Document:

Ex 4.4 Amendment 1

EXHIBIT 4.4

AMENDMENT NO. 1
TO
WINDSTREAM 401(k) PLAN

(January 1, 2011 Restatement)

WHEREAS, Windstream Corporation (the "Company") maintains the Windstream 401(k) Plan, as amended and restated effective as of January 1, 2011 (the "Plan"); and

WHEREAS, the Company desires further to amend the Plan;

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Company hereby amends the Plan in the respects hereinafter set forth:

1.  Effective as of April 1, 2011, a new Section 20.11 is added to the Plan to provide as follows:

		
	20.11
	Merger of the Hosted Solutions Acquisition, LLC 401(k) Plan 

		
	(a)
	Merger.  Effective as of April 1, 2011, the Hosted Solutions Acquisition, LLC 401(k) Plan (the "Hosted Solutions Plan") shall be merged into and made a part of the Plan, and the trust fund maintained in connection with the Hosted Solutions Plan shall be added to the assets of the Trust Fund to be disposed of under the terms, conditions, and provisions of the Plan and Trust.  On and after April 1, 2011, the general provisions of the Plan shall govern with respect to the interests under the Hosted Solutions Plan of all persons except (i) as otherwise expressly provided in this Section 20.11 and (ii) to the extent the general provisions of the Plan are inconsistent with any provisions of the Hosted Solutions Plan that may not be eliminated under Section 411(d)(6) of the Code (and the regulations thereunder).

For purposes of clarity, the following forms of payment and in-service withdrawal provisions that were available under the Hosted Solutions Plan as in effect on April 1, 2011 shall be available under the Plan with respect to the Participant's Separate Account attributable to the Hosted Solutions Plan (and, as applicable, attributable to a particular sub-account under the Hosted Solutions Plan):

		
	(1)
	On or after a Participant's Settlement Date, single sum payment.

		
	(2)
	In-service withdrawal of account balance upon attainment of age 59-1/2.

		
	(3)
	In-service withdrawals of account balance upon disability for participants in the Hosted Solutions Plan as of April 1, 2010.

		
	(4)
	In-service withdrawals of amounts attributable to rollover contributions at any time.

Following the merger of the Hosted Solutions Plan into the Plan, (i) hardship withdrawals as provided in Article XIX of the Plan shall apply to the amounts attributable to the "401k Deferral" sub-account (excluding any earnings) under the Hosted Solutions Plan and (ii) the small benefit cash out as provided in Section 15.04 shall apply to the Participant's Separate Account (including the amounts attributable to the Hosted Solutions Plan).

		
	(a)
	Accounts.  As of April 1, 2011, Separate Accounts shall be established in accordance with the provisions of Section 11.07 in the name of each person who as of April 1, 2011 was a participant or beneficiary with an interest under the Hosted Solutions Plan 

(and for whom a Separate Account had not already been established).  As of the date the assets of the trust fund of the Hosted Solutions Plan are received by the Trustee and deposited in the Trust Fund, there shall be credited to each such Separate Account or Sub-Account, as applicable, the value of such person's prior separate account or sub-account of the corresponding type under the Hosted Solutions Plan as certified to the Plan Administrator by the plan administrator of the Hosted Solutions Plan.

		
	(b)
	Forfeitures.  If a person who was a participant under the Hosted Solutions Plan (i) incurred a forfeiture under the Hosted Solutions Plan prior to April 1, 2011 (and such forfeiture has not been restored), (ii) resumes employment as an Employee under the Plan, and (iii) would have had the forfeiture restored under the Hosted Solutions Plan as in effect on April 1, 2011, such forfeiture shall be restored under the Plan in the same manner and under the same conditions as such forfeiture would have been restored under the Hosted Solutions Plan as in effect on April 1, 2011.

		
	(c)
	Beneficiary Designations.  Effective as of April 1, 2011, each beneficiary designation under the Hosted Solutions Plan shall be void and have no further effect.  Article XVII of the Plan shall apply to determine the beneficiary with respect to the Separate Accounts or Sub-Accounts established under Section 20.11(b) of the Plan (or previously established under the Plan).

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company, by its duly authorized representative, has caused this Amendment No. 1 to the Windstream 401(k) Plan (January 1, 2011 Restatement) to be executed on this ____ day of March, 2011.

WINDSTREAM CORPORATION 
        
                
By:____________________________________
     Title:  Member of the Benefits CommitteeEx. 4.5 amendment 2

EXHIBIT 4.5

AMENDMENT NO. 2
TO
WINDSTREAM 401(k) PLAN
(January 1, 2011 Restatement)

WHEREAS, Windstream Corporation (the "Company") maintains the Windstream 401(k) Plan, as amended and restated effective as of January 1, 2011, as subsequently amended (the "Plan"); and

WHEREAS, the Company desires further to amend the Plan;

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Company hereby amends the Plan in the respects hereinafter set forth:

1.  Effective as of April 1, 2011, the first paragraph of paragraph (h) of Article XIX of the Plan is amended to provide as follows:

Withdrawals under this Article XIX shall first be made for reasons other than hardship.  Any withdrawal pursuant to paragraph (i)(1) of this Article XIX shall be made from the following sources in the following order:  (i) voluntary after-tax employee contributions, (ii) after-tax rollover contributions, (iii) after-tax contributions described in Section 20.09(a)(4) or Section 20.10(a)(4), (iv) rollover contributions, (iii) employer contributions, (iv) "Windstream dividends" described in Section 11.10(e), (iv) employee deferrals, and (v) Roth deferrals (as made to the Hosted Solutions Plan).  Within the employer contributions source, the following order shall apply:  (i) Aliant (stock) employer contributions, (ii) Valor employer match, (iii) other Prior Plan employer match, (iv) Employer Contributions (as made to the Plan), and (v) Windstream Profit-Sharing Plan transfer.  For purposes of clarity, any withdrawal made for reason of hardship shall be made from the following available sources in the following order:  (i) Aliant (stock) employer contributions, (ii) employee deferrals, and (iii) Roth deferrals.

2.  Effective as of the first day of the first payroll period for the Plan Year ending December 31, 2012, a new Section 10.01(b)(viii) is added to the Plan to provide as follows:

		
	(viii)
	A person who was an employee of PAETEC Holding Corp. (or related entity) immediately prior to the merger with Windstream Corporation (or related entity) and is an Eligible Employee as of the first day of the first payroll period for the Plan Year ending December 31, 2012, shall become a Participant on that first day of the first payroll period for the Plan Year ending December 31, 2012.

3.  Effective for required minimum distributions for 2009, Section 16.01(d) is amended to provide as follows:

Notwithstanding the any provision of this Article XVI to the contrary, a Participant or Beneficiary who would have been required to receive required minimum distributions for 2009 but for the enactment of Section 401(a)(9)(H) of the Code ("2009 RMDs"), and who would have satisfied that requirement by receiving distributions that are (1) equal to the 2009 RMDs or (2) one or more payments in a series of substantially equal distributions (that include the 2009 RMDs) made at least annually and expected to last for the life (or life expectancy) of the Participant, the joint lives (or joint life expectancy) of the Participant and the Participant's designated beneficiary, or for a period of at least 10 years ("Extended 2009 RMDs"), will not receive those distributions for 2009 unless the Participant or Beneficiary chooses to receive such distributions.  Participants and Beneficiaries described in the preceding sentence will be given the opportunity to elect to receive the distributions described in the preceding sentence in the manner and form prescribed by the Plan Administrator.  A direct rollover under 

Section 15.06 will be offered for 2009 RMDs but only if paid with an additional amount that is an eligible rollover distribution without regard to Section 401(a)(9)(H) of the Code.

Subject to such procedures and processes as prescribed by the respective plan administrator, the foregoing paragraph shall apply to participants and beneficiaries of the Lexcom 401(k) Plan, the D&E Communications, Inc. Employees' 401(k) Savings Plan, the Conestoga Telephone & Telegraph Local 1671 Tax Deferred Retirement Plan, the NuVox Communications, Inc. Profit Sharing 401(k) Plan, Iowa Telecom Savings Plan, Iowa Telecom Hourly Savings Plan, and Hosted Solutions Acquisition, LLC 401(k) Plan.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company, by its duly authorized representative, has caused this Amendment No. 2 to the Windstream 401(k) Plan (January 1, 2011 Restatement) to be executed on this ____ day of December, 2011.

WINDSTREAM CORPORATION 
        
                
By:____________________________________
     Title:  Member of the Benefits CommitteeEX. 4.6 amendment 3

EXHIBIT 4.6

AMENDMENT NO. 3
TO
WINDSTREAM 401(k) PLAN
(January 1, 2011 Restatement)

WHEREAS, Windstream Corporation (the "Company") maintains the Windstream 401(k) Plan, as amended and restated effective as of January 1, 2011, as subsequently amended (the "Plan"); and

WHEREAS, the Company desires further to amend the Plan;

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Company hereby amends the Plan, effective as of March 1, 2012, in the respects hereinafter set forth:

A new paragraph is added to the end of Appendix A to provide as follows:

Subject to the terms of the National Pension Agreement, as amended from time to time, each Matching Employer shall make a Supplemental Employer Matching Contribution on behalf of any eligible Participant covered by the National Pension Agreement between Windstream Corporation and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Communications Workers of America (the “NPA”) who is not eligible to participate in the Windstream Pension Plan (for purposes of clarity, a person who is both an “Eligible Employee” under the Windstream Pension Plan and covered by the NPA on February 29, 2012 is eligible to participate in Windstream Pension Plan, but only until his “Termination of Employment” under the Windstream Pension Plan or, if earlier, he otherwise ceases to be an “Eligible Employee” covered by the NPA) in an amount equal to:

		
	(a)
	100% of the first 3% of the Participant's Compensation that he contributes to the Plan as Salary Deferral Contributions for the Plan Year, plus

		
	(b)
	50% of the next 2% of the Participant's Compensation that he contributes to the Plan as Salary Deferral Contributions for the Plan Year.

As soon as administratively practicable following the end of the Plan Year, Supplemental Employer Matching Contributions shall be made by the Matching Employer and allocated to each Participant who is eligible to receive Supplemental Employer Matching Contributions.  A person is eligible to receive Supplemental Employer Matching Contributions of a Matching Employer for a Plan Year only if he is employed as an Eligible Employee (in a position covered by the NPA) on the last day of the Plan Year or if the person died, retired or became disabled while employed as an Eligible Employee (in a position covered by the NPA) during the Plan Year.  A person is eligible to receive Supplemental Employer Matching Contributions only with respect to the Participant's Compensation and Salary Deferral Contributions for the portion of the Plan Year that is attributable to the period when the Participant was an Eligible Employee (in a position covered by the NPA) during the Plan Year.  For purposes of this paragraph, (i) “retired” means termination of employment on or after age 65 or when eligible for an “Early Retirement Pension” under the Windstream Pension Plan and (b) “disabled” means disabled under the Company's long-term disability plan.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company, by its duly authorized representative, has caused this Amendment No. 3 to the Windstream 401(k) Plan (January 1, 2011 Restatement) to be executed on this ____ day of __________________, 2012.

WINDSTREAM CORPORATION 
        
                
By:____________________________________
     Title:  Member of the Benefits Committee

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