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[Official Guidance]

Text of IRS AIR Submission Composition and Reference Guide, v. 2.6 (PDF)
112 pages, dated December 2015. "The purpose of this document is to provide guidance to all types of external transmitters about composing and successfully transmitting compliant submissions to IRS. The audience of this document is: [1] Issuer: A business filing their own ACA Information Returns regardless of whether they are required to file electronically (transmit 250 or more of the same type of information return) or volunteer to file electronically.... [2] Transmitter -- A third-party sending the electronic information return data directly to the IRS on behalf of any business required to file. [3] Software Developer -- An organization writing either origination or transmission software according to IRS specifications." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

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[Guidance Overview]

IRS Health Care Tax Tip 2015-85: Eight Facts for ALEs about New Information Statements to be Filed in 2016
"The due date for furnishing these forms is extended.... [An] ALE must file Form 1095-C or a substitute form for each employee who was a full-time employee for any month of the calendar year.... [An] ALE that sponsors a self-insured plan must file Form 1095-C for each employee who enrolls in the self-insured health coverage or enrolls a family member in the coverage, regardless of whether the employee is a full-time employee for any month of the calendar year." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

[Guidance Overview]

IRS Extends ACA Employer Reporting Due Dates
"Employers will have 60 more days to send notices to participants and beneficiaries, and about 90 more days to send notices to the IRS about health coverage offered and employees' health coverage status, the IRS announced Dec. 28.... On Dec. 7, the IRS increased the penalty on 'providers of coverage' -- employers and insurers -- that fail to report, and violate Code Sections 6722 and 6721. The fine is now $250 for each return that was not sent, with a maximum penalty of $3 million." (Thompson SmartHR Manager)  

[Guidance Overview]

Cadillac Tax Delayed to 2020; Health Plan Information Reporting Due Dates Extended
"The indexing under the Cadillac Tax will continue while the tax is delayed so that the dollar limits in effect in 2020 will reflect application of indexing had the delay not been enacted. Of perhaps greater significance, the Act makes the Cadillac Tax deductible which will lessen the impact of the tax for certain employers.... [T]he IRS noted that employers and other coverage providers that do not meet the extended due dates [for ACA reporting] are still encouraged to furnish and file, and the IRS will take such steps into consideration when determining whether to abate penalties for reasonable cause.... The IRS also noted that it will take into account the extent to which the employer or other coverage provider is taking steps to ensure that it is able to comply with the reporting requirements for 2016." (McDermott Will & Emery)  

[Guidance Overview]

Reason to Celebrate: IRS Extends ACA Reporting Deadlines
"As has often been the case with ACA relief, this extension is offered so close to the original compliance deadlines that some ALEs may not need or even be operationally able to take full advantage of it, and the Notice makes clear that the IRS will be prepared to accept ACA returns beginning in January 2016. However even those ALEs that had already invested substantial time and money in fulfilling the original reporting and statement deadlines were struggling with the complexity of the forms and reporting codes, and the extension will allow for a less frenzied and hopefully more accurate reporting process." (E is for ERISA)  

[Guidance Overview]

Another Municipality in New Jersey Passes Sick Leave Ordinance, While New Jersey Legislature Considers Statewide Law
"The City of New Brunswick recently became the eleventh municipality in New Jersey to mandate paid sick leave, but will be the first city in the state to specify that leave may be used for purposes related to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. On the state-level, the New Jersey Senate approved a sick leave bill earlier this month which, if implemented in its current form, would preclude additional cities from adopting local sick leave laws." (Proskauer's Law and the Workplace)  

Repeat Violators of Health Privacy Laws Often Go Unpunished
"CVS is among hundreds of health providers nationwide that repeatedly violated the federal patient privacy law known as HIPAA between 2011 and 2014 ... Other well-known repeat offenders include the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Walgreens, Kaiser Permanente and Wal-Mart. And yet, the agency tasked with enforcing the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act took no punitive action against these providers[.]" (National Public Radio)  

[Official Guidance]

Text of IRS Announcement 2016-02: Federal Tax Treatment of Identity Protection Services (PDF)
"The Treasury Department and the IRS have determined that Announcement 2015-22 should be extended to include identity protection services provided to employees or other individuals before a data breach occurs. Accordingly, the IRS will not assert that an individual must include in gross income the value of identity protection services provided by the individual's employer or by another organization to which the individual provided personal information ... Additionally, the IRS will not assert that an employer providing identity protection services to its employees must include the value of the identity protection services in the employees' gross income and wages. The IRS also will not assert that these amounts must be reported on an information return (such as Form W-2 or Form 1099-MISC) filed with respect to such individuals. Any further guidance on the taxability of these benefits will be applied prospectively. This announcement does not apply to cash received in lieu of identity protection services." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

Court Rejects Argument That Participant 'Bargaining Power' Is Required for 'Top Hat' Status
"A former employee of a Pennsylvania non-profit cannot rely on [ERISA] for benefit protections as the plan in which he participated is a 'top hat' plan ... [The opinion] said even if the court were to accept that the [1990 DOL] letter adds bargaining power to the list of elements in determining top hat plan status, the letter itself ... [indicates] the DOL recognized that top hat plan participants have other means besides direct negotiation to affect or influence the plan design." [Sikora v. UPMC, No. 12-1860 (W.D. Penn. Dec. 22, 2015)] (PLANSPONSOR)  

PBGC to Pay Benefits at Walter Energy Inc.
PBGC [Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation]

Pension Rights Center Needs Your Help to Continue its Advocacy and Legal Assistance Programs for Current and Future Retirees
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