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Can you please let us know how you handle late reported deaths concerning 1099-R tax reporting? Example: Annuitant dies in 2013, benefits are paid by direct deposit, spousal beneficiary never reports the death to the pension group until 2017. (SSA master file did not have death) All the time the pension group was reporting the income for 2013 through 2016 under the deceased person. Would you issue corrected 1099's all the way back to the member's death year, and then issue new 1099's from that point forward under the survivor's tin for each specific year? Or, report the whole amount received from the death forward on a current year 1099? (with keeping constructive receipt in mind) Can the tax withholdings from the prior years be "transferred" from the deceased person to the surviving spouse for 1099 purposes? What about 2013 being a closed tax year, or if the death was many years prior? It would be hard to understand how their tax returns would accurate. Unfortunately this happens more frequently than one would think. (an issue with direct deposit being too automated and occasional dishonesty) We haven't been able to find much guidance on how to proceed for the tax reporting. Thank you!

I hope that BenefitsLinks smart practitioners will help me think through some practical questions. A few States have issued some guidance about tax-reporting for same-sex spouses. Nebraska http://www.revenue.nebraska.gov/question/same-sex_FAQ.html North Carolina http://www.dornc.com/faq/ssmarriage_faq.html Ohio http://www.tax.ohio.gov/Portals/0/communications/information_releases/DOMA_EWH_InforRelease11142013.pdf Wisconsin http://www.revenue.wi.gov/faqs/ise/samesex.html#samesex1 Some of these documents suggest that the amount an employer reports as its employees wages for State income tax purposes must add the amount that is the fair-market value of health coverage provided to the employees spouse if the spouse, even if recognized as a spouse for Federal taxes, is not recognized as a spouse under the States constitution or statute. If followed, this would result in different wage amounts for Federal and State (and locality) tax purposes. (As a Pennsylvania and Philadelphia resident, I know that there can be other kinds of differences between Federal, State, and locality wages.) And it asks an employer to estimate a fair-market value for something that has no market. What proxy or method should an employer use to estimate the value of the coverage attributable to the spouse? If an employer fails to do this reporting (and a States tax agency detects that the employer didnt do it), do you think that a State will be aggressive or lax in its enforcement efforts? Why? If an employer cant settle (with little or no money, and a sin no more pledge) a States enforcement effort, will a State really take this to litigation?