February had relatively little activity in the employee benefits world because a new Secretary of the Department of Health and Humans (HHS) was recently confirmed and HHS started its rulemaking under the new administration. On February 10, 2017, the U.S. Senate confirmed Rep. Tom Price as the new Secretary of HHS, who has a budget […]
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Compliance Recap – December 2016
December was a relatively busy month for new laws and administrative rulemaking in the employee benefits world. President Obama signed the 21st Century Cures Act into law. The IRS issued a reporting deadline reminder, two information reporting summaries, and Q&As on information reporting. A U.S. District Court issued a nationwide preliminary injunction regarding a portion […]
Read moreCompliance Recap // November 2016
November was a busy month for administrative rulemaking in the employee benefits world. The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) released advance informational copies of 2016 Form 5500 Annual Return/Report. The government released annual benefit plan amounts for 2017. The IRS […]
Read moreCompliance Recap // October 2016
October was a busy month for administrative rulemaking in the employee benefits world. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released final instructions for Forms 1094-C and 1095-C, guidance on the taxability of health care sharing ministry employer contributions, and health care information reporting tips. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released guidance on HIPAA […]
Read moreCompliance Recap // September 2016
September was not a very active month for administrative rulemaking in the employee benefits world. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Department of Labor (DOL), and Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) extended the public comment period for the proposed Form 5500 annual return/report revision. The IRS issued rules defining terms relating to marital status and setting […]
Read moreCompliance Recap // August 2016
August remained relatively quiet in the employee benefits world, with only new draft versions of the instructions for Forms 1095-C, 1095-C, 1094-B and 1095-B. The new draft versions of the specific forms were released in July. The IRS also released the annual contribution limits for health savings accounts (HSAs) and the deductible minimums and out-of-pocket […]
Read moreCompliance Recap // July 2016
During the month of July numerous new regulations were issued or proposed by federal agencies, and existing forms and processes were updated. In particular, penalties for various ERISA violations were increased, a major overhaul to Form 5500 filings was proposed, and draft 1095-C and 1094-C forms were released. Proposed regulations were also released relating to […]
Read moreCompliance Recap // June 2016
June was another quiet month for federal agencies in relation to employee benefits. A tri-agency proposed rule regarding expatriate health plans, excepted benefits, and essential health benefits was released. UBA Updates UBA’s Human Resources department released a checklist and advisor on new OSHA requirements: OSHA Reporting Changes: Employer Checklist OSHA’s Final Rule on Electronic Tracking […]
Read moreCompliance Recap // April 2016
As much of the country anxiously awaits the Department of Labor’s (DOL) long-promised final rule relating to overtime exemption regulations, the employee benefits space has been relatively quiet. March 31 was the first deadline relating to the IRS reporting of the employer shared responsibility provisions under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) and […]
Read moreIRS Releases HSA Inflation Adjusted Amounts for 2017
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Revenue Procedure 2016-28 provides the annual health savings account (HSA) contribution limitation for a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) in 2017. The HDHP minimum deductible and maximum out-of-pocket expense limits remain unchanged from 2016. For calendar year 2017: The annual contribution limitation under an HDHP is •$3,400 for self-only coverage •$6,750 for family […]
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