Daily News Updates for February

A bit more of a change up for the new year.  Several of my followers have noted that having one blog for news updates per month would be easier rather than breaking it up by week.  To further refine my new blogs I will do one for each month, in this case February, and update daily as my news letters go out.  I hope you find this helpful.

 

February 22, 2022:  I have not posted for a while as the news has been really slow.  But it is coming back now that year end is over and legislatures are coming back to work.  Today we have the minimum wage increase for airport workers in Houston, TX.

The Mayor has signed an Executive Order that will raise the minimum wage for Houston airport workers to the following:

  • $13.00 per hour, eff. April 1, 2022
  • $14.00 per hour, eff. Oct. 1, 2022
  • $15.00 per hour, eff. Oct. 1, 2023.

 

February 3, 2022: Pennsylvania: The Department of Revenue has announced on its website that due to the very high volume of users attempting to upload large volumes of information simultaneously, e-TIDES, the Department of Revenue’s online business tax filing system, has been experiencing technical issues. As a result, the department has extended the filing deadline for W2s, 1099s, and the REV-1667 to February 4, 2022.

 

 

 

 

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Corona Virus Update

The federal and state governments are focusing on providing either tax relief, lost wages relief or updates when employers are affected by the Corona Virus.  This may include delaying reporting or allowing for penalty relief.  It may also include mandatory sick pay, clarification on current sick pay mandates or changes to unemployment insurance qualifications. The following are some of the actions being taken by the IRS or states during this difficult time:

Internal Revenue Service: The IRS has established a special section focused on steps to help taxpayers, businesses and others affected by the coronavirus. This page will be updated as new information is available. This page includes information on (1) Deferring tax payments and (2) High deductible plans covering the pandemic.

So far, the following states are addressing the pandemic:

States Extending Filing Deadlines:

  • California: 60-day filing extension available
  • Maryland: Extend to June 1

State Unemployment and/or Disability:

The following states have suspended the waiting period for unemployment benefits for any employees affected by the Corona Virus: California, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and Washington.

Paid Sick Leave Updates or Guidance:

San Francisco: The San Francisco Office of Labor Standards Enforcement (OLSE) has issued guidance regarding the use of San Francisco paid sick leave for situations involving the recent Coronavirus outbreak.

Colorado: Effective March 11, 2020, emergency rules temporarily require employers in certain industries to provide a small amount of paid sick leave (up to four days) to employees with flu-like symptoms while awaiting coronavirus (COVID-19) testing. The DLSS has a webpage dedicated to the emergency rules with further information that will be updated as necessary.

New Jersey: Workers may use sick leave, apply for TDI or apply for Family Leave Insurance due to the Corona Virus.

Washington: Workers who are sick with the virus and have a Certification of a Serious Health Condition form signed by a healthcare provider may be eligible for Paid Family and Medical Leave benefits. The ESD has a comparison guide and a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs) to find out which programs and benefits are available in various circumstances.

As more information comes in for the states, I will update this blog.

MA Governor Proposes Reinstating “Fair-Share” Assessment

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker included a plan to reinstate the “fair-share contribution” formerly assessed against employers without a health insurance plan in his fiscal year 2018 budget.  The assessment would recommence as of January 1, 2018 if passed.  They are intended to partially cover the $600 million shortfall in the state healthcare system (Mass Health) for low-income residents. The fair-share contributions were repealed in 2013 with the advent of the Affordable Care Act.   For more detailed information check out the Associated Industries of Massachusetts blog. 

 

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Forms W-2 2016 Due Dates Update

form w-2 due dateEarlier this year the IRS announced that the due date for the copy of the Form W-2 required to be filed with the Social Security Administration changed. Instead of being due by the last day in February for paper filers or March 31st for electronic filers, all filers must submit the form by January 31st.  The change was made in an attempt to curtail excess fraud schemes that had cropped up around filing fraudulent 1040 forms and requesting nonexistent refunds.  The states, suffering from the same type of fraud, also began changing due dates as well.  Our white paper this time is a recap of the changes and lists the current due dates for the forms by state.  This list is current as of July 14th.  Of course, as legislatures return in the fall, we may expect more changes.  We will publish a final due date list in late December.

We hope you find the information useful. white paper forms w-2 due dates 2016

 

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Pay Stubs are Not W-2s–Duh?

I received an update recently from the Colorado Department of Revenue on a blog post they did on January 6th concerning paystubs and Forms W-2. 2015 form w-2 Now in my payroll departments I have always stated emphatically in my year end memo that you can not interchange the two forms and you cannot submit your taxes using the paystub.  But the problem seems to be that some tax preparation services are advertising “Bring us your pay stubs and we’ll file your tax return.”  So it seems that payroll departments need to gently remind their customers that you have to wait until the W-2s are released by payroll before you can file either on paper or electronically.

California Enacting Electronic Filing Requirement for All Employers

The state legislature has passed AB 1245, a bill that requires California employers of 10 or more employees to submit quarterly payroll tax returns and pay the associated payroll taxes electronically over the California Employment Development Department website starting in 2017. The bill also requires all employers to file and pay electronically effective January 1, 2018. The bill awaits the governor signature and he is expected to sign it.

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UT Moves W-2 Filing Date for 2016

Effective January 1, 2016 all employers must file Form TC-941-R, Utah Annual Withholding Reconciliation, and corresponding Forms W-2 (and 1099 with Utah taxes withheld) electronically by an accelerated due date of January 31 of the year following the calendar year for which the forms pertain with the Utah State Tax Commission.  The change is due to the passage of SB 250, which was signed by the governor on March 30, 2015. Currently, the deadline to file Forms TC-941R and W-2/1099 with the Commission is February 28 if filing on paper or March 31 if filing electronically.  The new due dates apply to the 2015 calendar year filings. However the actual due date will be February 1, 2016 as the 31st is on a Sunday in 2016.

In addition, the penalties for failing to file the forms electronically by the January 31 due date are as follows:

  • $30 per form, not to exceed $75,000 in a calendar year, if the employer files the form more than 14 days after the due date, but no later than 30 days after the due date;
  • $60 per form, not to exceed $200,000 in a calendar year, if the employer files the form more than 30 days after the due date but on or before June 1; or
  • $100 per form, not to exceed $500,000 in a calendar year, if the employer files the form after June 1; or fails to file the form.

UT Expands Electronic Filing in 2016

Recent legislation ( S.B. 250) passed in Utah is expanding the types of forms that must be filed electronically by employers and moving the due dates. The employer’s annual income tax withholding return must be filed electronically by January 31 of the year following that for which the report is made. The old due date was February 28.

In addition, an employer that issues any of the following forms for a taxable year must file the forms with the commission on or before January 31 in an electronic format approved by the commission:

  • a federal Form W-2;

  • a federal Form 1099 filed for purposes of withholding; or

  • a federal form designated by the commission as substantially similar to a federal Form W-2 or federal Form 1099.

Under prior law, an employer that was required to file a federal Form W-2 in an electronic format was also required to file Form W-2 electronically for Utah income tax withholding purposes. However, there was no prior requirement to electronically file Form 1099 or any similar form for state withholding purposes.

VT Increasing Health Care Contributions for 2015

Vermont is increasing the Health Care Contributions for 2015. According to the Form HC-1 instructions that were revised in February 2015, the employer health care contribution for calendar year 2015 is increasing to $140.84 per quarter (up from $133.30 for the third and fourth quarters 2014) for each “uncovered” full time equivalent (FTE) employee in excess of four. The change is effective for the first quarter 2015 return due April 30, 2015.