the provisions of subsection (4) of this Section shall apply.
3. Automatic Termination of Contributions. Subject to the provisions of the Act governing financially distressed municipalities, the liability of the employer to make contributions to the trust shall automatically terminate upon liquidation or dissolution of the employer, upon its adjudication as a bankrupt, or upon the making of a general assignment for the benefit of its creditors.
4. Distribution Upon Termination. In the event of the termination or partial termination of the plan of a participating employer, all amounts of vested benefits accrued by the affected participants as of such date of such termination, to the extent funded on such date, shall be nonforfeitable hereunder. (With respect to a defined contribution plan, the preceding sentence shall be interpreted to mean that all vested amounts allocated to a participant's Account as of the date of termination shall be nonforfeitable). In the event of termination of the plan, the employer shall direct either (A) that the trustee continue to hold the vested accrued benefits of participants in the trust fund in accordance with the provisions of the plan (other than those provisions related to forfeitures) without regard to such termination until all funds have been distributed in accordance with such provisions, or (B) that the trustee immediately distribute to each participant an amount equal to his vested accrued benefit to such date. If there are insufficient assets in the trust to provide for all vested accrued benefits as of the date of plan termination priority shall first be given to the distribution of any amounts attributable to mandatory or voluntary employee contributions before assets are applied to the distribution of any vested benefits attributable to other sources hereunder.
All other assets attributable to such terminated plan shall be distributed and disposed of in accordance with the provisions of applicable law and the terms of any instrument adopted by the employer which effects such termination.
5. Residual Assets. If all liabilities to vested participants and any others entitled to receive a benefit under the terms of such a terminated plan have been satisfied, and there remain any residual assets in the trust fund attributable to such plan, the residual assets remaining in the trust fund shall be returned to the employer insofar as such return does not contravene any provision of law, and, any remaining balance, in excess of employer contributions, shall be returned to the Commonwealth.
(Ord. 253, 2/3/1997, Administrative Provisions, Chapter 1, Art. V)