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matching contributions by the employer. Section 401(a) includes
stock bonus plans, pension plans, and 401(k) cash and deferred
arrangement plans. Sec. 401(a), (k). Therefore, the CP&L
pension plan is a qualified plan under section 401(a).
Petitioner’s 1996 Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, from
CP&L indicates that she participated in the CP&L pension plan
before her termination and that she made contributions which
totaled $1,175.46. Petitioner concedes that any money she
contributed in the first weeks of 1996 before her termination
went into the funds “already in the [CP&L pension] Plan”, where
it remained and she received a benefit. Petitioner was not
excluded from the eligibility provisions of the CP&L pension plan
before her termination. Petitioner made contributions to, and
accrued benefits in, the CP&L pension plan during 1996.
Petitioner’s reliance on IRS Pub. 17 is also misplaced. The
language in IRS Pub. 17 on which petitioner relies states that if
a taxpayer receives benefits from a previous employer’s pension
plan and the taxpayer is not covered by a current employer’s
pension plan, then the taxpayer is not considered covered by a
plan. This was not the case with petitioner because she did not
receive benefits from the CP&L pension plan during 1996. In any
event, the authoritative sources of Federal tax law are in the
statutes, regulations, and judicial decisions, and not in such
informal publications. Zimmerman v. Commissioner, 71 T.C. 367,
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Last modified: May 25, 2011