You’ve got a lot of regulatory agencies watching you! Are you on top of what you need to report to keep each one happy? Here are some you should be aware of: 

Affordable Care Act (ACA)

The employer mandate is a penalty that will be incurred by employers with more than 50 employees that do not offer health insurance to their full-time workers. This provision was included as a disincentive for employers considering dropping their current insurance plans once the insurance exchanges began operating as an alternative source of insurance. Proponents of the reform law wanted to address the parts of the healthcare system they believed to not be working well, while causing minimal disruption to those happy with the coverage they have. Lawmakers recognized that approximately 80% of Americans already have insurance, of whom 54% (44% of the total population) are covered directly or indirectly through an employer, and 29% (23% of the total population) are covered by the government—mainly though Medicare and Medicaid. While 73% of the total population reported themselves satisfied with their insurance situation, significant minorities, even among those that reported favorably, had medically-related financial troubles and/or dissatisfaction with aspects of their insurance coverage, especially among the poor and sick. The intent of the employer mandate (along with a grandfather clause in the ACA) is to help ensure that existing employer-sponsored insurance plans that people like will stay in place. As no company with fewer than 50 full-time employees will face this penalty, many who are concerned that the employer mandate creates a perverse incentive for business to employ people part-time instead of full-time. [note] “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patient_Protection_and_Affordable_Care_Act#Employer_mandate_and_part-time_working_hours[/note]

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The ADA is a wide-ranging civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which made discrimination based on race, religion, sex, national origin, and other characteristics illegal. In addition, unlike the Civil Rights Act, the ADA also requires covered employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities, and imposes accessibility requirements on public accommodations. [note] “Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americans_with_Disabilities_Act_of_1990[/note]

Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA)

The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (or COBRA) is a law passed by the U.S. Congress on a reconciliation basis and signed by President Ronald Reagan that, among other things, mandates an insurance program giving some employees the ability to continue health insurance coverage after leaving employment. COBRA includes amendments to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). The law deals with a great variety of subjects, such as tobacco price supports, railroads, private pension plans, emergency room treatment, disability insurance, and the postal service, but it is perhaps best known for Title X, which amends the Internal Revenue Code and the Public Health Service Act to deny income tax deductions to employers (generally those with 20 or more full-time equivalent employees) for contributions to a group health plan unless such plan meets certain continuing coverage requirements. [note] “Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consolidated_Omnibus_Budget_Reconciliation_Act_of_1985[/note]

Consumer Credit Protection Act (CPCA)

The Consumer Credit Protection Act, Pub.L. 90–321, 82 Stat. 146, enacted May 29, 1968, composed of several titles relating to consumer credit, mainly title I, the Truth in Lending Act, title II related to extortionate credit transactions, title III related to restrictions on wage garnishment, and title IV related to the National Commission on Consumer Finance.

The restrictions on wage garnishment guard employees from discharge by their employers because their wages have been garnished for any one indebtedness. The Wage and Hour Division of the United States Department of Labor enforces the provisions. The informed use of credit is administered by the United States Congress and stabilizes economic acts to be enhanced with competition informed unto various financial institutions that are engaged in extension of consumer credit that would be strengthened otherwise by informed credit use. [note]“Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consolidated_Omnibus_Budget_Reconciliation_Act_of_1985[/note]

Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) is a federal law that sets minimum standards for pension plans in private industry. ERISA does not require any employer to establish a pension plan. It only requires that those who establish plans must meet certain minimum standards. The law generally does not specify how much money a participant must be paid as a benefit. ERISA requires plans to regularly provide participants with information about the plan including information about plan features and funding; sets minimum standards for participation, vesting, benefit accrual and funding; requires accountability of plan fiduciaries; and gives participants the right to sue for benefits and breaches of fiduciary duty.

ERISA also guarantees payment of certain benefits through the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, a federally chartered corporation, if a defined plan is terminated. [note] “Employee Retirement Income Security Act” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Employee_Retirement_Income_Security_Act[/note]

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

 The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a federal law enforcement agency that enforces laws against workplace discrimination. The EEOC investigates discrimination complaints based on an individual’s race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, disability, genetic information, and retaliation for reporting, participating in, and/or opposing a discriminatory practice.[3] In 2011, the Commission included “sex-stereotyping” of lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals as a form of sex discrimination illegal under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In 2012, the Commission expanded protection provided by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to transgender status and gender identity.[4][6] The Commission also mediates and settles thousands of discrimination complaints each year prior to their investigation. The EEOC is also empowered to file discrimination suits against employers on behalf of alleged victims and to adjudicate claims of discrimination brought against federal agencies. [note] “Equal Employment Opportunity Commission” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_Employment_Opportunity_Commission[/note]

Equal Pay Act of 1963

The Equal Pay Act of 1963 is a United States federal law amending the Fair Labor Standards Act, aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex (see Gender pay gap). It was signed into law on June 10, 1963, by John F. Kennedy as part of his New Frontier Program. In passing the bill, Congress stated that sex discrimination:

  • depresses wages and living standards for employees necessary for their health and efficiency;
  • prevents the maximum utilization of the available labor resources;
  • tends to cause labor disputes, thereby burdening, affecting, and obstructing commerce;
  • burdens commerce and the free flow of goods in commerce; and
  • constitutes an unfair method of competition.

The law provides (in part) that:

No employer having employees subject to any provisions of this section [section 206 of title 29 of the United States Code] shall discriminate, within any establishment in which such employees are employed, between employees on the basis of sex by paying wages to employees in such establishment at a rate less than the rate at which he pays wages to employees of the opposite sex in such establishment for equal work on jobs[,] the performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are performed under similar working conditions, except where such payment is made pursuant to (i) a seniority system; (ii) a merit system; (iii) a system which measures earnings by quantity or quality of production; or (iv) a differential based on any other factor other than sex. [note] “Equal Pay Act of 1963” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consolidated_Omnibus_Budget_Reconciliation_Act_of_1985[/note]

Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938[1] (abbreviated as FLSA; also referred to as the Wages and Hours Bill) is a federal statute of the United States. The FLSA introduced the forty-hour work week, established a national minimum wage, guaranteed “time-and-a-half” for overtime in certain jobs, and prohibited most employment of minors in “oppressive child labor”, a term that is defined in the statute. It applies to employees engaged in interstate commerce or employed by an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, unless the employer can claim an exemption from coverage.

The FLSA was originally drafted in 1932 by Senator Hugo Black, who was later appointed to the Supreme Court in 1937. However, Black’s proposal to require employers to adopt a thirty-hour workweek met stiff resistance. In 1938 a revised version of Black’s proposal was passed that adopted an eight-hour day and a forty-hour workweek and allowed workers to earn wage for an extra four hours of overtime as well. According to the act, workers must be paid minimum wage and overtime pay must be one-and-a-half times regular pay. Children under eighteen cannot do certain dangerous jobs, and children under the age of sixteen cannot work during school hours. The FLSA affected 700,000 workers, and President Franklin Roosevelt called it the most important piece of New Deal legislation since the Social Security Act of 1935. [note] “Fair Labor Standards Act” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_Labor_Standards_Act#cite_note-1[/note]

Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) is a United States federal law requiring covered employers to provide employees job-protected and unpaid leave for qualified medical and family reasons. Qualified medical and family reasons include: personal or family illness, family military leave, pregnancy, adoption, or the foster care placement of a child. The FMLA is administered by the Wage and Hour Division of the United States Department of Labor.

The bill was a major part of President Bill Clinton’s agenda in his first term. President Clinton signed the bill into law on February 5, 1993 (Pub.L. 103–3; 29 U.S.C. sec. 2601; 29 CFR 825) and it took effect on August 5, 1993, six months later.

The FMLA was intended “to balance the demands of the workplace with the needs of families. “The Act allows eligible employees to take up to 12 work weeks of unpaid leave during any 12-month period to attend to the serious health condition of the employee, parent, spouse or child, or for pregnancy or care of a newborn child, or for adoption or foster care of a child. In order to be eligible for FMLA leave, an employee must have been at the business at least 12 months, and worked at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months, and work at a location where the company employs 50 or more employees within 75 miles. The FMLA covers both public- and private-sector employees, but certain categories of employees are excluded, including elected officials and their personal staff members. [note] “Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA)” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_and_Medical_Leave_Act_of_1993[/note]

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1996. HIPAA is also known as the Kennedy-Kassebaum Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA-Public Law 104-191), effective August 21, 1996. The basic idea of HIPAA is that an individual who is a subject of individually identifiable health information should have:

  • Established procedures for the exercise of individual health information privacy rights.
  • The use and disclosure of individual health information should be authorized or required.

One difficulty with HIPAA is that there must be a mechanism to authenticate the patient who demands access to his/her data. As a result, medical facilities have begun to ask for Social Security Numbers from patients, thus arguably decreasing privacy by simplifying the act of correlating health records with other records. The issue of consent is problematic under HIPAA, because the medical providers simply make care contingent upon agreeing to the privacy standards in practice. [note] “Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_Insurance_Portability_and_Accountability_Act[/note]

Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)

The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 (Pub.L. 89–236, 79 Stat. 911, enacted June 30, 1968), also known as the Hart–Celler Act, abolished the National Origins Formula that had been in place in the United States since the Emergency Quota Act of 1921. It was proposed by Representative Emanuel Celler of New York, co-sponsored by Senator Philip Hart of Michigan, and promoted by Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts.

The Hart-Celler Act abolished the national origins quota system that was American immigration policy since the 1920s, replacing it with a preference system that focused on immigrants’ skills and family relationships with citizens or U.S. residents. Numerical restrictions on visas were set at 170,000 per year, with a per-country-of-origin quota, not including immediate relatives of U.S. citizens or “special immigrants” (including those born in “independent” nations in the Western Hemisphere, former citizens, ministers, and employees of the U.S. government abroad). [note]“Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_and_Nationality_Act_of_1965[/note]

Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)

The Occupational Safety and Health Act is Act is to assure safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women; by authorizing enforcement of the standards developed under the Act; by assisting and encouraging the States in their efforts to assure safe and healthful working conditions; by providing for research, information, education, and training in the field of occupational safety and health; and for other purposes.[note] “Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupational_Safety_and_Health_Act_(United_States)[/note]

Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) is part of the U.S. Department of Labor. OFCCP is responsible for ensuring that employers doing business with the Federal government comply with the laws and regulations requiring nondiscrimination. This mission is based on the underlying principle that employment opportunities generated by Federal dollars should be available to all Americans on an equitable and fair basis. [note] “Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of_Federal_Contract_Compliance_Programs[/note]

Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS)

The United States Office of the Assistant Secretary for Veterans’ Employment and Training (OASVET) was established by Secretary’s Order No. 5-81 in December 1981.

The Assistant Secretary position was created by P.L. 96-466 in October 1980, to replace the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Veterans’ Employment position created by P.L. 94-502 in October 1976. The bipartisan Congressional intent was to establish leadership of the Department’s programs for services to veterans at the policy-making level, and thereby help to ensure Congressional mandates for an effective: Job and job training counseling service program, Employment placement service program, and Job training placement service program for eligible veterans (carried out by the United States Department of Labor). [note] “Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consolidated_Omnibus_Budget_Reconciliation_Act_of_1985[/note]