Opinion ID: 8407616
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Reasonableness of Copying Expenses

Text: ERISA § 104(b)(4) entitles McDonald to copies of Plan documents at a “reasonable charge.” 29 U.S.C. § 1024(b)(4). A Department of Labor regulation defines a reasonable charge as follows: Reasonableness. The charge assessed by the plan administrator to cover the costs of furnishing documents is reasonable if it is equal to the actual cost per page to the plan for the least expensive means of acceptable reproduction, but in no event may such charge exceed 25 cents per page. 29 C.F.R. § 2520.104b-30(b). In this case, the PTF charged McDonald' $30.45 for copying documents at a price of $0.15 per page. The district court found McDonald’s persistence on this issue “vexatious and unprofessional,” McDonald I, 153 F.Supp.2d at 291, because of the small amount of money involved. While we are sympathetic to the district court’s frustration, we conclude that McDonald, while arguably “vexatious,” was technically correct, and the issue might recur. The applicable regulation ties “reasonable cost” to “actual cost.” 29 C.F.R. § 2520.104b-30. If, as here, a pension plan does not provide any evidence of its “actual costs,” courts have no foundation for determining if the costs that the plan assesses are, in fact, reasonable. We recognize that in many instances the determination of “actual costs” will necessarily be somewhat imprecise and that the appropriate pursuit of precision may depend on the amount involved. Still, 29 C.F.R. § 2520.104b-30 calls for evidence of “actual costs.” Accordingly, we remand for additional consideration by the district court.