An Edward Jones financial adviser reviewed the Tipton Utility Service Board’s employee retirement plan during the board’s Dec. 1 meeting, reporting roughly $2.7 million in plan assets and high participation among eligible employees.

The adviser said, “We are currently right at about 90% participation,” and that the plan holds “just a shade over $2,700,000.0” in assets. Board members heard benchmarking data showing average deferral rates near 8% and mean account balances that skew toward older participants.

Why it matters: High participation and competitive fees mean more retirement dollars remain with participants rather than being eaten by administrative costs. The adviser said plan costs total about 0.81% a year — 81 basis points — and explained the fee breakdown: underlying fund expenses (about 11 bps), John Hancock administrative services (about 23 bps), and third‑party services (the remaining share, including Wilshire fiduciary services and Edward Jones advisor fees).

On administration, the adviser told the board the plan’s third‑party administrator (TPA) was acquired by a large firm and service levels declined. He said the board is considering moving TPA services to a local firm and emphasized there would be no additional cost because the plan already allocates bps for TPA services. “The firm that we hired got gobbled up by a large corporate firm, and the large corporate firm has been very difficult to work with,” he said.

Plan design items discussed included the employer match (which board members said had been increased in recent years and which the adviser said helps drive participation), the availability of Roth deferrals (post‑tax contributions that grow tax‑free when withdrawn qualified), and the plan rule that loans are not permitted while hardship withdrawals remain available for qualifying circumstances such as medical emergencies and unemployment.

The adviser also noted investment performance: one‑year returns were described as “almost 14%” for the plan overall, with multi‑year returns shown as positive as well in the packet. The board asked for clarification on how participation was reported; the adviser explained the difference between eligibility and active enrollment and said some reporting shows 100% when eligible non‑enrolled staff are included in the system but true active participation is near 90%.

Next steps and outreach: the adviser said he will conduct employee outreach early next year to review plan features and encourage increased contributions; a board member suggested collecting testimonials from employees about long‑term effects. The board did not take a formal vote on changing vendors during the meeting; the adviser said he will bring paperwork if the board decides to move TPA services.

The meeting closed after the retirement plan presentation and routine business.