Headlines about "Military - benefits for, incl. USERRA"

Gathered from the web by the editors at BenefitsLink.com.
[Guidance Overview] USERRA Benefits Under Title IV of ERISA (PDF)
1 page. Excerpt: "According to the final rule, so long as the participant is reemployed within the time limits prescribed by USERRA, even if the reemployment occurs after the plan's termination date (bankruptcy filing date, in the case of the bankruptcy of a covered plan sponsor filed on and after September 16, 2006), the PBGC will treat the participant as having satisfied the reemployment conditions as of the plan's termination date.Thus, the participant's benefits would be guaranteed for periods up to the plan's termination date. This final rule is effective December 17, 2009 and will apply to reemployments covered under USERRA initiated on or after December 12, 1994 (the effective date of USERRA). This is great news for affected participants. Starting December 17, 2009, the PBGC will start adjusting final benefit determinations of affected participants and make back payments with interest. The PBGC emphasizes that the scope of this final rule is very narrow. It only applies to the unique circumstances affording special protection to participants serving in the uniformed services entitled to benefits under USERRA." (Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies)

PBGC Implements USERRA Final Rule
Excerpt: "The nation's private-sector pension insurer on Monday unveiled a final rule making it easier for returning service members to receive pension and other benefit credits for time spent in the military. A news release from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) said the rule implements provisions of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA). That law provides that an individual who leaves a job to serve in the uniformed services is generally entitled to reemployment by the previous employer and, after being rehired, to receive credit for benefits, including employee pension plan benefits, that would have accrued but for the employee's absence due to the military service." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)

[Guidance Overview] 2009 End of Year Retirement Plan Sponsor 'To Do' Lists
Excerpt: "In this issue we provide seven 'to do' lists that may require you to take action before the end of 2009 or in early 2010. Many of the action items are a result of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (the 'PPA') and may require plan amendments." (Snell & Wilmer LLP)

[Guidance Overview] Amendments to the FMLA's Military Leave Provisions
Excerpt: "The NDAA's amendments to the FMLA do not specify an effective date. Therefore, employers should begin complying with the amendments immediately as a precautionary measure until further guidance is provided. Employers will need to update their practices to account for these changes in the FMLA. Whether changes to employers' FMLA policies are necessary will depend on whether the policy in question is specific enough to precisely define the eligibility requirements for qualifying exigency and covered servicemember leave that are affected by the NDAA's amendments. If so, revising the policy to mirror the NDAA amendments is advisable." (Briggs and Morgan P.A.)

[Guidance Overview] FMLA Coverage for Military Families Expanded Yet Again
Excerpt: "While these changes to the FMLA's military leave provisions may only apply to a relatively small percentage of employees in your workforce, the new coverage provisions will require employers to modify ? again ? their FMLA policies to ensure full compliance with the law. Likewise, employers need to communicate these changes to management employees and other employees who are involved in administering FMLA leaves and handling other leaves or employee absence issues." (Troutman Sanders LLP)

Senate Passes Defense Authorization Bill Which Includes FMLA Military Leave Provisions
Excerpt: "The bill includes an expansion of Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provisions related to qualifying exigency leave and military caregiver leave. Qualifying exigency leave would be available to family members of active duty military and military caregiver leave would be available to family members of veterans. The House approved the conference report on October 8. The bill is expected to be signed into law by President Obama." (Hewitt Associates)

Compromise Defense Authorization Bill Measure Advances Retirement Reforms
Excerpt: "House-Senate negotiators included a number of pay and retirement provisions in a compromise version of the 2010 Defense authorization bill, overcoming the objections of Republican senators who blocked the language from the Senate version of the bill. The conference report, approved on Wednesday morning, includes a provision that would allow workers in the Federal Employees Retirement System to count unused sick leave toward their retirement. The provision would be phased in over a four-year period. Until Dec. 31, 2013, employees would receive 50 percent credit for unused sick time; they would receive full credit beginning on Jan. 1, 2014." (GovernmentExecutive.com)

[Guidance Overview] IRS/Treasury Officials Provide Informal Views on Safe Harbor Contributions, ADP/ACP Testing Methods, and W-2 Imputed Income
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: We chose these highlights from the report's 44 Q&As covering a variety of retirement and welfare plan issues . . . . While the answers in the report do not necessarily represent IRS or Treasury policy, they provide helpful insight regarding the issues addressed. On some issues, the officials reported that the IRS is working on formal guidance. Those issues included optional changes under the HEART Act, the 2009 required minimum distribution (RMD) waiver amendment requirements . . ., and guidance regarding when shutdown benefits are retirement-type protected benefits under Code Section 411(d)(6)." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)

[Guidance Overview] Tax-Qualified Retirement Plans: Year-End Action Items and the HEART Act (PDF)
Excerpt: "[This] checklist describes potential year-end amendments and notices that may be necessary for tax-qualified retirement and savings plans. The list is not exhaustive, but is intended to provide a reminder of the general issues that may need to be reviewed and considered. Also included is information regarding the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008 (the HEART Act) and its impact on qualified retirement plans. Although the HEART Act does not require plan amendments by the end of the year, its required changes should be considered now.Additionally, this LawFlash includes a reminder that 403(b) plans must update plan documents to comply with the final 403(b) regulations by December 31, 2009." (Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP)

[Opinion] Comments on Proposed Legislation in Oklahoma Relating to Treatment of Military Retired Pay at Time of Divorce (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "Together with the National Women's Law Center, the PRC sent a letter to the Oklahoma state legislature expressing concerns about proposed legislation that would change the way Oklahoma state courts divide military pension benefits." (Peinsion Rights Center)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Guidance on Model Tax Notices, Contributions of Unused Paid Time Off, and Automatic Enrollment Features
Excerpt: "The IRS issued two model tax notices for compliance with Code Section 402(f) -- one for a distribution of designated Roth contributions and one for distribution of traditional contributions. A participant or beneficiary eligible to receive a distribution of both types of contributions will need to receive both explanations. The new model notices address relatively recent issues such as rollovers to Roth IRAs, rollovers by non-spouse beneficiaries to inherited IRAs, and the waiver of the 10% early distribution penalty on qualified reservist distributions." (Seyfarth Shaw LLP)

[Guidance Overview] Differential Pay as Plan Compensation
Excerpt: "Prior to the HEART Act being introduced, the IRS viewed differential pay not as wages but as supplemental income. This type of income was reported on a Form 1099-MISC, and employers had the option of treating these amounts as being eligible retirement plan compensation. Effective with 2009, differential pay will be subject to withholding (under Code Section 3401) and reported as W-2 income. Section 105 of the HEART Act created IRC Code Section 3401(h) requiring all differential pay that is paid after December 31, 2008 to be treated as W-2 wages, subject to Federal income tax withholding purposes. New Code Section 414(u)(12) provides for qualified plan contributions to be made on differential pay, and that these amounts are to be treated as if the individual were an employee of the employer making the payment." (McKay Hochman Co., Inc.)

[Guidance Overview] Oregon Enacts Military Spouse Leave Law
Excerpt: "Oregon employers must allow employees to take up to 14 days of unpaid, job-protected leave for a spouse's deployment to and/or leave from active military duty under the newly enacted Oregon Military Family Leave Act. The law, which took effect June 25, applies to employers with 25 or more employees in the state, including public employers. An employee qualifies for the leave if he or she works an average of at least 20 hours per week and his or her spouse, during a military conflict, has received notice of an impending call or order to active duty, or has been deployed and has received notice of leave." (Mercer LLC)

[Guidance Overview] PBGC's Proposed Regs on Interaction of USERRA Rules and ERISA Benefit Guarantee
Excerpt: "The PBGC has issued proposed regulations that would harmonize the ERISA requirement that guaranteed benefits be nonforfeitable on the plan termination date with the reemployment rights provided to service members under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA). The proposed rules would apply to reemployments under USERRA initiated on or after December 12, 1994." (Wolters Kluwer)

[Guidance Overview] Recent Legislation and Regulations Require Changes to Health and Welfare Benefit Plans
Excerpt: "Congress and federal regulatory agencies have been busy enacting legislation and proffering guidance which implements many new requirements for group health and welfare benefit plans. Many of the changes will require thoughtful action on the part of administrators and sponsors of group health and welfare benefit plans. This brief outline of current health and welfare compliance developments is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather serves to illustrate the depth and breadth of changes facing plan sponsors now and in the coming months." (Littler Mendelson P.C.)

[Guidance Overview] PBGC Semiannual Regulatory Agenda Addresses USERRA Benefits
Excerpt: "The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) has released its semiannual regulatory agenda for Spring 2009, which outlines regulations that have been selected for amendment during the next year, as well as any regulations that have been recently finalized." (Wolters Kluwer)

[Guidance Overview] Supreme Court Turns Away USERRA Decision Appeal
Excerpt: "The U.S. Supreme Court has turned aside a request to review a 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling finding that an employer had run afoul of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) by forcing a returning Army reservist to go through a three-week re-entry process. The 6th Circuit decision issued last year held that police officer Brian Petty had met all four of the prerequisites to invoke his rights under USERRA so the employer, the Metro Government of Nashville-Davidson County, could not delay his re-employment." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)

House Veterans' Affairs Committee Approves Bills on USERRA Changes
Excerpt: "The U.S. House Veterans' Affairs Committee has approved two bills that address employment rights for veterans." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)

[Guidance Overview] For COBRA Subsidy, Involuntary Termination Does Include Call-Up to Military Reserves
Excerpt: "An employee in the military reserve who is called up for active duty has experienced an involuntary termination and is eligible for the recently enacted COBRA subsidy, according to an April 6 Webcast sponsored by the Department of Labor's Employee Benefit Security Administration (EBSA). Kevin Knopf, attorney-adviser in the Office of Tax Policy at the Department of the Treasury, said at the Webcast that he had erred earlier by stating that military reservists called up for active duty were not eligible for the subsidy." (Wolters Kluwer)

[Guidance Overview] Wachovia Securities to Pay $1M to Former Adviser in USERRA Case
Excerpt: "The U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut has ordered Wachovia Securities to reinstate a former adviser and pay him back pay and damages for violating the Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). The court ruled that Wachovia Securities constructively discharged reservist Michael Serricchio when it offered him a much less compensated position upon his return from active duty. The court rejected Wachovia's argument that Serricchio failed to fulfill his obligation to minimize his wage loss by not accepting the inferior offer or by not seeking other employment as a financial adviser." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)

[Guidance Overview] How to Reconcile Differing FMLA Leave Periods
Excerpt: "Your organization uses the calendar year to determine an employee's leave balance for all qualifying reasons other than military caregiver leave (which is required by regulation to begin on the first day the eligible employee takes military caregiver leave and ends 12 months after that date). How do you reconcile the use of leave to care for a covered servicemember with other FMLA leave?" (CCH INCORPORATED)

Rep. Lynch Introduces Legislation to Automatically Enroll New Federal Employees and Members of the Military in Thrift Savings Plan
Excerpt: "Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., has introduced legislation (H.R. 1263) that would automatically enroll new federal employees and members of the military in the Thrift Savings Plan and assign their investments to the government securities fund. 'Currently, 14 percent of the eligible federal civilian and 75 percent of uniformed service members are not participating in TSP,' Lynch, the new chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Federal Workforce Subcommittee, said in a statement. 'Therefore they are less likely than participants to be financially self-sufficient.'" (GovernmentExecutive.com)

[Guidance Overview] New FMLA Regulations Require Immediate Steps to Ensure Employer Compliance
Excerpt: "First, every employer covered by the FMLA is required to post a notice explaining employee rights and responsibilities under the FMLA ? including the new rights created by the military family leave amendments. An employer can fulfill this 'general notice' requirement by posting the newly revised DOL 'Employee Rights and Responsibilities' poster on its premises in conspicuous places where employees work. Covered employers must post this general notice even if they do not have any employees currently eligible to take FMLA leave. The new regulations provide that electronic posting of the general notice is sufficient, so long as it includes all of the information in the updated DOL rights and responsibilities poster and the electronic notice is accessible to all employees." (Perkins Coie LLP)

Reserve and National Guard Members Deserve a Better Retirement Plan
Excerpt: "Current reserve retirement offers little or no incentive for members to serve past 20 years, Stultz said, because longer service doesn't change the age 60 start of annuities. So it's hard to persuade members or spouses that another hitch is worth the risk of returning to war or being separated . . . ." (Stars and Stripes)

[Guidance Overview] DOL's Final FMLA Regulations on Military Family Leave
Excerpt: "The Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued final Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) regulations addressing the new military family leave entitlements under the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year 2008. There are two new types of military leave: (1) qualifying exigency and (2) military caregiver. The regulations took effect Jan. 16." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)

[Guidance Overview] New FMLA Regulations: What Every Employer Should Know
Excerpt: "In November 2008, the U.S. Department of Labor published revised regulations to the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA or the Act) for the first time in the Act's 15-year history. The much anticipated regulations are over 750 pages long and take effect on Jan. 16, leaving scant time for employers to implement new procedures to comply with the law. The most significant of these changes are addressed herein." (Law Journal Newsletters' The Corporate Counselor via Blank Rome LLP)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Clarification of Rules for Tax Deadline Postponement Due to Military Service or Federally Declared Disaster
Excerpt: "The IRS has issued final regulations, amending existing regulations under Code Sec. 7508A , to clarify rules relating to the postponement of certain tax-related acts by reason of service in a combat zone or a federally declared disaster. The regulations are effective on January 15, 2009." (Wolters Kluwer)

[Guidance Overview] HEART: Plan Operational Changes and Amendments Required (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "This article summerizes what employe[r]s must do for compliance." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans via Michael Best & Friedrich LLP)

[Guidance Overview] Recent Guidance Impacting Employer Group Health Plans (PDF)
2 pages. Reprinted from Employee Benefit Plan Review. Excerpt: "Recent guidance from the IRS explains how qualified reservist distributions may be made from employer health flexible spending account plans and includes a transitional rule permitting retroactive plan amendments to be made until December 31, 2009." (Winston & Strawn LLP)

[Guidance Overview] New FMLA Regulations Include Military Family Leave Entitlements (PDF)
7 pages. Excerpt: "Late last year, the Department of Labor issued revised and updated final regulations on the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, including the new military family leave entitlements. The new regulations take effect on January 16, 2009." (Buck Consultants)

[Guidance Overview] Employment and ERISA Law Considerations When Reducing Workforce or Laying Off Employees
Excerpt: "Some of the laws that should be taken into consideration include the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA), the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA), the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) laws and the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA)." (Aiken & Aiken)

Missouri Bill Would End Tax on Military Pensions
Excerpt: "As members of the military retire, a growing number of state legislators want to pass tax relief to entice those servicemen and women to relocate to Missouri. Rep. Don Ruzicka, R-Mount Vernon, is among 26 legislators co-sponsoring a bill to exempt military retirement pensions from state income taxes." (Springfield News-Leader)

[Guidance Overview] 401(k), Pension, and Welfare Plans: 2008 Year-End Compliance Matters (PDF)
5 pages. Excerpt: "With the year rapidly coming to an end, it is timely for retirement and welfare plan sponsors to consider updating their plans to reflect recent changes in applicable law. This alert provides information about four developments from 2008 that should now be on the radar screen for plan sponsors. (1) Code Section 415; [(2) Proposed Section 125 (Cafeteria Plan) Regulations; (3) Mental Health Parity; (4) The HEART Act.]" (Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP)

[Guidance Overview] Final Rule Adopting New FMLA Regulations
Excerpt: "On November 17, 2008, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued its Final Rule updating regulations regarding the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). This marks the first change to FMLA regulations since previous regulations went into effect in April 1995. The revised regulations address the new military leave entitlements under the FMLA and implement a number of other changes to the way that FMLA leave is administered. The new Final Rule will take effect January 16, 2009." (Briggs and Morgan PA)

Military Retirement: Background and Recent Developments (PDF)
18 pages. Excerpt: "There are three separate and distinct but related retirement systems within DOD: one for active duty members, one for the Reserve Components, and one for those who become disabled and are generally unable to complete a normal 20-year military career due to their physical disability." (U.S. Congressional Research Service)

[Guidance Overview] New FMLA Rules Require Significant Changes to Policies and Procedures
Excerpt: "[E]mployers will need to make significant changes to their FMLA policies, employee handbooks, and FMLA request processing practices in order to comply with the revised FMLA regulations. Although this Employment Law Alert provides highlights of the necessary changes, the revised regulations address a great number of detailed circumstances that are beyond the scope of this Alert. Additionally, along with the revised regulations, the DOL has also published more than 100 pages of background information and comments addressing the changes, some of which may prove helpful to employers when a particular problem arises." (Nixon Peabody LLP)

[Guidance Overview] The Family and Medical Leave Act Regulations Are Extensively Revised
Excerpt: "The new regulations also provide many changes to the certification and employer notice laws and the associated forms. Prudent employers should take immediate steps to update their FMLA policies and procedures, as well as notification and certification documents." (Poyner Spruill LLP)

[Guidance Overview] WebCast: New Regulations to Go into Effect Under the Family and Medical Leave Act (PDF)
59 pages. (Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP)

[Guidance Overview] Revised FMLA Regulations Impose New Employer and Employee Obligations
Excerpt: "The new regulations change some of the former interpretations, and renumber and reorganize certain provisions. DOL has also revised some sections to include language clarifying several provisions that had been subject to conflicting court interpretations. In addition to reorganizing, modifying, and clarifying existing regulations, the DOL issued new regulations addressing the January 2008 servicemember amendment to the FMLA, which provides leave for qualifying exigencies for eligible family members of personnel on active duty and to care for ill or injured servicemembers." (Seyfarth Shaw LLP)

[Guidance Overview] DOL Final Rule Would Expand and Clarify FMLA
Excerpt: "Provisions in the final rule call for increased notice obligations for employers so that employees will better understand their FMLA rights, while revising employee notice rules to minimize workplace disruptions due to unscheduled FMLA absences. The rule also contains technical changes that reflect decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court and lower courts." (Cypen & Cypen)

[Guidance Overview] The New FMLA Regulations: Leave for Families of Military Personnel
Excerpt: "The key requirements applicable to qualifying exigency leave and military caregiver leave are covered in the . . . article." (Faegre & Benson)

[Guidance Overview] Updating Family and Medical Leave Act Policies to Reflect Rule Changes
Excerpt: "As of January 16, employers should post the new FMLA notice, revise their handbooks to incorporate changes in their FMLA policies -- and be prepared to respond to leave requests by following the new procedure and using the new notice and certification forms. While the . . . article does not attempt to address all FMLA revisions -- especially those of a non-substantive nature -- it provides an overview of some significant changes employers should be aware of under the new rule." (Faegre & Benson)

Fewer Troops Choosing Redux Plan - and Lower Retirement Benefits
Excerpt: "The good news: The percentage of eligible service members choosing the $30,000 Redux bonus -- and the diminished lifetime retirement annuities that come with it -- [is] a lot lower than in 2001, the first year that anyone could actually get the bonus. The bad news: Even those lower figures, particularly for enlisted troops, are still robust enough to be worrisome. Last fiscal year, 28 percent of eligible enlisted Marines chose the fast cash over the security of a healthier retirement. In the Navy, the figure was 24 percent." (Army Times Publishing Company)

[Guidance Overview] Distributions from Health FSAs to Employees on Active Military Duty
Excerpt: "The IRS recently issued clarifications on the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008 (the HEART Act) which became law on June 18, 2008. This Act allows, but does not require, distributions from a pre-tax health flexible spending account (health FSA) to employees who leave for active military duty. This article contains a summary of the new IRS guidance issued in Notice 2008-82. For sake of this article, we will refer to a qualified reservist distribution (QRD) as a 'distribution.'" (TRI-AD)

Military Families Get Time Off for Care
Excerpt: "The Labor Department will release new regulations on Friday that will let family members of seriously injured or ill members of the armed services take up to 26 weeks off from work each year to care for them. The regulations will also allow family members of those called to active duty in the National Guard or the Reserves to take up to 12 weeks off from work so they can manage needed and often rushed matters regarding a service member's departure or return." (The New York Times; free registration required)

Labor Department Finalizes New Family Leave Rules
Excerpt: "The Labor Department on Thursday announced final revisions in the Family and Medical Leave Act, including new rules defining how families of wounded service members will be able to take unpaid leave to care for them. While the addition of military families to the landmark law received positive reviews, the Labor Department's other revisions to the Act caused concern among labor and employee advocates." (AP via The New York Times; free registration required)

[Guidance Overview] New FSA Withdrawal Feature for Eligible Reservists: Amending Cafeteria Plans Following the HEART Act
Excerpt: "QRDs are not required additions to FSAs. However, where a plan sponsor decides to offer QRDs, the cafeteria plan must be amended, and the amendment must apply uniformly to all eligible plan participants." (McGuireWoods LLP)

60 Minutes Report on USERRA
Excerpt: "A primary focus was on USERRA's costs to employers given the frequent and long tours of active duty that many Reservists now face in Iraq. There's the normal share of simply bad employers, but also an example of an employer that continually went beyond the call of duty in supporting its employees who were called up. That employer, while continuing that support, was frank about the growing burdens on losing its employees so frequently and for unknown periods of time." (Workplace Prof Blog)

[Guidance Overview] Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008: Impact on Health Care Flexible Spending Accounts
Excerpt: "HEART added section 125(h) to the Internal Revenue Code (the Code) which permits cafeteria plans to provide qualified reservist distributions (QRD) to an employee of all or a portion of the balance of the employee's unused amounts in the health FSA." (ERISAdiagnostics, Inc.)

[Guidance Overview] Arbitrability of USERRA Claims: Battle on the Home Front
Excerpt: "With the continuation of major troop deployments overseas, increasing numbers of employers and employees are finding themselves affected by the protections of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 ('USERRA'), which provides comprehensive re-employment and anti-discrimination rights to employees who serve in America's military. . . . Employees who seek to vindicate their rights under USERRA, however, are finding themselves at the center of a conflict among federal courts concerning whether USERRA claims may be subject to their employers' mandatory arbitration clauses." (Law.com)

[Guidance Overview] New Veterans' Benefits Law Amends USERRA to Expedite Enforcement and Address Statute of Limitations Issue
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: Whether the new deadlines imposed by the Act will actually expedite USERRA enforcement is unclear, since the Act does not include any penalty for failure to meet those deadlines. However, the Act also includes expanded reporting requirements for the enforcement process, suggesting that Congress has a keen interest in improving USERRA enforcement and that additional Congressional action might follow if the speed and quality of enforcement do not improve." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)

[Guidance Overview] FMLA Amendments: Significant Changes and Their Impact (PDF)
27 pages. Powerpoint presentation. (Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP)

[Guidance Overview] Reservists Don't Have to Use or Lose Their Health Flexible Spending Accounts (PDF)
1 page. Excerpt: "Taxation. Employers should report the [Qualified Reservist Distribution] on Form W-2 as wages for the year in which the QRD is paid to the employee. A QRD is also subject to employment taxes." (Seyfarth Shaw LLP)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Guidance on Health FSA Distributions Under the Heart Act
Excerpt: "Earlier this year, the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act (HEART Act) of 2008 became law. The HEART Act was designed to provide much-needed financial flexibility for our military. In its first guidance on the HEART Act, the IRS has released Notice 2008-82 which discusses Qualified Reservist Distributions (QRDs). QRDs provide certain military reservists with special options in their health care flexible spending accounts, but employer action is necessary to enable the process. This article explains the IRS guidance." (JPMorgan Chase & Co.)

[Guidance Overview] Health FSAs: IRS Issues Guidance on New 'Qualified Reservist Distributions'
Excerpt: "The Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008 (HEART) amended IRC §125 to permit military reservists who are called to active duty to withdraw the unused portion of their health flexible spending arrangements (FSAs). IRS recently issued guidance explaining how the new distributions are to be administered and provided a transition period until January 1, 2010 for amending the plan document. IRS Notice 2008-82." (Deloitte via BenefitsLink.com)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Details for Qualified Reservist Distribution from Health Flexible Spending Accounts
Excerpt: "Employers that have already allowed QRDs from their cafeteria plans should amend their plans to reflect their rules and procedures regarding QRDs no later than December 31, 2009. Some employers may have already amended their cafeteria plans to allow QRDs and, in that case, they should review the amendment to determine whether they need to make any changes based on the recent clarifications. QRDs made on or after January 1, 2010 will require a prospective plan amendment." (Faegre & Benson LLP)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Guidance on FSA Distributions under the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "HEART amended Internal Revenue Code Section 125 to allow employers to provide 'qualified reservist distributions' (QRDs) from health flexible spending accounts (FSAs) to employee-reservists who are called to active duty for 180 or more days, or for an indefinite period of time. . . . The IRS has issued Notice 2008-82, which provides important guidance for plan sponsors who wish to add this feature to their FSAs." (Buck Consultants)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Guidance on Qualified Reservist Distributions Addresses Many Open Issues
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: Although QRDs can help reservists avoid unwanted health FSA forfeitures under the use-or-lose rule, some employers may have delayed amending their health FSA and cafeteria plan documents pending further guidance on QRDs. The guidance in the notice provides much-needed clarification on issues that had been left open by the authorizing legislation, and should help these employers to decide whether to add this new feature to their plans." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)

[Guidance Overview] How Does HEART Affect 415 and PPA Amendments?
Excerpt: "Among other things, [the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008 (HEART)] will change the way retirement plans deal with employees in the military. This technical update will address three issues: 1. When must plans be amended to conform to HEART? 2. How does HEART affect final 415 regulation amendments? 3. How does HEART affect PPA amendments?" (SunGard)

IRS Provides Guidance on Reservist FSA Distributions
Excerpt: "The Internal Revenue Service has issued Notice 2008-82 providing guidance on qualified reservist distributions (QRDs) from health flexible spending accounts (FSAs) and including a transition rule allowing plans to be retroactively amended for QRDs made before January 1, 2010." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)

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