President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (the Act) on March 11, 2021. The Act provides COBRA premium subsidies, increases the tax-exclusion amount for employer-sponsored dependent care assistance programs and expands who may be eligible to receive premium tax credits for marketplace coverage. This alert explains how these provisions may impact your welfare benefit plans. Please contact your Dykema benefits attorney to explore the new provisions in greater depth ...
CHEAT SHEET Investment. Implementing a mentorship program between a corporation and a law firm does not require significant monetary investment, rather a considerable time investment. Diversify activities. After identifying and understanding the needs and profiles of participants, create activities that include trainings, CLEs, social events, and facility and firm visits. Benefits ...
On December 14, 2018, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) published a Request for Information (RFI) about ways to modify the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules[1]to promote the transition of the health care industry to a value-based Medicare payment model and improve care coordination for patients. See “Request for Information on Modifying HIPAA Rules to Improve Coordinated Care,” 83 FR 64302 Page:64302-64310 ...
While a few legislative races are still being tabulated, Democrats maintained their supermajority status in both the Illinois House of Representatives and Senate in this election cycle. Current projections, that are subject to change pending mail-in ballots, are for a Democrat supermajority of 72-46 in the House and 41-18 in the Senate. This was not an unexpected outcome, though most pre-election predictions had the Democrats achieving an even wider gap in the Legislature ...
Over the last several years, the emphasis on privacy and data protection has grown significantly. With the amount of data collected by companies and technology skyrocketing, the need to protect personal information has been at the forefront of states’ legislative agendas. While all 50 states now have breach notification statutes, states are now taking a closer look at issues such as tracking online behavior and the use of biometric data ...
With the State of Illinois’ recent legalization of recreational cannabis, municipalities have started to debate whether to “opt in” to allow such businesses. While municipalities cannot prohibit the use of recreational cannabis, they can decide whether recreational cannabis businesses are allowed to operate within their boundaries. Local officials are just starting to consider the pros and cons of recreational cannabis businesses in their communities ...
On January 13, the Illinois legislature unanimously passed the Predatory Loan Prevention Act (SB 1792) (“PLPA”), which would prohibit lenders from charging more than 36% APR on consumer loans. Specifically, the PLPA would apply to any non-commercial loan made to a consumer in Illinois, including closed-end and open-end credit, retail installment sales contracts, and motor vehicle retail installment sales contracts ...
Last Friday, the Illinois Supreme Court delivered the highly anticipatedRosenbach v. Six Flags Entertainment Corp., 2019 IL 123186, opinion. Businesses and consumers alike watched for the Court’s opinion regarding whether mere technical violations of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”) gave plaintiffs the requisite standing to seek damages under the statute ...
In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor J.B. Pritzker has provided relief to Illinois consumers’ pocketbooks. On April 14, 2020, the Governor issued Executive Order in Response to COVID-19 No. 23 (“Executive Order 23”). The stated purpose of Executive Order 23 is to ensure that Illinois residents have funds for essential items such as food, medicine, housing, and transportation by temporarily suspending certain consumer debt collection measures ...
The Illinois legislature has approved and Governor Pritzker has signed into law significant revisions to the Illinois Tax Delinquency Amnesty Act (35 ILCS 745/10). The new amnesty program is the first in Illinois since 2010 and is an important opportunity for noncompliant taxpayers to resolve both known and previously unknown Illinois tax obligations. The amnesty program will run from October 1, 2019, through November 15, 2019, and is generally open to all taxpayers ...
What Does it All Mean? With the new Democratic House majority and Republicans maintaining control of the Senate, Washington, D.C., now enters a period of divided government in the run up to the 2020 presidential election. Democrats and Republicans, including President Trump, will have to compromise on a budget and impending debt limit and sequestration, as well as spending levels for the coming fiscal years in order to avoid a government shutdown ...
On April 1, the DOL provided employers with further clarity on the FFCRA by publishing temporary regulations. These regulations will be effective from April 1, 2020, until December 31, 2020—the same effective period of the FFCRA. Also relevant to employers, the IRS issued guidance regarding the FFCRA tax credit ...
On April 1, the DOL provided employers with further clarity on the FFCRA by publishing temporary regulations. These regulations will be effective from April 1, 2020, until December 31, 2020—the same effective period of the FFCRA. Also relevant to employers, the IRS issued guidance regarding the FFCRA tax credit ...
Michigan voters approved Proposal 1 and made Michigan the twelfth U.S. jurisdiction to legalize recreational marijuana. The Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act (MRTMA) went into effect December 6. What has been lost in all the smoke from the past several weeks is how MRTMA impacts the regulation of industrial hemp ...
With an additional $310 billion in funding for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) signed into law, energy companies should consider applying for PPP loans in order to maintain daily operations during the COVID-19 crisis. Generally speaking, companies may receive a maximum loan amount of the lesser of two-and-a-half times their average monthly payroll costs, or $10 million ...
CONGRESS PASSES TRADEMARK MODERNIZATION ACT LEGISLATION In December 2020, the U.S. Congress took action that will have a significant effect on brand holders. At the end of the year, Congress passed the Trademark Modernization Act (“TMA”) that, inter alia, provides additional tools to the USPTO to respond to the rise in improper behavior in trademark filings including filing fraudulent claims of use ...
Under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Director may modify certain patent and trademark-related deadlines where the COVID-19 outbreak has either prejudiced applicants’ rights or interfered with the filing of a document or fee payment. The Acting Register of the Copyright Office is also granted expanded authority under the CARES Act for modifying certain copyright-related deadlines ...
As employers try to comply with the new Families First Coronavirus Response Act’s (FFCRA) paid sick leave and expanded family and medical leave requirements, the Department of Labor has thrown them a curveball by quietly changing the answers to some of its Guidance about the FFCRA as well as adding 19 more FAQs to its prior compendium ...
On April 10, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) issued Revenue Procedure 2020-22 to provide guidance related to business interest expense limitations and elections available for certain real property trade and farming businesses under Section 163(j)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) ...
On Saturday, September 12, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) updated a marijuana industry frequently asked questions (“FAQ”) page that provides relief to state-legal cannabis businesses. The FAQ announces that state-legal cannabis businesses can reduce their gross receipts by using an alternative accounting method under Section 471 of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) ...
In News Release IR-2021-59, published on March 17, 2021, the IRS and Treasury Department announced that the Federal income tax filing due date for individuals for the 2020 tax year is automatically extended from April 15, 2021, to May 17, 2021. Individual taxpayers can also postpone Federal income tax payments for the 2020 tax year due on April 15, 2021, to May 17, 2021, without penalty or interest regardless of the amount owed ...
On April 13, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) issued Revenue Procedure 2020-26 (the “Revenue Procedure”) providing guidance to lenders and loan servicers offering relief to borrowers with federally-backed residential and multifamily mortgage loans, including relief mandated under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, Pub. L. No. 116-136 (the “CARES Act”), as well as similar state programs ...
On May 28, 2020 the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued proposed regulations providing details for companies that may qualify for carbon oxide sequestration tax credits for qualified carbon oxide that has been securely captured, stored, or disposed of pursuant to Section 45Q of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”). Code Section 45Q provides a tax credit on a per-ton basis for CO2 that is sequestered ...
On May 27, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued Notice 2020-41 (“Notice”) providing COVID-19 relief for businesses seeking to qualify for the production tax credit for renewable energy facilities under Section 45 (“PTC”) of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) and investment tax credit for energy property under Section 48 (“ITC”) of the Code ...
