Unemployment Insurance Division Seeking Input for Three Proposed Rules

Published: December 1, 2017

In this Capitol Report:

Unemployment Insurance Division Seeking Input on Three Proposed Rules
CACI is Hiring! Manager of Member Engagement
Colorado Department of Revenue Is Convening Working Group Meeting on Composite Payments
More Candidates Confirmed -Sponsor NOW! The Candidates: 2018 Gubernatorial Hopefuls
Now Accepting 2018 EXECs Advocacy Applications

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Unemployment Insurance Division Seeking Input on Three Proposed Rules

There are three rule proposals to which the Unemployment Insurance Division is seeking input. Each proposal is in the drafting stage, and specific dates for holding public hearings have not yet been established.

Please review and provide your comments and suggestions back to Angela Pfannenstiel or Pat Teegarden by Friday, December 15 or to let them know if you need additional time.

The proposals on the Pattern of Nonresponse and Work Search are first drafts; changes will be made to these two parts of the regulations. The Division is interested in comments and any proposed changes to the drafts. They hope to hold hearings in the first quarter 2018.

The Paperless Wage Reports proposal is also the first draft. In addition to comments and any proposed changes, the Division would like feedback on changing the rule to require all employers to submit wage reports electronically. The timing of this depends on the feedback that is received.

Below is a brief description of each proposal.

Pattern of Nonresponse -The U.S. Department of Labor requires states to charge employers for benefits paid erroneously (which creates an overpayment) as a result of an employer’s failure to respond to requests for information. Each state is tasked with defining a pattern for the nonresponsiveness.

This would be an entirely new section added to UI’s rules and does not replace any current rule.

Work Search – The UI Division proposes to amend the work-search requirements to bring them more in line with the way individuals seek work in today’s job market. The proposal eliminates the details spelled out in how to keep a record of the job contacts because that methodology is dated given today’s technology, and the act itself does not assist the individual in becoming reemployed, which is our ultimate goal. The changes also add job-search activities to the list of items that would be considered an active work search.

This draft is written to repeal all of the current language in 2.8.4 and 2.8.4a and replace it with this language.

Paperless Wage Reports – To improve efficiency and accuracy, the UI Division proposes to require that all employers submit wage reports electronically. As of 2017, more than 75 percent of employers currently submit wage reports electronically, and doing so increases the accuracy of the data submitted by the employer and reduces the UI staff time required to process the reports. The proposed rules include methods for an employer to request a waiver to submit electronic wage reports.

The Division has two ways in which employers can submit wage reports electronically:

File transfer protocol (FTP): In this method, the employer creates a file with predefined fields that are provided by the division. Once the file is created, tested and approved, the employer logs into a secure system and submits the report on a quarterly basis. This is a great method for employers with more than 20 employees as the report is easily adjusted to make changes each quarter.
MyUI Employer: This method is the UI Division’s secure online employer account maintenance system. This system retains all employee identifying information after the first entry. The employer must update the quarterly wage data on each report. This system is useful for employers with any number of employees, those with more than 20 may find it more time consuming than using FTP.

The wage report is one of two reports (the other is the premium report) that must be submitted each calendar quarter. The wage report is the only report that is currently included in this proposal for electronic filing. As of the second quarter 2017, approximately 20 percent of employers are not using an electronic method to submit wage reports.

This proposal amends sections of Part 7.2.

Please contact Loren Furman at [email protected] or at 303-866-9642 if you should have any questions regarding this matter.

CACI is Hiring! Manager of Member Engagement

Dave Tabor, Senior Vice President of Business Partnerships

Sadly for us at CACI, and for our many members who have worked over the years with her, Bonnie Finley is retiring from CACI in early 2018. I’ll miss working with Bonnie – her institutional knowledge, savviness on issues, and diligent approach to the job will be hard to replace! The City of Longmont is fortunate to have her continued service as a Council Member.

So it’s onward with a focus on finding our next Manager of Member Engagement. Here is the job description.

Colorado Department of Revenue Is Convening Working Group Meeting on Composite Payments

The Colorado Department of Revenue / Division of Taxation is convening a stakeholder workgroup to discuss whether to promulgate a regulation concerning processing of payments by partnerships and Subchapter S corporations relating to non-residents partners and shareholders. The stakeholder workgroup will take place on Monday, December 11th, 9:00 A.M., 1313 Sherman Street, Room 220, Denver, CO 80261.

Background
Colorado law requires pass-through entities, such as partnerships and S-corporations, to ensure that their nonresident partners, shareholders, or members pay Colorado income tax on their Colorado-source income. Pass-through entities can satisfy this requirement in one of three ways:

submit an agreement (DR 0107) signed by the nonresident attesting that the nonresident will file a Colorado income tax return and pay any applicable tax;
withhold and remit income tax on the non-resident’s behalf that the nonresident may claim on their own individual return (DR 0108); or
include the nonresident in a composite return in which the pass-through entity calculates and pays tax on the non-resident’s behalf (DR 106).

As these options presently exist, withholding presents considerable administrative burden for both taxpayers and the department, and the filing of a composite return prevents nonresident partners, shareholders, and members from claiming a refund for any overpayment of their Colorado income tax.

This work group will be convened to explore and consider changes that alleviate administrative burdens and improve efficiencies for taxpayers, tax practitioners, and the department. In particular, the department would like to discuss the possibility of (1) eliminating Form DR 0108, (2) establishing a method for pass-through entities to remit withholding for all nonresident partners, shareholders, or members collectively, and (3) allowing nonresident partners, shareholders, and members to claim on their individual income tax returns the tax paid on their behalf in a composite return.

If you are interested in participating in this workgroup, please email [email protected] .

Please contact Loren Furman at [email protected] or at 303-866-9642 if you should have any questions regarding this matter.

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