By Michael Yoder, Chief Executive Officer
Once a year? Once a quarter? Once a month? How often do we as employers have to do certain tasks to stay compliant with Federal and State laws? It seems like we have to do it, as The Beatles suggested, “Eight Days a Week!”
How about the time frame of every 20 days? Does that ring a bell? While there are many different compliance tasks, one that is often overlooked by employers is the requirement to report new hires electronically at a minimum of every 20 days. In 1996, Congress enacted a law called the “Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act,” or PRWORA, as part of Welfare Reform. This legislation created the requirement for employers in all 50 states to report their new hires and re-hires to a state directory.
New-hire reporting speeds up the child-support income withholding order process, expedites collection of child support from parents who change jobs frequently, and quickly locates non-custodial parents to help in establishing paternity and child support orders. New-hire reporting helps children receive the support they deserve.
I think we can all agree this is a worthy purpose – but it exhibits the uncertainty of responsibilities and timing for corporate compliance. I just finished the latest cycle of these reports for all of my clients. Compliance is “Fun, Fun, Fun.” Oh wait – that was the Beach Boys.