The Washington Report
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May 1, 2019
Health
EBSA Releases Policy Statement Relating to the U.S. District Court Ruling in State of New York v. United States Department of Labor
On April 29, 2019, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) released a policy statement regarding Association Health Plans (AHPs). The DOL reiterates its disagreement with the district court's ruling in The State of New York v. United States Department of Labor. (The U.S. Department of Justice filed an appeal on April 26, 2019.)
The DOL states that for an interim period of time it “will not pursue enforcement actions against parties for potential violations stemming from actions taken before the district court's decision in good faith reliance on the AHP rule's validity, as long as parties meet their responsibilities to association members and their participants and beneficiaries to pay health benefit claims as promised. Nor will the Department take action against existing AHPs for continuing to provide benefits to members who enrolled in good faith reliance on the AHP rule's validity before the district court's order, through the remainder of the applicable plan year or contract term.”
The policy statement is available here.
The news release is available here.
Other HR/Employment
Ruling: Employers Must Provide 2018 Pay Data by September 30, 2019; EEOC Must Also Choose to Collect a Second Year of Pay Data From 2017 or 2019
On April 25, 2019, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan issued a ruling that requires employers who file EEO-1 reports to submit 2018 pay data (sorted by race, sex, and ethnicity) by September 30, 2019. This reporting requirement applies to all employers with at least 100 employees. Additionally, the ruling also orders the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to collect a second year of pay data from employers, but the EEOC may choose the year: 2017 or 2019. If the EEOC selects to collect 2017 data, it will be due by September 30, 2019, along with the 2018 data. 2019 data will be due early 2020.
In the ruling, Judge Chutkan ordered the EEOC to issue a statement on its website about the 2018 data collection deadline (September 30) by April 29, 2019. The Judge also told the agency that it must alert filers if it has decided by April 29, 2019, whether to collect 2017 or 2019 data. If the EEOC has not decided by April 29 whether to collect 2017 or 2019 data, it must issue a statement of its decision on the website by May 3, 2019.
Please note this is a developing story and readers should always check the EEOC website for the latest information and guidance.
The ruling is available here.
The EEOC EEO-1 Survey website is available here.