Beginning on October 1, most employers in Massachusetts will be required to withhold tax to fund Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave benefits. There is an exception to this requirement, however, for companies that...more
New Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave -
Beginning in 2021, all Massachusetts employers must provide their employees (and, in some cases, contractors) paid leave for family and medically related absences. Under the...more
5/6/2019
/ Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Medical Leave ,
Notice Requirements ,
Paid Family Leave Law ,
Paid Leave ,
Payroll Taxes ,
Popular ,
Social Security ,
State Labor Laws ,
Tax Exemptions ,
Wage and Hour
Old Rule -
Except for special rules that apply to public companies, the reasonable compensation of all employees is fully deductible as an ordinary and necessary business expense. Before this year the compensation...more
New federal rules apply for processing disability claims made under employee benefit and executive deferred compensation plans after April 1, 2018. Employers sponsoring retirement plans, disability plans, or nonqualified...more
An employer is required to file an annual audit report of its retirement plan with the federal government if the plan has over 100 participants. Form 5500 submissions that omit a required audit report in any year invite...more
The new federal tax reform, signed into law by President Trump on December 22, 2017, will change tax liabilities and strategies for many organizations and individuals beginning this year. The following is a summary of key...more
1/25/2018
/ Carried Interest ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Equity Compensation ,
Excise Tax ,
Executive Compensation ,
Health Insurance ,
Pass-Through Entities ,
Retirement Plan ,
Section 409A ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Exempt Entities
The proposed federal tax reform now being considered in Congress would make many changes after this year, if passed into law. The following areas are under consideration as of November 27, 2017 for domestic businesses,...more
Targeting Educational Institutions -
Since August, 2016, sixteen institutions of higher education with large retirement plans have become targets of federal lawsuits for breach of fiduciary duty under ERISA. To date, the...more
Financial institutions that sell mutual funds to the public often maintain 401(k) and other retirement plans for their own employees. In these plans, many financial institutions make their own mutual funds available to...more
HIPAA and the HITECH are federal laws that require the protection and security of confidential, protected health information (PHI) and personally identifiable information that is not necessarily health related. The federal...more
The latest chapter in the 6-1/2 year history of the Department of Labor (DOL) final Fiduciary Rule is a 60-day delay of part of the final regulations, and a delay until January 1, 2018 for certain disclosures and other...more
On February 3, 2017 President Trump issued a memorandum directing the Secretary of the DOL to determine whether new fiduciary regulations impair the public’s access to retirement information and financial advice.
...more
On February 3, 2017 President Trump issued a memorandum directing the Secretary of the DOL to determine whether new fiduciary regulations impair the public’s access to retirement information and financial advice.
...more
A new law allows small employers to provide a stand-alone employer-paid health reimbursement account plan to employees without incurring a tax penalty. This plan would help employees pay for insurance offered on an exchange...more
CAMPAIGN PROMISES AND THE FIDUCIARY FIGHT -
President Elect Trump’s campaign website states that he intends to issue a moratorium on new regulations that are “not compelled by Congress or public safety.” His stated goal...more
Not all federal regulations reflect a rule of law. In fact, some are not even given deference by the courts as a legitimate interpretation of the law. The U.S. Supreme Court recently concluded that certain federal regulations...more
For years, employers have been getting a free pass from the courts for a number of different violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA") relating to the operation of retirement, medical,...more
Many employers offer 401(k) and other retirement plans for their employees as part of the cost of doing business. Too often, retirement plans are established and operated without much thought given to the numerous legal...more
Employers that offer an array of benefits to their employees have done so often to keep their compensation packages competitive in the marketplace. Offering retirement and certain fringe benefit programs can be particularly...more
The following is a short checklist of issues that Massachusetts and other employers need to address as the laws relating to retirement, medical and other employee benefits have changed. The details regarding the application...more
Protecting Health Information -
The privacy of health information is protected by federal rules. These rules, which have been recently updated, affect the handling of “protected health information” (“PHI”) by business...more