Benefits Forward

Document Excerpt (1) Under the facts presented, the payment by Trustee Y of Individual C’s interest in IRA O to the State J unclaimed property fund, as required by State J law, is subject to federal income tax withholding under § 3405. (2) The payment by Trustee Y is subject to reporting under § 408(i). […]

Document Excerpt This notice extends the temporary nondiscrimination relief for closed defined benefit plans that is provided in Notice 2014-5, 2014-2 I.R.B. 276, by making that relief available for plan years beginning before 2020 if the conditions of Notice 2014-5 are satisfied. Link https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-18-69.pdf

Document Excerpt This notice provides initial guidance on the application of section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code (Code), as amended by section 13601 of “An Act to provide for reconciliation pursuant to titles II and V of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2018,” Public Law 115-97 (2017) (the Act). Section […]

Document Excerpt The Affordable Care Act added the employer shared responsibility provisions under section 4980H of the Internal Revenue Code.The following provide answers to frequently asked questions about the employer shared responsibility provisions.More detailed information is available on the Employer Shared Responsibility page and in final regulations under section 4980H. Link https://www.irs.gov/affordable-care-act/employers/questions-and-answers-on-employer-shared-responsibility-provisions-under-the-affordable-care-act

Document Excerpt In the present case, SLR nonelective contributions under the program are conditioned on whether an employee makes a student loan repayment during a pay period and are not conditioned (directly or indirectly) on the employee making elective contributions under a cash or deferred arrangement. Furthermore, because an employee who makes student loan repayments […]

Document Excerpt This revenue procedure provides the monthly national average premium for qualified health plans that have a bronze level of coverage and are offered through Exchanges for taxpayers to use in determining their maximum individual shared responsibility payment under § 5000A(c)(1)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code and § 1.5000A-4 of the Income Tax Regulations. […]

Document Excerpt •The Departments will consider changes to make it easier for businesses to join together to offer Association Retirement Plans (ARPs), also known as Multiple Employer Plans. Link https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/president-donald-j-trump-strengthening-retirement-security-american-workers/

Document Excerpt A new Department of Labor rule expands the ability of employers, including sole proprietors and self-employed workers, to participate in Association Health Plans. For many employers, employees, and their families, these employee benefit plans will offer greater flexibility and more affordable benefits. Like other workplace health plans, these plans are subject to important […]

Document Excerpt This rule proposes to adopt the risk adjustment methodology that HHS previously established for the 2018 benefit year. In February 2018, a district court vacated the use of statewide average premium in the HHS-operated risk adjustment methodology for the 2014 through 2018 benefit years. HHS is proposing to adopt the HHS-operated risk adjustment […]

Document Excerpt This final rule amends the definition of short-term, limited-duration insurance for purposes of its exclusion from the definition of individual health insurance coverage. This action is being taken to lengthen the maximum duration of short-term, limited-duration insurance, which will provide more affordable consumer choices for health coverage. Link https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/08/03/2018-16568/short-term-limited-duration-insurance

The Trump Administration’s reform to allow small businesses to purchase association health plans thereby avoiding many of the rules crafted to apply to small business health insurance. Document Excerpt This document contains a final regulation under Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) that establishes additional criteria under ERISA section 3(5) for […]

The EBSA has asked the 2018 ERISA Advisory Council to evaluate the effectiveness of existing guidance governing bonding requirements. Document Excerpt The Employee Benefits Security Administration (the “Department”) has asked the Council to evaluate the effectiveness of the Department’s regulations and sub-regulatory guidance promulgated under section 412 of ERISA in safeguarding plan funds or other […]

Document Excerpt PBGC is issuing a final rule amending its regulation on Mergers and Transfers Between Multiemployer Plans to implement procedures and information requirements for a request for a facilitated merger. This final rule also reorganizes and updates provisions in the existing regulation. Link https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/09/14/2018-19988/mergers-and-transfers-between-multiemployer-plans

Document Excerpt This document provides information for plans paying premiums for plan years beginning in 2018, including instructions for each data element that must be reported. Link https://www.pbgc.gov/sites/default/files/2018-cpf-instructions.pdf

Document Excerpt The interpretations presented below reflect the views of the staff of PBGC. They are not rules, regulations, or statements of the Corporation. These positions do not necessarily contain a discussion of all material considerations necessary to reach the conclusions stated, and they are not binding due to their informal nature. Accordingly, these responses […]

Document Excerpt The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) was established by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to ensure that participants in defined benefit pension plans receive their pensions if their plans terminate without sufficient assets to pay promised benefits. The PBGC administers separate insurance programs to protect participants in Single-Employer and […]

Document Excerpt The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation proposes to amend its multiemployer reporting, disclosure, and valuation regulations to reduce the number of actuarial valuations required for smaller plans terminated by mass withdrawal, add a valuation filing requirement and a withdrawal liability reporting requirement for certain terminated plans and insolvent plans, remove certain insolvency notice and […]

From now one, relief will be more closely tied to IRS relief. Document Excerpt The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is changing how it announces relief from filing deadlines and penalties when a disaster occurs. Under an Announcement made today, PBGC’s disaster relief will be available at the same time the Internal Revenue Service issues […]

Document Excerpt •The Departments will consider changes to make it easier for businesses to join together to offer Association Retirement Plans (ARPs), also known as Multiple Employer Plans. Link https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/president-donald-j-trump-strengthening-retirement-security-american-workers/

Document Excerpt This rule proposes to adopt the risk adjustment methodology that HHS previously established for the 2018 benefit year. In February 2018, a district court vacated the use of statewide average premium in the HHS-operated risk adjustment methodology for the 2014 through 2018 benefit years. HHS is proposing to adopt the HHS-operated risk adjustment […]

Document Excerpt This final rule adopts the risk adjustment methodology that HHS previously established for the 2017 benefit year. Section 1343 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) established a permanent annual risk adjustment program under which payments are collected from health insurance issuers that enroll relatively low-risk populations, and payments are made […]

So holds the Supreme Court in Wisconsin Central Ltd. v. U.S., No. 17-530 (S. Ct. June 21, 2018). Document Excerpt Held: Employee stock options are not taxable “compensation” under the Railroad Retirement Tax Act because they are not “money remuneration.” When Link https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/17pdf/17-530_6537.pdf

In a filing before a district court, the DOL signals it will not defend key parts of the Affordable Care Act stating that once the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act zeros out the individual mandate penalty, the individual mandate, guaranteed issue and community ratings provisions become unconstitutional. Document Excerpt In sum, once the associated financial […]

House Subcommittee seeks bipartisan proposals to update ERISA including encouraging defined contribution plans to provide annuities, eliminating the “common nexus” requirement for private multiple employer plans and other changes. Document Excerpt Subcommittee members and witnesses discussed four bipartisan proposals that would amend ERISA to better meet the retirement plan needs of employees and employers with […]