11 Administrator, without charg e, a copy of the procedure used by the Plan Administrator to determine whether a qualified domestic relations order is valid. The second exception applies if you are involved with the Plan's operation. If you are found liable for any action that adver sely affects the Plan, the Plan Administrator can offset your benefits by the amount that you are ordered or required by a court to pay th e Plan. All or a portion of your benefits may be used to satisfy any such obligation to the Plan. The last exception appl ies to f ederal tax levies and judgments. The f ederal government is able to use your int erest in the Plan to enforce a f ederal tax levy and to collect a judgment resulting from an unpaid tax assessment. Can the Employer amend the Plan? Your Employer has the right to amend the Plan at any time. In no event, however, will any amendment authorize or permit any p art of the Plan assets to be used for purposes other than the exclusive benefit of Participants or their beneficiaries. Additionally, no amendment will cause any reduction in the amount credited to your account. What happens if the Plan is discontinued or terminated? Although your Employer intends to maintain the Plan indefinitely, your Employer reserves the right to terminate the Plan at any time. Upon termination, no further contributions will be made to the Plan and all amounts credited to your accounts will become 100% vested. Your Emplo yer will direct the distribution of your accounts in a manner permitted by the Plan as soon as practicable. You will be notified if the Plan is terminated. How do I submit a claim for Plan benefits? You may file a claim for benefits by submitting a written request for benefits to the Plan Administrator. You should contact the Plan Administrator to see if there is an applicable distribution form that must be used. If no specific form is required or ava ilable, then your written request for a distribution will be considered a claim for benefits. In the case of a claim for disability benefits, i f disability is determined by the Plan Administrator (rather than by a third party such as the Social Security Ad ministration), then you must also include with your claim sufficient evidence to enable the Plan Administrator to make a determination on whether you are disab led. Decisions on the claim will be made within a reasonable period of time appropriate to the c ircumstances. "Days" means calendar days. If the Plan Administrator determines the claim is valid, then you will receive a statement describing the amount of ben efit, the method or methods of payment, the timing of distributions and other information relev ant to the payment of the benefit. For purposes of the clai ms procedures described below, "you" refers to you, your authorized representative, or anyone else entitled to benefits under the Plan (such as a beneficiary). A document, record, or other informa tion will be considered relevant to a claim if it:  was relied upon in making the benefit determination;  was submitted, considered, or generated in the course of making the benefit determination, without regard to whether it was relied upon in making the benefit determination;  demonstrated compliance with the administrative processes and safeguards designed to ensure and to verify that benefit determinations are made in accordance with Plan documents and Plan provisions have been applied consistently with respect to all claimants; or  constituted a statement of policy or guidance with respect to the Plan concerning the denied treatment option or benefit. The Plan may offer additional voluntary appeal and/or mandatory arbitration procedu res other than those described below. If applicable, the Plan will not assert that you failed to exhaust administrative remedies for failure to use the voluntary proc edures, any statute of limitations or other defense based on timeliness is tolled during t he time a voluntary appeal is pending; and the voluntary process is available only after exhaustion of the appeals process described in this section. If mandatory arbitration is offe red by the Plan, the arbitration must be conducted instead of the appeal p rocess described in this section, and you are not precluded from challenging the decision under ERISA §501(a) or other applicable law. What if my benefits are denied? Your request for Plan benefits will be cons idered a claim for Plan benefits, and it will be subject to a full and fair review. If your claim is wholly or partially denied, the Plan Administrator will provide you with a written or electronic notification of the Plan's a dverse determination. This wri tten or electronic notification must be provided to you within a reasonable period of time, but not later than 90 days ( except as provided below for disability claims) after the receipt of your claim by the Plan Administrator, unless the Plan Administrator determines that special circumstances require an extension of time for processing your claim. If the Plan Administrator determines that an extension of time for processing is required, written notice of the extension will be furnished to you pri or to the termination of the initial 90 - day period. In no event will such extension exceed a period of 90 days from the end of such initial period. The extension notice will indicate the special circumstances requiring an extension of time and the date by which the Plan expects to render the benefit determination. In the case of a claim for disability benefits, if disability is determined by the Plan Administrator (rather than a third pa rty such as the Social Security Administration), then instead of the above, the initial claim must be resolved within 45 days of receipt by the Plan. A Plan may, however, extend this decision - making period for an additional 30 days for reasons beyond the control of the Plan. The Plan