California Payroll Report articles from November 2003

California Payroll Report archives from November 2003

IRS holds fast with split-dollar life insurance regs.(Brief Article)
November 21, 2003... The IRS has issued final regulations [TD 9092] that provide comprehensive tax rules for split-dollar life insurance arrangements that are entered into, or materially modified, after September 17, 2003. (Split-dollar life insurance...

Lower "luxury limit" on employer-provided cars.
November 21, 2003... In your last issue, we reported that the IRS had increased the standard mileage rate used in the "cents-per-mile" method to value employees' business use of their personal vehicles (for tax-free reimbursement purposes) or employees' personal...

IRS updates the high-low per diem rates for 2004.
November 21, 2003... Following the release of the 2004 CONUS per diem rates (see your October 7 issue), the IRS has updated the substantiation rules for business travel-related lodging, meals, and incidental expenses [Rev. Proc. 2003-80, IRB 2003-45 (11/10/03)]....

Deemed IRAs are separate from qualified retirement plans.
November 21, 2003... In the past two years, there's been a lot of coverage on the catch-up contributions and increased pension plan contribution limits initiated by the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA). In fact, with all the...

"High-cost" localities for 2004 CONUS per diems: [effective November 1, 2003].
November 21, 2003... For 2004, the IRS has set the "high" rate at $207 and the "low" at $126. That's just a slight increase from the 2003 rates of $204 and $125. But there are now fewer localities that will qualify as "high cost" according to the IRS standards...

Electronic expense reporting can qualify as an accountable plan for T&E reimbursements.
November 21, 2003... As we have mentioned often (in previous issues, as well as this one), a determining factor in the taxability of reimbursements for business-related travel and entertainment (T&E)expenses is the status of your reimbursement arrangement. If...

Survey shows that payroll managers are ready and willing to go paperless.
November 21, 2003... Paperless payroll. That's a "carrot" that has been dangled in front of managers drowning in a sea of forms, returns, paychecks, and envelopes for nearly two decades. But while progress was slow back in the early days of electronic fund...

SSA announces 2004 taxable wage base.(Social Security Administration)(Brief Article)
November 7, 2003... The Social Security Administration (SSA) has announced that the Social Security-taxable wage base will increase to $87,900 in 2004. That means up to $900 more of an employee's wages will be subject to the Social Security portion of the FICA...

IRS increases standard mileage rate for 2004.(Internal Revenue Service)
November 7, 2003... Last year, many taxpayers--facing a steady rise in prices at the gas pumps--were chagrined to hear that the IRS had actually decreased the standard mileage rate for 2003 (used in calculating business travel reimbursements or tax deductions)....

IRS announces 2004 pension plan contribution and benefit limitations.(Internal Revenue Service overview of limitations)
November 7, 2003... The IRS has announced the annual cost-of-living adjustments applicable to dollar limitations on benefits and contributions under qualified retirement plans. Many of the pension plan limitations will change for 2004. For most of the...

"Tips-only" pay and overtime violations cost restaurant chain more than $660,000 in back wages.
November 7, 2003... As the result of an investigation by the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the US Department of Labor, Jalisco of Kingsport, Inc., has paid $662,286 in back wages to workers at eight of its restaurants in Tennessee. The WHD investigation...

Social Security changes in store in 2004 for employees close to retirement age.
November 7, 2003... The amount of Social Security retirement benefits an individual receives each month depends in part on the individual's (or his or her spouse's) earnings record. The monthly amount is also affected by the individual's age at retirement, and...

New guidelines give you more "fax-back" options.
November 7, 2003... The IRS has adopted new facsimile guidelines that will make corresponding with the agency easier. The changes, which stem from recommendations from several tax practitioner organizations, expand the list of documents and information the IRS...

FLSA's tip credit provision offers qualified employers and employees a win-win option.(Fair Labor Standards Act)
November 7, 2003... Tips received by employees are generally considered income for federal income and employment tax purposes. Yet it's easy to see that tipped employees do enjoy certain advantages from receiving some of their income in cash each workday. What...

When bad weather threatens, the right pay policy can prevent disaster.
November 7, 2003... No matter what the season, Mother Nature can wreak havoc with your operations. And even if you're lucky enough to work in an area that is spared heavy snow and ice storms this winter, there are still three other seasons in which the weather...