October Employee Benefits Tips and Guidance from NYSTIA Member Brown & Brown

In their Employee Benefits August Newsletter, NYSTIA Member Brown & Brown Inc. provided important guidance on a number of issues, most notably:

2023 Affordability Percentage:

As a reminder, the IRS issued the contribution percentage for the 2023 ACA Affordability Threshold. For Plan Years beginning in 2023, employer-sponsored coverage will be considered affordable if the employee's self-only contribution does not exceed 9.12% of the employee's household income. An employer chooses to use one of any of the three Affordability Safe Harbor Methods below:

• Rate of Pay Method
• Form W-2 Method
• Federal Poverty Level (FPL) Method. Read more.

NYS Minimum Wage Increase:

The NYS Department of Labor announced scheduled increases to the State's minimum wage effective December 31, 2022. There is no change for New York City employers, Long Island, or Westchester employers, the remainder of upstate New York will see increases. This will also impact the minimum salary levels to be paid to Executive and Administrative exempt employees. Read more.

NYS Paid Family Leave:

Beginning in 2023, a “covered family member" for NYS PFL will add siblings, which includes biological or adopted siblings, half-siblings and step-siblings.

Employees using Paid Family Leave in New York will receive 67% of their average weekly wage, up to a cap of 67% of the New York State average weekly wage.

For 2023, the New York State average weekly wage is $1,688.19, which means the maximum weekly benefit is $1,131.08. The 2023 average weekly wage is $62.72 more than the maximum weekly benefit for 2022.

Non-Discrimination Testing Reminder:

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has various rules in place to ensure health plans do not discriminate in favor of highly compensated individuals, highly compensated employees or key employees with respect to plan eligibility, pre-tax contributions, or benefits. Health plans (Health FSA, Dependent Care FSA, HRA, Group Life) must undergo nondiscrimination testing each year to determine if a plan is discriminatory and the results may be subject to review upon an audit of your plan.

IRS regulations require nondiscrimination testing to be performed by the last day of the plan year; however, it is recommended that employers conduct a pre-test mid plan year to determine if any corrective steps need to be taken in the event the plan discriminates.

NYSTIA member Mike Mastroleo is happy to connect with anyone who has questions or may need guidance with Employee Benefits.

Contact Mike with your needs or questions:

Brown & Brown partners with most small & large size companies.