Employee Benefits Law Report

Porter Wright

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Wage withholding in a remote working environment

Employers generally must withhold income taxes on behalf of employees based on where the employee works. Typically this determination is simplified by the location of the employer’s offices. The COVID-19 pandemic and corresponding stay-at-home orders have altered the working situations for most Americans. Only time will tell what things will look like moving forward. Employers … Continue Reading

How to claim COVID-19 tax credits via payroll

Employers may claim the Employee Retention Tax Credit and the tax credits available under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) for relief during the COVID-19 pandemic. They do this first, by reducing the employer portion of Social Security taxes, and then, by reducing the employer’s payroll deposits in an amount equal to the refundable portion … Continue Reading

Important update on the Payroll Protection Program

Since the passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the U.S. Treasury Department have released a series of interim final rules and updated Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) (as of April 8, 2020) regarding Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). These updates provide critical guidance and information … Continue Reading

Individual coverage HRAs: A potential alternative to traditional group health plan coverage?

In a reversal of previous Obama Administration guidance, the Trump Administration recently finalized regulations that provide for a new type of health reimbursement arrangement—the individual coverage HRA. In a previous blog, we briefly discussed the potential for the individual coverage HRA to provide large employers who are subject to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) employer … Continue Reading

New health reimbursement account rules provide alternative path to Affordable Care Act compliance

Seemingly unfazed by the recent setbacks with the Association Health Plan regulations, the Departments of Treasury, Labor and Health and Human Services have released new health reimbursement (HRA) regulations that could reshape the group health plan landscape by providing employers with potentially cheaper options than traditional group health plan coverage for satisfying Affordable Care Act … Continue Reading

IRS publishes transition relief regarding part-time employees and 403(b) plans

The IRS recently issued Notice 2018-95 (the Notice), which clarifies the circumstances under which part-time employees must be given the opportunity to make deferral elections under their employers’ 403(b) plans. In particular, the Notice provides transition relief from the once-in-always-in (OIAI) condition for excluding part-time employees. Tax-exempt and governmental employers who sponsor 403(b) plans will … Continue Reading

Final association health plan regulations provide opportunity for small employers…maybe

In February, we reported that the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a proposed rule that could make it easier for small businesses to join together to purchase health insurance. That proposed rule sparked considerable debate on the general merits of association health plans (AHPs), as well as on the nuances of the proposed rule. Some … Continue Reading

Association health plans: Proposed DOL rules create potential opportunity for associations and small employers

On Jan. 5, 2018, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a proposed rule that would make it easier for small businesses to join together to purchase health insurance. This is not a completely new concept. Unrelated small employers can join together to purchase health insurance today. Under current guidance, however, these types of plans are … Continue Reading

Federal disaster relief available to employees in aftermath of natural disasters

Natural forces wreaked havoc on a number of states and territories this fall when Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria made landfall. The federal government sprang into action by making disaster declarations for affected areas to provide aid in the aftermath of these tragic events. More recently, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) declared parts of … Continue Reading

ERISA fiduciary rule delayed to June 9, 2017, with bonus transition relief through 2017

Today (April 7, 2017), the Department of Labor (DOL) published in the Federal Register a final rule delaying the new ERISA fiduciary rule until June 9, 2017. Everyone expected a comprehensive 60-day delay to the rule, including the related Best Interest Contract Exemption (BICE) and other prohibited transaction exemptions (PTE). But, in welcome news to … Continue Reading

Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015

Leaders in the U.S. Congress reached a deal on Tuesday night to permanently extend many of the 52 provisions of the Internal Revenue Code that expired on Dec. 31, 2014. The full Congress approved the bill on Dec. 18, 2015 and President Obama signed the bill into law. The Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act … Continue Reading

Bright lines getting blurrier: Recent Ohio Supreme Court decision changes factors for determining who is an Ohio resident for state tax purposes

Cunningham v. Testa, Slip Opinion No. 2015-2744 (July 8, 2015) Recently, the Supreme Court of Ohio issued an opinion in Cunningham v. Testa which significantly alters the application of a statute for determining non-Ohio domicile for state tax purposes. Prior to the ruling, the statute seemed to set forth two factors which, when verified, would … Continue Reading

Supreme Court says give credit where credit is due

In Comptroller of Treasury of Maryland v. Wynne, 135 U.S. 1787 (2015), the Supreme Court held that Maryland’s tax scheme was unconstitutional because it discouraged interstate commerce in violation of the Dormant Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Maryland’s tax scheme gave taxpayers credit for taxes paid to other states against the Maryland state income … Continue Reading

2015 is lurking: are your health and welfare and cafeteria plans up-to-date?

The snow falling outside my window right now is a stark reminder that the end of 2014 is right around the corner. With 2015 approaching, employers should take a moment to ensure their health and welfare plans and cafeteria plans are up-to-date. While very few changes are mandatory, there have been several legal developments over … Continue Reading

Employee Benefit Plan Limits – Reference Chart for 2015 and Prior Cost-of-Living Adjustments

The Internal Revenue Code sets forth various dollar limitations on benefits, contributions, compensation under employee benefit plans. The IRS has announced limits for 2015 tax years. For your reference, the IRS Cost-of-Living Adjustments summarizes these dollar limitations, as modified by the IRS for cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs), for 2015 and prior years.… Continue Reading

Here we go again: Does the DOL’s request for information regarding self-directed brokerage accounts mean new fee disclosure requirements are coming soon?

If you’re a fan of the tv show “The Simpsons,” you might remember an early episode where Homer Simpson launched a crusade against every public safety issue in the city. The result was practically every square inch of the town contained signs alerting people to every dip, pothole, and other nuisance on the roads. After … Continue Reading

ERISA contractual time limitations for filing civil actions: why you may want to add these provisions to your benefit claim denial letters

ERISA plan sponsors were given what was described in our earlier post as a “holiday gift” last December with respect to plan-based statutes of limitation when the Supreme Court decided Heimeshoff v. Hartford Life & Accident Insurance Co. There, the Court declared a three-year plan-based (or contractual) time limitation for the filing of an ERISA civil … Continue Reading

Join us for our upcoming program in Columbus on the benefits of ESOPs

Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs): A Tax-Advantaged Strategy for Growth, Liquidity and Succession Planning Tuesday, September 23, 2014 REGISTER NOW BEFORE SEPTEMBER 19! 3:30 – 4:00 p.m. –  Registration 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. – Program Join us for hors d’oeuvres and cocktails immediately following the program in our Atrium. Porter Wright 41 S. High Street, 29th Floor … Continue Reading

ESOP boundaries: plan design versus fiduciary function

Greeting from Northeast Ohio. We have LeBron James coming home, the Republican National Convention, and something almost as exciting: thoughts about ESOPs! As I mentioned in a prior blog, in Coulter v. Morgan Stanley & Co. the Second Circuit held that the decision to contribute employer stock rather than cash to a benefit plan was … Continue Reading

The health care reform shared responsibility excise tax missing link: employer rights

Back in 2011, I mentioned a missing link in the health care reform Section 4980H shared responsibility employer excise tax scheme. 42 U.S.C. Section 18081 requires the establishment of an appeals and redeterminations process for penalty assessments, and acknowledges a problem with the provision itself. It requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to … Continue Reading

The illusion of an available job for the disabled: The Sixth Circuit’s decision in Kennard v. Means Industries, Inc. addresses long-term disability determinations

Many thanks to our summer clerk, Ryan Graham, for his significant contribution to this blog. A farmer was having a tough time understanding why his chickens were producing less eggs than in previous years. He wrote a letter to the local university, asking for guidance on increasing his chickens’ egg production. The university handed the … Continue Reading
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