HR360 is your complete HR resource for all things related to healthcare, workplace issues, recruitment and retention, and compliance. Highlights from this month include:
- Form 5500 Filing Deadline for Many Health Plans is July 31: Group health plan administrators are reminded that Form 5500 must be filed with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) by the last day of the seventh month after the plan year ends. For calendar-year plans, that due date falls on July 31.
- Understanding IRS 'Pay or Play' Penalty Letters: The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is currently issuing Letter 226-Jto certain applicable large employers (ALE) it believes owe a penalty for failing to comply with the Affordable Care Act's employer shared responsibility provisions ("pay or play" provisions). If you receive a letter from the IRS, please contact Nonstop Wellness and we can support you through the process.
- 2019 'Pay or Play' Affordability Percentage Set at 9.86%: For plan years beginning in 2019, the Internal Revenue Service has announcedthat coverage will generally be considered affordable if the employee's required contribution for the lowest cost self-only health plan offered is 86% or less of his or her household income for the taxable year.
- New Minimum Wage Rates Effective July 1: Effective July 1, 2018, the minimum wage will increase in the following states and localities as follows:
- Maryland: $10.10 per hour
- Oregon: $10.75 per hour ($12.00 per hour in the Portland metropolitan area; $10.50 per hour in nonurban counties)
- District of Columbia (DC): $13.25 per hour
- Los Angeles, CA: $13.25 per hour for employers with 26 or more employees; $12.00 per hour for employers with 25 or fewer employees
- Chicago, IL: $12.00 per hour
- Cook County, IL: $11.00 per hour
- San Francisco, CA: $15.00 per hour
- Belmont, CA: $12.50 per hour
- Emeryville, CA: $15.00 per hour
- Malibu, CA: $13.25 per hour for employers with 26 or more employees; $12.00 per hour for employers with 25 or fewer employees
- Milpitas, CA: $13.50 per hour
- Pasadena, CA: $13.25 per hour for employers with 26 or more employees; $12.00 per hour for employers with 25 or fewer employees
- San Leandro, CA: $13.00 per hour
- Montgomery County, MD: $12.25 per hour for employers with 51 or more employees; $12.00 per hour for employers with 2-50 employees
- Reminder: OSHA Form 300A Electronic Submission Deadline is July 1: Employers are reminded that they must electronically submit information from their 2017 Forms 300A to OSHA by July 1.
We strongly recommend checking in with HR360 each month to stay on top of the latest HR and state-related news!