Review of Qualified Plan Compensation Definition May be Needed Due To Tax Reform

Anne M. Meyer • March 6, 2018

Tax reform made few changes that directly impact qualified retirement plans; however, it made some changes that may indirectly impact qualified retirement plans.  We previously blogged on the indirect changes that tax reform had on hardship distributions. 

Tax reform also made changes to the taxation of certain fringe benefits that may impact the definition of “compensation” used in some qualified plans. Some qualified plans define compensation for plan purposes based on the taxability of a fringe benefit.  For example, a qualified plan may exclude from its definition of compensation “moving expenses, to the extent excluded from gross income.”  After tax reform, employers may no longer pay or reimburse moving expenses on a tax-free basis.  In the example, since moving expenses are no longer excludable from gross income, they will become includible in the definition of compensation under the qualified plan.

Plan sponsors may want to take this opportunity to review the definitions of compensation used in their qualified plans against the pay codes in their payroll systems to make sure the proper items are includible under the qualified plans’ definitions of compensation.  A disconnect between the qualified plan’s definition of compensation and the payroll system pay codes is one of the most common errors that plan sponsors make in administering qualified plans. 

 

Employee burnout: what it is and how to prevent it

By Mardy Gould • May 24, 2024
Employee burnout has become an epidemic in today’s modern workplace. So much so that the World Health Organization (WHO) officially recognizes it as an “occupational phenomenon.”1 While many used to consider mounting workplace stress an individual employee problem, these days, it’s become an employer’s responsibility to prevent burnout before it hurts productivity and business performance—not to mention your employees’ physical and mental health. Luckily, you can prevent burnout from affecting your workforce in several ways. This article will explore the causes and signs of employee burnout and the steps you can take to create a positive work environment where employees feel safe from toxic stress levels.

Form 720 and PCORI fee FAQs

By Mardy Gould • May 23, 2024
If you're a small business owner, you may have heard of the acronym PCORI and the fees that come with it. But what is PCORI, and how does it apply to your organization? Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), sponsors of self-insured health plans must pay a fee to fund the federal Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). PCORI is an independent organization the ACA created to conduct research to help healthcare consumers make better decisions for their specific needs and outcomes. It also performs research related to clinical effectiveness. Employers offering a self-insured medical reimbursement health plan, such as a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA), must pay this fee by July 31 each year via Form 7201. This fee was initially set to expire in 2019, but Congress extended it through September 30, 20292, due to the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 20203.
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