Aon Washington Report
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September 25, 2017
Retirement
PBGC Releases Technical Update on Active Participant Reduction Reportable Events
On September 15, 2017, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) released Technical Update 2017-1, which provides guidance to avoid duplicate reporting when a plan has previously reported an active participant reduction due to a single cause. This guidance takes effect immediately and may eliminate the need to file a reportable event for an active participant reduction due to “attrition” by including participants reported previously as a result of a single-cause event to the year-end participant count.
PBGC Technical Update 2017-1 is available here.
Other HR/Employment
IRS Publishes Proposed Amendments to Regulations on Use of Truncated Taxpayer Identification Numbers on Employee Forms W-2, Wage and Tax Statement
On September 20, 2017, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published proposed amendments to the regulations under Sections 6051 and 6052 of the Internal Revenue Code (Code). To aid employers' efforts to protect employees from identity theft, the amendments would amend existing regulations to permit employers to voluntarily truncate employees' social security numbers (SSNs) on copies of Forms W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, that are furnished to employees so that the truncated SSNs appear in the form of IRS truncated taxpayer identification numbers. These amendments to the regulations also would modify the regulations under Section 6109 to clarify the application of the truncation rules to Forms W-2 and to add an example illustrating the application of these rules. Additionally, the proposed amendments to the regulations would delete obsolete provisions and update cross references in the regulations under Sections 6051 and 6052. These proposed amendments to the regulations would affect employers who are required to furnish Forms W-2 and employees who receive Forms W-2.
Comments and requests for a public hearing are due by December 18, 2017.
The IRS proposed regulations are available here.
Aon Publications
Once More, With Feeling—Senate Set to Vote (Again) on Bill to “Repeal & Replace” ACA
The U.S. Senate has announced it will hold a vote the week of September 25, 2017, on health care reform legislation sponsored by Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA). The Graham-Cassidy bill would convert federal dollars currently spent on Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance subsidies and Medicaid expansion into block grants to the states that would allow each state to operate its own health insurance market. The bill would also convert Medicaid funding to the states into a per capita distribution formula.
The Aon bulletin, which provides a brief overview of the legislation, is available here.