New in This Edition

The issuance of Rev. Proc. 2002-21 has had a profound affect on issues relating to employee leasing.  Chapter 4 has undergone major revisions to reflect the new realities.

As I started writing about that Rev. Proc. in my BenefitsLink column, I received many queries about the operation of multiple employer plans under IRC §413(c).  My web page summarizing those rules quickly became one of the most popular pages on the www.employerbook.com web site.  Accordingly, I have added a new chapter, Chapter 18, discussing multiple employer plans.

EGTRRA, made profound changes to the employee benefits landscape.  While it did not directly affect the determination of controlled group status, it did change or add to the effect of that status.  Hence, chapters 10 and 13 have been updated to take into account those adjustments.  There you will find information on the effect of employer aggregation on catch-up contributions, the new separation from service rules for 401(k) plans, the new small plan start-up credit, and other issues.

SEPs and SIMPLE plans are growing in popularity.  Accordingly, there is additional discussion of the impact of employer aggregation on those arrangements.  There are also materials focused on ESOPs.

The IRS has expanded its use of the Audit Guidelines in differentiating between employees and independent contractors.  The discussion in those guidelines is now reflected in various IRS publications and forms.  Chapter 2 has been updated to take that into account.

As I have lectured, I have received repeated questions about entity status and self-employed individuals.  Hence, I have augmented the discussion of these issues in Chapter 1, and provided commentary on the determination of net earnings from self-employment, the compensation of self-employed individuals, and the status of ministers.

The third edition highlights several issues relating to form 5500 filing which are affected by employee status and employer aggregation.

I find that many of the questions submitted to me, whether through my professional practice, at PIX, or on BenefitsLink, would make excellent examples for this book.  This edition has over 550 examples, over 30% more than the last edition.

With the popularity of by BenefitsLink column, I have decided to integrate that column into the book.  Throughout the book there will be references such as [BL 201].  That means question 201 of my BenefitsLink column discusses the issue at hand.  Frequently, the column will provide an additional example of the item under discussion, or more in depth analysis of a particular point.  The easiest way to find my column is through www.employerbook.com/QATopic.html, which sorts all the questions in my column by topic.

Several source documents, such as Section 530 of the Tax Reform Act of 1978, appeared in prior editions.  I have now posted these and many other documents at www.employerbook.com/Resources.html.

Finally, this book also appears in a CD version and as a Web subscription.  Discounts are available for those who have purchased the print edition.  For more information, go to www.employerbook.com, or email me at sderrin@hotmail.com.  For the first time, the print edition of this book appears as in loose-leaf format.  From time to time as circumstances warrant, I will post updates to the book which purchasers can download from the web site.