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| RETIREMENT SAVINGS PLAN |
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Other Information
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Military Service
If you are granted a leave of absence to serve in the armed forces of
the United States, special provisions apply under the Uniformed Services
Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, as amended. If you apply
for reemployment with Valassis within 90 days after being released from
military service, you may elect to make up the appropriate before-tax
contributions to the Retirement Savings Plan. The company will also
make up the appropriate company matching contributions. All contributions
must be made up over a period of three times the period of uniformed
service, not to exceed five years.
If you have taken a loan from the plan, your loan payments may be suspended
during the period of qualified military service.
Non-assignment of Benefits
Generally, you may not assign, pledge, borrow against or otherwise promise
any benefit from the plan before you receive that benefit. In addition,
a creditor may not claim any part of your benefits for the payment of
a debt. Part or all of your benefits may be claimed, however, to pay
alimony, child support or as part of a marital property settlement as
ordered in any Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO).
Qualified Domestic Relations Orders (QDROs)
The plan will comply with any court-issued QDRO that our Recordkeeper,
JPMorgan, determines to be qualified. A QDRO is a court order, judgment
or decree that requires the plan to distribute all or part of your vested
account balance to your spouse, former spouse, child or other dependent
to meet marital, alimony or child support obligations imposed on you
by law. The QDRO must:
- Be made following a state domestic relations law (including community
property laws)
- Relate to the provision of child support, alimony or marital property
rights
- Create or recognize an alternate payee’s rights to receive
all or a portion of your benefits under an associate benefit plan
A participant should contact JPMorgan at 1-800-345-2345 to initiate,
complete and submit a QDRO. When receiving a domestic relations order,
JPMorgan will notify you and any alternate payees (including alternate
payees from previous QDROs). If the order is determined to be qualified,
JPMorgan will carry out the terms of the order, and payment to the alternate
payee(s) designated in the QDRO will begin at the time specified in
the QDRO, even if you are not yet entitled to receive a distribution
under the plan.
Any fees and expenses relating to the review and processing of a Qualified
Domestic Relations Order are deducted from the Account of the participant
to whom the QDRO relates.
For more information, please visit www.retireonline.com.
Participation Requirement
The IRS requires that plans with tax-deferred savings opportunities
pass a test that is designed to ensure a fair mix of savings among associates
at all income levels. For the Retirement Savings Plan to pass this test,
it may be necessary to adjust the tax-deferred savings rate for certain
highly paid associates. You will be notified if you are affected by
this requirement.
Top-heavy Requirements
Under certain circumstances, plans like the Retirement Savings Plan
must provide additional minimum benefits if the plan is found to be
top-heavy — that is, to benefit a certain group of highly paid
associates disproportionately. You will be notified of any changes.
Plan Amendment or Termination
The company may terminate, suspend, withdraw, amend or modify
your Valassis Retirement Savings Plan in whole or in part at any time.
Because your benefit depends solely on the amount in your Retirement
Saving Plan account, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation under
Title IV of ERISA does not insure the Retirement Savings Plan.
Section 404(c) Status
Valassis' Retirement Savings Plan is intended to be a Section 404(c)
plan, as described in Section 404(c) of the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act (ERISA) and the final regulation 2550.404c-1. This means
that the Plan fiduciaries (such as the Plan Administrator, the Trustee,
and the Committee) may be relieved of liability for any losses that
are the direct and necessary result of an investment instruction given
by a participant.
404(c) Fiduciary
The Plan fiduciaries (404(c) fiduciary) who are responsible for ensuring
that your investment instructions are carried out and from whom you
may obtain information regarding the investment options available under
the Plan are:
Valassis Communications, Inc.
Attn: Accounting
19975 Victor Parkway
Livonia, MI 48152
JPMorgan Retirement Plan Services
PO Box 419784
Kansas City, MO 64141-6784
Additional Information
Under the Plan, the Trustee may pass through to you voting, tender or
similar rights relating to your investments. To the extent the Trustee
decides to pass through these rights, after an investment is made, you
will be furnished any materials provided to the Plan about the exercise
of voting, tender or similar rights relating to the investment.
You are entitled to request from the 404(c) Fiduciary copies of the
following information (which will be based on the latest information
available):
- A description of the annual operating expenses of each designated
investment alternative (for example, investment management fees, administrative
fees and transaction costs) which reduce your rate of return, and
the aggregate amount of such expenses expressed as a percentage of
average net assets of the investment alternative.
- Copies of any prospectuses, financial statements, reports, and other
materials relating to an investment alternative, if provided to the
Plan.
- A list of assets comprising the portfolio of each investment alternative,
the value of each such asset, and, if such asset is a fixed-rate investment
contract issued by a bank, savings or loan association or insurance
company, the name of the issuer of the contract, the term of the contract
and the rate of return on the contract.
- The value of shares or units and past and current investment performance
of each available investment alternative, determined (net of expenses)
on a reasonable and consistent basis.
- The value of the shares or units in investment alternatives held
in your account.
For any additional information, contact the 404(c) Fiduciary.
Forfeitures
If you terminate employment prior to becoming fully vested, you will
forfeit the nonvested portion of your Account. The Forfeiture will occur
immediately upon the distribution to you of your vested Account balance.
If you do not receive a distribution of your Account prior to incurring
a five-year break in service, your nonvested account balance will be
forfeited at that time.
Rollovers from a Prior Employer
The Valassis Employees' Retirement Savings Plan accepts retirement plan
rollovers from previous employers as long as the rollover is coming
from an acceptable qualified plan. Please see your 401(k) enrollment
kit for rollover paperwork and instructions or call the JPMorgan Retirement
Plan Service at 1-800-345-2345 to request rollover paperwork, or by
clicking here.
Protection from Creditors
Generally, your interest in your account, including your vested interest,
may not be alienated. This means that the interest cannot be sold, used
as collateral for a loan, given away, or otherwise transferred. In addition,
your creditors may not attach, garnish or otherwise interfere with your
accounts.
However, the Plan may be required by law to recognize obligations you
incur as a result of a court order, child support or alimony. The Company
will determine whether it is necessary to comply with any order regarding
such payments.
Beneficiary Changes
Beneficiary designations are required when a participant first enters
the Valassis Employees' Retirement Savings Plan. This information is
kept on file indefinitely or until a revised designation is received
from the participant. Due to the marital status changes and changes
in dependents it is advised that participants review their beneficiaries
periodically. To change the beneficiaries on your account, log onto
www.retireonline.com and review
your beneficiaries and make appropriate changes on-line.
Fees and Expenses
Fees and expenses relating to the operation of the Plan are paid from
the assets of the Plan, to the extent that such fees and expenses are
not paid by Valassis. Fees and expenses include the Trustee and record-keeping
fees paid to JPMorgan, as well as the Plan's legal and audit expenses.
Loan set-up, loan maintenance, loan withdrawal fees, and fees for Qualified
Domestic Relations Orders (QDRO) are deducted from the accounts of the
participants who make the loan or withdrawal.
Fees and operating expenses incurred by each of the investment options
held by the Plan are deducted from the assets of those options, as described
in the relevant prospectuses and information statements.
Fees charged to participants are as follows:
Administration Fee, No charges effective 1/1/2008
Loan Origination Fees, $50.00 one time charge
QDRO Fees, $500 processing fee
Hardship Withdrawal Fee, No processing fee
Investment Advice
JPMorgan Retirement Savings Plan Services offers an Investment Advice
service to the participants in the Valassis Retirement Savings Plan.
With Valassis' approval JPMorgan arranged an agreement with Financial
Engines® to make the Financial Engines Investment Advisor® service
available to you. The service allows you to get financial advice regarding
your investments, gain valuable investment education, or utilize forecasting
tools to manage your money.
As part of your Valassis benefits package, Financial Engines and Personal
On-line Advisor is available to you at no additional cost. Personal
Online Advisor was developed by a Nobel Prize winning economist. The
advice you will receive is objective, expert, personalized and completely
confidential. Financial Engines will provide recommendations on the
specific investment options in your plan - even how much to invest in
each. It continues monitoring your investments and provides ongoing
forecasts of your retirement savings future, and it is available 24
hours a day to help you stay on track!
Also, for a fee, you can take advantage of JP Morgan's Personal Asset
Manager. This feature allows you to turn your account over to investment
professionals that will monitor your investments and keep your on track.
To access these exciting investment tools, go to www.retireonline.com
and click ""Get Help Now"" on your "account
overview" page for your retirement savings plan.
For more information on Personal "Online Advisor" click
here.
For more information on Personal "Asset Manager" click
here.
Contact Information
Plan Administrator:
JPMorgan Retirement Plan Services
P.O. Box 419784
Kansas City, MO 64141-6784
JPMorgan Customer Service Line:
1-800-345-2345
Push zero to talk with a representative weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
EST.
Internet Access:
www.retireonline.com
You can go online virtually 24 hours a day to review your account and
make transactions.
Internal company contacts:
Valassis Direct Mail or Sales and Marketing associates contact the Associate
Resource Center at 1-877-238-6847 - Windsor, Connecticut
All other associates contact Sue Skaggs/Benefits Specialist at 734-591-7301
- Livonia, Michigan
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