REVISED PROFIT SHARING PLAN
FOR THE EMPLOYEES OF THE GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES COMPANIES
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
NOTE A – DESCRIPTION OF PLAN – CONTINUED
amended to permit qualified plan sponsors to offer qualified birth or adoption distributions of up to $5,000.
Effective March 27, 2020, a new distribution option was added to the Plan and was made available until December 31, 2020. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act distribution allowed qualified Plan participants affected by the coronavirus to withdraw up to $100,000 of Plan funds without a 10% early withdrawal penalty. CARES Act distributions were subject to regular income taxes, and such tax repayment may be spread over three years. If repayments of the CARES Act distributions are made within three years of the distributions received, such repayments may be treated as rollover contributions. Furthermore, minimum required distributions were suspended for 2020 except upon participant request, and participants who experienced financial challenges due to COVID-19 were eligible to defer 401(k) loan repayments until December 31, 2020.
On termination of service due to death, disability or retirement, a participant or beneficiary may elect to receive an amount equal to the value of the participant’s vested interest in his or her account in either a lump-sum amount or in monthly or annual installments which provide payments for a period certain of 5, 10 or 15 years. For termination of service due to other reasons, a participant may receive the value of the vested interest in his or her account as a lump-sum distribution.
The Plan allows participants to borrow funds from their vested accounts subject to certain restrictions. Payroll deductions are required to repay notes receivable over five years or less except in the case of a mortgage-related note which may be repaid over a period of up to 15 years. The interest rate is fixed for the term of the note at the commercial rate of interest charged by area banks on loans which are made under similar circumstances. However, effective November 30, 2020, the interest rate is fixed for the term of the note at the prime lending interest rate plus one percent. When a participant terminates, any notes receivable balance must be repaid prior to any account distribution. The Profit Sharing Plan Loan Policy allows participants with loans to continue making loan payments after ending employment with the GEICO Companies.
Effective December 31, 2017, the Companies became joint participating employers in the General Re Corporation and Government Employees Companies Savings and Stock Ownership Plan (SOP). The Companies did not contribute to the SOP for the 2021 and 2020 plan years. On June 1, 2020, the General Re Corporation and Government Employees Companies Savings and Stock Ownership Plan (SOP) was amended and restated to discontinue the GEICO Companies’ participation in the SOP portion of the SOP Plan and to transfer assets attributable to participants of the SOP, employed by the GEICO Companies, to the Plan. A temporary restriction on SOP fund changes began on May 27, 2020 and ended on June 1, 2020. SOP account balances of GEICO
6