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In today’s tough job market and economy, the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) may help employers. Many business owners are hiring and should be aware that the WOTC is available to employers that hire workers from targeted groups who face significant barriers to employment. The credit is worth as much as $2,400 for each eligible employee ($4,800, $5,600 and $9,600 for certain veterans and $9,000 for “long-term family assistance recipients”). It’s generally limited to eligible employees who begin work for the employer before January 1, 2026.

If you were an early Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) borrower who has not yet applied for forgiveness, your loan payments may be due soon.

Like the rest of the country, we have been waiting to learn what President Biden’s federal tax proposal will look like, and how it will impact individuals and businesses. On October 28, 2021 Biden announced a new version of the Build Back Better (BBB) framework that outlines spending provisions of $1.75 trillion over ten years, and revenue offsets of up to $2 trillion during that time period. 

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which is currently waiting to be signed by President Biden, would retroactively end the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC) as of September 30, 2021.

When the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TJCA) was enacted in 2017, it limited the amount of state and local taxes (SALT) that individuals can deduct for federal income tax purposes to $10,000 (or $5,000 for a married individual filing separately). This “SALT cap” has brought on a flurry of legislative action as states enact Pass-Through Entity (PTE) tax elections that allow owners of PTEs such as S-Corporations and Partnerships to bypass the SALT cap by allowing their share of taxes to be paid by the entity at the entity level, and therefore lowering the owner’s federal income tax liability.

Are employees at your business traveling again after months of virtual meetings? In Notice 2021-52, the IRS announced the fiscal 2022 “per diem” rates that became effective October 1, 2021. Taxpayers can use these rates to substantiate the amount of expenses for lodging, meals and incidental expenses when traveling away from home. (Taxpayers in the transportation industry can use a special transportation industry rate.)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has a new temporary sick leave program related to COVID-19. Under Chapter 16 of the Acts of 2021 (An Act Providing for Massachusetts COVID-19 Emergency Paid Sick Leave), employers are now required to make paid leave time available to employees for COVID-related illnesses, quarantine, and vaccinations. Employers may then apply for reimbursement from the state.

As mitigation measures related to COVID-19 ease, it will be interesting to see which practices and regulatory changes taken in response to the pandemic remain in place long-term. One might be relief from a sometimes-inconvenient requirement related to the administration of 401(k) plans.

On April 19, New York State passed a budget bill that included a Pass-Through Entity (PTE) tax election that impacts partnerships, limited liability companies treated as partnerships, and S-corporations.

Many employee benefit plan sponsors have faced logistical challenges during the pandemic, such as office closures and remote work environments, which have made it difficult to remit participant 401(k) contribution deposits on time. In response to these challenges, the Department of Labor (DOL)'s Employee Benefit Security Administration (EBSA) has issued Disaster Relief Notice (2020-01), which provides flexibility and relief to sponsors struggling with remittance delays due to the pandemic.