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IRS Releases 2020 Contribution Limits for Flexible Spending Accounts, Health Savings Accounts & Retirement Plans
In Notice 2019-59, the IRS highlighted the following adjustments taking effect on Jan. 1, 2020, for 401(k), 403(b) and most 457 plans: Defined Contribution Plan Limits 2020 2019 Change Maximum employee elective deferral $19,500 $19,000 +$500 Employee catch-up...
Failure to Encrypt Mobile Devices Leads to $3 Million HIPAA Settlement
The University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) has agreed to pay $3 million to the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and take substantial corrective action to settle potential violations of the Health Insurance...
Guard Your Company Against Employee Ghosting
Ghosting may be on the rise, but employers can take steps to protect themselves from disappearing candidates. As the unemployment rate in California remains low, a new phenomenon in recruiting and hiring is taking hold. Called “ghosting,” this term is most common in...
Payroll Company Vanishes with $35 Million, Stiffing Employers
A payroll company, MyPayrollHR, based in upstate New York, has vanished with nearly $35 million in payroll funds from its customers, leaving thousands of employees missing their pay but also not forwarding payroll taxes to the government for the employers. This...
Why Employers Need to be HIPAA Compliant
HIPAA compliance for employers is a complicated and nuanced topic. No employer group is the same when it comes to supplying health benefits to their employees. Smaller employers (fewer than 50 lives) usually outsource the day-to-day administrative tasks to...
AB5 New Employee Classification Test Signed into Law
Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation placing in law the test for determining when a worker is an independent contract as outlined in a California Supreme Court decision last year. AB 5 codifies the “ABC” test adopted by the California Supreme Court in Dynamex...
Counting Employees Doesn’t Always Add Up!
Employee counts are used to determine what laws, rules, fees and penalties apply to a health plan and/or the employer sponsor. The methods for counting employees are as varied as the laws that affect them. Counting employees can leave you feeling cross-eyed. With the...
Cities of Petaluma and Sonoma Increase Minimum Wage
The local minimum wage ordinance trend continues to heat up, again, as Petaluma and Sonoma, two Bay Area cities, approved to accelerate the minimum wage rates currently set forth in California's minimum wage schedule, by adopting their own local minimum wage...
California Cleans Up Sexual Harassment Training Law
On August 30, 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed clean-up legislation (S.B. 778) clarifying the state’s sexual harassment prevention training and education law, particularly when mandatory training must be completed. Why a Clean-Up Bill? California’s...
Form I-9 Is Expiring on August 31, 2019
The federal government's Form I-9, used by HR departments across the country to verify workers' employment eligibility, is expiring at the end of the month. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is working on updating the form, but it may not happen...
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