# Plain Language Summary: Employer Reporting Improvement Act

This bill makes several changes to how employers report health insurance information to the IRS and how the government handles related penalties. The main goal is to streamline the reporting process and give employers more flexibility and time to respond to government inquiries.

The bill allows employers to report employee tax identification numbers (TINs) with more flexibility starting in 2025, though the exact details of this flexibility aren't fully spelled out in the text. More significantly, it lets employees receive their health insurance statements electronically if they've previously agreed to do so, and they can change their mind anytime by revoking that consent in writing. This modernizes how paperwork gets delivered, making it easier for both employers and employees to handle documents digitally rather than on paper.

The bill also gives employers more breathing room when facing penalties. If the IRS proposes a penalty against a large employer for not providing adequate health insurance coverage to employees, the employer now gets at least 90 days to respond before the government takes further action. Additionally, the government has a six-year window to assess these penalties instead of potentially longer timeframes, which provides more certainty for employers about when they're in the clear. These changes take effect for tax filings due after December 31, 2024, giving employers and the IRS time to prepare for the new rules.

Employer Reporting Improvement Act

Smith, Adrian

Employer Reporting Improvement Act This bill modifies provisions under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that require employers and health insurance providers to prepare tax forms showing proof of minimum essential coverage (1095-B and 1095-C tax forms). Currently, employers and health insurance providers that provide minimum essential coverage must report this information for each covered individual to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), including the covered individual's Tax Identification Number (TIN). Employers and providers must also send a copy of this information to the covered individual (through 1095-B and 1095-C tax forms) by January 31 of each year. The IRS allows for an individual's date of birth to be substituted for the individual's TIN if the TIN is not available. The IRS also allows employers and providers to offer 1095-B and 1095-C tax forms to individuals electronically. The bill provides statutory authority for these flexibilities. Additionally, under current law, large employers (generally those with 50 or more full-time employees) are subject to an assessment by the IRS if they do not offer affordable minimum essential coverage. The bill requires the IRS to give large employers at least 90 days to respond after sending its first letter about a proposed assessment (Currently, the IRS generally gives 30 days to respond.) It also establishes a six-year statute of limitations for collecting assessments.