The purpose of the Connecticut Carpenters Annuity Plan (the "Annuity Plan") — formerly known as the Carpenters Supplemental Pension Annuity Plan — is to supplement the monthly retirement benefit to which you are entitled from Social Security and from the Connecticut Carpenters Pension Fund. The Annuity Plan provides benefits upon death, disability or termination of employment from the industry.

Since the last edition of this booklet several important changes have been made to the plan, including the addition of Hardship Withdrawals, a new definition of the term "Break in Service" and new rules regarding uncollectible contributions. Please review this 2001 Edition of the Summary Plan Description carefully so you can understand how the Annuity Plan can help you plan for a financially secure retirement.

The Annuity Plan is an individual account plan to which employers make contributions for each hour that a participant works in covered employment. A participant pays no tax at the times these amounts are contributed, but is taxed when he receives a distribution from the plan. The plan also permits participants to make voluntary contributions.

Benefit plans can change from time to time. The descriptions in this booklet apply to the year 2001 and later. Different rules may apply before 2001. If there are changes made in the future, you will be notified of these changes in writing at no cost to you. You should keep all notifications with this booklet so you have the most current information available.

Personal or family situations also change from time to time. When they do, you should refer back to this booklet to make sure your beneficiary designation reflects your current wishes. You should also notify the Fund Office of changes in your address or marital status.

The information in this booklet is based on legal documents. If there are any differences or conflicts between information in this booklet and the plan documents, the plan documents will govern. The full Board of Trustees has discretion to interpret the plan. You should not rely on any individual or unofficial opinion about your eligibility for participation in the plan or any plan benefits that may be due you.

If you have any questions or require any additional information regarding the Annuity Plan, you are encouraged to call or write the Fund Office for an explanation. The Board of Trustees will provide such an explanation in writing.

Sincerely,

THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES,

CONNECTICUT CARPENTERS ANNUITY FUND

March 2002

PARTICIPATION

You will become eligible to participate in the Annuity Plan, according to the following schedule:

If you:	You will become a participant on:
Work as a carpenter for a contributing employer	The first day you begin work in covered employment
Are a member of a Union local located outside Connecticut who first works for a contributing employer after 1997	On the ninetieth (90th) day after you begin work in covered employment
Work as a Connecticut employee for: · the Fund Office of the Connecticut Carpenters Pension Fund, · the New England Regional Council of Carpenters, or · a Participating Local Union	The first day you begin work in covered employment, as long as you earn 960 hours of service* in your first year of work. Otherwise, you will become a participant on the first day of the plan year in which you earn 960 hours of service.*

* Hours of service are all of the hours of work for which you are paid, directly or indirectly, by a contributing employer and certain military service.

You will stop being a participant when the total value of your accounts has been distributed.

If the total value of your accounts has been distributed and you later return to work that is covered by a collective bargaining agreement, you will become a participant again as soon as you return to work.

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE PLAN

Employer Contributions

Contributing employers make contributions to the Annuity Plan's Trust Fund on a weekly or monthly basis, as required by the collective bargaining agreement governing the participant's work.

The amount of the contribution is determined by multiplying the hours of covered employment worked by each participant times whatever amount is agreed to under the collective bargaining agreement. When contributions are made on superintendents or company owners, they must be paid on at least 160 hours per month.

For all hours worked on or after April 1, 1998, the amount allocated to a participant's Regular Account will be the amount of contributions actually received from employers on behalf of the participant. This means that if an employer does not make contributions for your hours worked on or after April 1, 1998, the Fund cannot credit your Regular Account — even if the contributions are uncollectible due to bankruptcy or any other reason.

Example

Assume: 1. You work 1,000 hours in covered employment in a plan year.

2. The collective bargaining agreement calls for contributions of $2.55 per hour of covered employment.

3. Your employer pays the contributions.

1,000 hours x $2.55 = $2,550

This amount would be allocated to your Regular Account.

You will always be 100% vested in the value of your accounts, after adjustment for investment earnings or losses, administration fees and expenses. You cannot forfeit your vested interest.

For years prior to April 1, 1991, no amount was allocated to the account of a participant or employee who worked fewer than 400 hours — or 240 hours, prior to April 1, 1986 — in covered employment in a plan year.

Voluntary Contributions

If you are working as carpenter under a collective bargaining agreement, or are not "highly-compensated" as defined by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), you may make additional, voluntary contributions to the Annuity Plan if you wish to do so. These contributions will be credited to your voluntary account.

Voluntary contributions are made with after-tax dollars. However, once they are paid into the Trust Fund, any investment earnings will accumulate tax-free until distributed. Voluntary contributions cannot exceed 10% of your total compensation for covered employment for the plan year.

You are not required to make any voluntary contributions and they will have no effect on the amount of employer contributions to which you are entitled. Voluntary contributions, after adjustment for investment earnings or losses, administration fees and expenses, are fully vested and nonforfeitable.

You can withdraw your voluntary contributions to the plan at any time before retirement or termination of employment. Any earnings on your voluntary contributions will remain in the plan until the amounts in your Regular Account are payable, unless the Trustees decide it is impractical to hold those earnings. Voluntary contributions and earnings will be distributed in accordance with the rules explained in the section of this booklet about Distributions, including the requirement of spousal consent to a lump sum distribution.

Fees and Expenses

Fund expenses include all investment management, administrative, accounting, actuarial, consulting, legal, investment performance and custodial fees and all other expenses incurred in the operation of the plan and the Trust Fund. Fund expenses will be deducted from the Trust Fund's gross investment return as of the last day of the plan year.

Investment of the Funds

The Trustees of the plan hold contributed amounts in the Trust Fund and hire investment managers to invest those amounts. The investments result in earnings or losses.

The earnings or losses arise from income on investments and any increases or decreases in the market value of the securities that may be held in the Trust Fund. Net earnings and losses on these investments, after payment of or allowance for expenses of the Trust Fund, are allocated proportionately to each participant's accounts as of the end of the plan year.

If your accounts are fully distributed before the end of the plan year, then any net earnings attributable to those accounts for that year will be distributed to you in a separate payment after the close of the year and any net losses will be charged against your accounts if you become a participant in the next plan year.

Benefit Statements

After earnings and losses for the plan year are determined, the Board of Trustees will notify you of the amount of the annual contributions allocated to your accounts, the amount of net earnings or losses credited to or charged against your accounts, and the total value of your accounts as of the last day of the plan year.

DISTRIBUTION OF BENEFITS UPON RETIREMENT OR TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT

You will be entitled to a distribution of the total value of your accounts on the first day of the month after you:

Reach age 65,
Become a permanently and totally disabled participant,
Incur a break in service, or
Reach age 55, provided you have retired from covered employment and are receiving retirement benefits from the Connecticut Carpenters Pension Fund.

The forms of distribution that are available to you upon retirement are explained in the following paragraphs.

If the total value of your accounts exceeds $5,000, payments must be paid over a period that does not exceed your expected lifetime or the joint life expectancy of you and your beneficiary or spouse. Please note that an Application for Benefits must be filed before any benefits can be paid out from the plan.

Payment of benefits must begin by the April 1st following the calendar year in which you reach age 70 ½. Once benefits have begun, you may not change the form of the payment, even if your circumstances change.

Benefits of $5,000 or Less

If the balance in your accounts is $5,000 or less — and has never exceeded that amount — you will be paid your benefit in the form of a lump sum and you may not elect any other distribution form.

Husband-and-Wife Annuity

If you are married, the law requires that all plan benefits with a total value of more than $5,000 be paid in the form of a Husband-and-Wife Annuity, unless you elect an alternate form of payment and your spouse consents to that election, in writing.

A Husband-and-Wife Annuity uses the total value of your accounts to provide you with a monthly benefit for your life and after you die, a monthly benefit equal to 50%, 75% or 100% of your monthly benefit — depending upon your election, consented to by your spouse, if applicable — will continue to your spouse. Under the Husband-and-Wife Annuity, no further amounts are payable after you and your spouse have died. The Husband-and-Wife Annuity is payable only to the spouse to whom you were legally married when payments began.

If you are married, the Fund Office will provide you with an explanation of the Husband-and-Wife Annuity — including the dollars and cents effect of an election of the 50%, 75% or 100% form of Husband-and-Wife Annuity benefit — before payment of benefits commences. The explanation will also provide a description of the alternative methods of distribution.

After receiving the explanation you will have 90 days to complete and return the election form indicating your choice as to how you wish to receive your annuity benefit. If you are married and elect one of the alternative methods of distribution, your spouse must consent, in writing, to that election and to any beneficiary chosen, and your spouse’s signature must be notarized.

Alternative Forms of Payment

You may elect to receive your benefit in one of the following forms of payment if you:

1. Are not married, or

2. Are married but waive the Husband-and-Wife Annuity with the written consent of your spouse.

Lump Sum

The total value of your accounts will be paid to you in lump sum. You may direct the Annuity Fund to pay part or all of any lump sum payment directly to an Individual Retirement Account or Annuity (IRA), or to another qualified plan, in a direct rollover.

Installments

Your benefit will be paid in equal monthly installments of at least $100 until your accounts are exhausted, with any earnings or losses credited to the unpaid balance at the end of each plan year.

If the installments will extend for less than 10 years, you may direct that part or all of those installments be rolled over to an IRA or other qualified plan.

Once your monthly installment amount is established, you may not stop or decrease that amount, however you may make a written election once each plan year to increase the amount of the equal monthly payments to be paid in the future. If you die before the entire balance of your accounts has been paid to you, the remaining monthly payments will be paid to your beneficiary in installments or, if the beneficiary consents, in a lump sum.

Ten Years Certain and Life Annuity

If you are not married, the law requires that all plan benefits with a total value of more than $5,000 be paid to you in the form of a Ten Years Certain and Life Annuity, unless you reject this form of payment.

A Ten Years Certain and Life Annuity provides monthly payments for your life, but if you die before receiving 120 monthly payments the remainder of the 120 monthly payments will be paid to your beneficiary.

Combination

You may elect a combination of an initial partial lump sum and the balance in Ten Years Certain and Life Annuity, Installments or Husband-and-Wife Annuity.

The exact earnings of the Trust Fund for the plan year in which benefits are payable to you cannot be determined until sometime after the end of the plan year. If you receive your benefit in installments or in a complete or partial lump sum, earnings or losses for the year when your benefit becomes payable will not be determined until after the end of the plan year and will be paid to you in the same form you elected on your Application for Benefits or charged against your accounts if you become a participant in the next plan year.

DISTRIBUTION OF BENEFITS UPON DEATH

Pre-Retirement Death Benefits

If you die before receiving any payment from your accounts, the balance in your accounts will be paid as a death benefit. The forms of distribution, which are available to you under the plan for pre-retirement death benefits, are explained in the following paragraphs.

Unmarried Participants

If you are not married and you die before receiving any payments under the plan, the total value of your accounts will be paid to your beneficiary in a lump sum.

Married Participants

If you are married and you die before receiving any payments under the plan, the total value of your accounts will be paid to your beneficiary in one of the forms described below.

a. Husband-and-Wife Survivor Annuity

If the total value of your accounts is more than $5,000, your spouse will receive a Husband-and-Wife Pre-retirement Survivor Annuity.

Under a Husband-and-Wife Pre-retirement Survivor Annuity, the total value of your accounts will be used to purchase an annuity contract from an insurance company that will provide your spouse with a monthly benefit for her life. A Husband-and-Wife Pre-retirement Survivor Annuity will be the automatic form of payment unless you elect to have the va