Tax Tips for Higher Education
403(b) Plan Relief – Have You Seen This?
Many of our institutions have established retirement plans under I.R.C. Section 403(b). Back in 2007, Treasury and the IRS issued final regulations that required a re-write (or original writing) of many institutions’ retirement plan documents. Recently, because of myriad comments, the IRS has provided transition relief from some rules and a “fresh-start” opportunity for 403(b) plans with regard to the “once-in-always-in” (OIAI) condition for excluding part-time employees.
What Are You Doing About Cybersecurity?
We continue to hear a lot about “cybersecurity.” Does your institution have a plan in place? The IRS has some interesting suggestions that they have released on this topic. While there are many steps you can take to reduce the risk of becoming a victim of cybercriminals, creating and maintaining a data security plan tops the list.
IRS Clarifies Moving Expense Reporting for 2018
The “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” suspended the ability for an employer to pay for or reimburse moving expenses on a non-taxable basis for all employees (with the exception of some members of the U.S. Armed Forces on active duty). Accordingly, there may have been some erroneous reporting on 2018 Form W-2.
Minister’s Housing Allowance Update
In the Seventh Circuit opinion, they found that the minister’s housing allowance is just one of many examples over the years whereby Congress has chosen to exempt religious organizations and/or their resources from taxation. The Seventh Circuit found (among other things) that I.R.C. Section 107(2) serves as a preventative against excessive entanglement with religion.
Who is the “General Public?”
As more and more institutions are coming to terms with the “Parking Tax” being a sad reality and begin to look at the step-by-step calculations set forth in Notice 2018-99, many are wrestling with what constitutes “general public” parking spots…. “We are wondering about who would be considered ‘general public’ under the IRS’ Step 2? Would students be employees or general public? What about people who deliver office supplies or food stocks to our institution? And, what about ‘outside contractors?’”…