1. The Attorney General is seeking to retain the services of Assistant Counsel (the “Contractor”) to provide legal advice and assistance on an as-needed basis in connection with the administration of any of the above-referenced Governmental Plans, as well as any other governmental plans established by the State of Maryland or one of its units, on matters including but not limited to: a. Compliance with applicable federal laws and regulations, including, but not limited to, the IRC; b. Preparation and filing plan documents for tax qualification and/or IRS determination; c. The taxability of the various distributions from the plans; d. Compliance with IRS withholding and reporting requirements; e. Compliance with IRC and other federal law provisions relating to employer-sponsored health plans, including PPACA, Medicare, and cafeteria plan rules; f. Changes in the tax laws that may affect tax qualification, the taxability of distributions from the plans, IRS reporting requirements, or the general administration of the plans; g. Fiduciary law issues including, but not limited to: (i) compliance with fiduciary responsibilities arising in connection with the management or administration of the plans; (ii) plan governance policies and procedures; and (iii) ethics and conflicts of interest issues; h. Other employee benefit or plan administration issues that may arise in connection with the administration and on-going operation of Governmental Plans and trust funds from time to time, including, but not limited to, data and information security, plan governance, and legislative proposals; and 2. Other services that may be required, upon request, include but are not limited to: a. Client communications; client meetings; client education – The Contractor will: (i) provide timely notices (through memoranda, alerts, newsletters or other written communications) of changes in laws that may affect tax qualification, the taxability of distributions from the plans, IRS reporting requirements, or the general administration of the plans, (ii) be available to meet with counsel and/or appropriate business people regarding the foregoing, and (iii) assist counsel in providing ongoing client education to appropriate business people regarding the foregoing; b. Other meetings – The Contractor will be available to meet with third parties designated by the OAG as applicable regarding the plans, including, but not limited to (i) actuaries for any of the plans, and (ii) representatives of the legislative and executive branches of State government; c. Regulatory assistance – The Contractor will be available to assist in preparing and submitting documents (e.g., plan determination letter requests, private letter ruling requests, voluntary correction program requests, comments on proposed regulations) to the IRS, as well as assisting in any negotiations with the IRS; and d. Advice – The Contractor will be available to provide general tax and benefits advice for the Employing Institutions, whether or not related to the supplemental retirement plans. 3. The Contractor will only be responsible for advice on matters assigned to it. All legal services are to be provided only at the request of the Procurement Officer or their designee. All advice is to be provided directly to the Procurement Officer or their designee. The Contractor is expected to work closely with the Principal Counsel of the System, the Chief Counsel of the Educational Affairs Division, the Principal Counsel of the Maryland Higher Education Commission, the Principal Counsel of the DBM, the Principal Counsel of the MTA, the Counsel of MSRP, the Division Director or Principal Counsel of STO, or the Principal Counsel or Division Director of such other Governmental Plan or plan administrator requesting services. 5. The Contractor is not authorized to enter into discussions with a State unit’s staff, customers, clients, or other advisors without the knowledge and direction of the Procurement Officer or his/her designee.
