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Upcoming Training Session In Southern Illinois August 18th ACES$ Newsletter-August '10 Available For Download *ACES$
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ACES$ Issuance of W2 Policy to Personal Support Workers
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Personal Support Worker W-2
If you are a person with a disability and have experience in
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you. Attention - Please Read Changes to 2009 Income Tax Withholding Tables May Affect You W-4 Notice May Affect Some Personal Support Workers The IRS has listed information on the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Click the link above for a summary on how it may effect you. Go to www.irs.gov for more information *ALERT*
ACES$ DOES NOT MAKE VISITS AS PART OF ANY UNION OR LABOR ORGANIZATION ACES$ is not affiliated with any collective bargaining unit. We do not visit consumer homes without a prearranged appointment. We do not visit personal support worker homes at all unless they live with the consumer. ACES$ does not, and will not, release personal identifying information without the prior written authorization from the participant or participant employer or personal support worker. If anyone visits you and claims to be an ACES$ employee/staff member please ask for ACES$ identification. If they do not have it, obtain their name, and call us, toll free, at 1-877-223-7724. ACES$ is committed to protecting your personal identifying information.
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NORTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA CENTER FOR INDEPENDENT LIVING (DBA) ACES$ is dedicated to advancing the rights of persons with disabilities in order to promote a full life in the community through the prevention and elimination of physical, psychological, social and attitudinal barriers which serve to deny them the rights and privileges common to the general public. The essence of the Independent Living movement and its concepts are being proven daily by more and more people with severe disabilities as they choose to resume the responsibilities of directing their own lives by becoming active, contributing participants in the mainstream of their communities. The mission of NORTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA CENTER FOR INDEPENDENT LIVING, (DBA) ACES$ is to help people determine their own individual lifestyle, based on personal choice, from a wide spectrum of acceptable alternatives. The staff draws upon their own experiences of living with a disability, as well as professional training. Services are not limited by type of disability or age. Our services are for any person with a disability, service providers, and/or individuals interested in disability related issues. Types of Consumer Directed Compensation Models What Is A Fiscal/Employer Agent (F/EA)? There are two Fiscal/Employer Agent models that operate under section 3504 of the IRS Code, the Government Fiscal/Employer Agent and the Vendor Fiscal/Employer Agent. Both models work well as the neutral site or “bank” for individuals’ budget funds allowing funds to follow the individual program participant rather than the agency-based provider. Both F/EA models provide individuals and their representatives with a high level of choice and control over directing the use of their individual budget funds and managing their support services while providing fiscal accountability for state programs and reducing some of the fiscal burden for participants and their representatives. Both F/EA models are considered qualified Medicaid waiver services but not qualified State Plan services without a Medicaid 1115 waiver. In general, F/EAs should not be direct care providers because of the conflict of interest of being both the bank or public funds manager and a direct service provider. Government Fiscal/Employer Agent (In accordance with IRS Revenue Procedures 80- 4 and 2003-70) Under the Government Fiscal/Employer Agent (F/EA) model, a state or local government entity may apply for and receive approval from the IRS (under Section 3504 of the IRS Code and IRS Revenue Procedure 80-4 and Proposed Notice 2003-70) to be an employer agent on behalf of individuals for the limited purpose of withholding, filing and depositing federal employment taxes (e.g., FICA and FUTA) and income tax withholding for workers they hire directly. It also may: < Invoice a state for individuals’ budget funds, < Act as a “bank for individuals’ budget funds and disburse and track these funds, < Manage federal advanced earned income credits as necessary, < Withhold, file and deposit state income (if required) and employment taxes (e.g., SUTA and disability, if applicable), < Collect, verify and process workers’ timesheets, < Prepare and distribute payroll checks to support workers hired by individuals, and < Process and pay non-labor related invoices as approved in the individual’s budget. A Government F/EA also may broker worker’s compensation and other insurance, conduct criminal background checks on prospective support workers, assist in verifying support workers’ citizenship/legal alien status and generate standardized reports for state/county agencies and individuals, as required. The Government Fiscal/Employer Agent model provides participants with a high level of choice and control over their individual budget funds and services while ensuring state programs fiscal accountability and reducing some of the fiscal burden for participants and their representatives (e.g., payroll and bill payment). Government F/EAs can perform the “bank,” employer and bill payment functions on behalf of participants (as their agent) without being considered the common law employer of participants’ support workers. A Vendor Fiscal/Employer Agent Vendor Fiscal/Employer Agent (in accordance with IRS Revenue Procedure 70-6). Under the Vendor Fiscal/Employer Agent (F/EA) model, a private or public vendor entity or authority may apply for and be approved by the IRS (under IRS Rev. Proc. 70-6) to act as an employer agent on behalf of individuals and perform similar tasks as a Government F/EA described earlier. The Vendor F/EA model is the most popular ISO option used by states. NEPA CIL (DBA) ACES$ chooses to operate as a Vendor F/EA model because it provides individuals with a high level of choice and control while ensuring state programs fiscal accountability and reducing some of the fiscal burden for participants and their representatives (e.g., payroll and bill payment). Vendor F/EA can perform the “bank,” payroll and bill payment functions for participants without being considered the common law employer of their support workers. Historically, the Vendor F/EA model facilitated states being able to meet CMS’ requirement for freedom of provider and the receipt of program match for F/EA costs for the purpose of the Federal Medicaid match. The predominant role of ISOs is to enable program participants or their representatives to participate in consumer-directed support service programs. Some types of ISOs (Government and Vendor IRS Employer Agent-Fiscal ISOs) assist program participants and/or their representatives in performing employer-related tasks (e.g., computing, withholding, filing and depositing payroll taxes, processing payroll checks, arranging for employee benefits (e.g., workers compensation coverage). Some ISOs also verify legal immigration status and conduct criminal background checks on candidates for employment without being the legal employer of the worker and without the program participant receiving Medicaid benefits directly. Under these Fiscal ISO models the program participant or his/her representative is the legal employer of his/her support service worker. An IRS Employer Agent-Fiscal ISO may be a governmental or private (profit/non-profit) organization. The Internal Revenue Service distinguishes between governmental (IRS Rev. Proc. 80-4) and non-governmental (IRS Rev. Proc. 70-6) employer agents by prescribing specific procedures for each type to use in filing payroll taxes. Only 6% of the consumer-directed HCB support services programs examined used the government-based IRS Employer Agent or Third Party Payer approach. Forty-five percent (45%) of consumer-directed HCB support services programs examined used the Vendor IRS Employer Agent (e.g., Fiscal ISO) approach. A majority (70%) of Vendor "Employer Agent" ISOs are non-profit organizations.
A minority of consumer-directed HCB support services programs (12%) examined use the ISO model referred to as the "Fiscal Conduit" ISO. This Fiscal ISO model coordinates the disbursing of program funds directly to adults/elders with disabilities or to family caregivers. The programs are primarily funded with state-only revenues. Many of the programs that use a Fiscal Conduit ISO are designed to offset care-related expenses incurred by family caregivers. The only Medicaid programs using the Fiscal Conduit ISO model are those with 1115 research and demonstration waivers to test this approach.
Agency with Choice ISOs act as the legal employer of participant-hired workers while delegating authority to participants and/or their representatives for hiring/firing, training, and supervising the day-to-day activities of their support service workers. Twenty-one percent (21%) of consumer-directed HCB support services programs examined use the "Agency with Choice" ISO model. This ISO model is particularly effective in providing significant choice and control for individuals with cognitive impairments whose representative may not be willing or able to be the legal employer of the support service workers they recruit.
A minority (13%) of consumer-directed HCB support services programs examined use the "Supportive" ISO model. Supportive ISOs tend to be special-purpose organizations or private individuals, often with case management experience, whose primary role is to provide a variety of supportive services to program beneficiaries and/or their representatives (e.g., skills and advocacy training, counseling, maintaining worker registries and monitoring service quality and program participants' satisfaction with their support services).
It should be noted that ISO models are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Some programs use more than one type of ISO (e.g., a Vendor Fiscal ISO and a Supportive ISO). In some cases the ISOs used by a consumer-directed support service program may meet the criteria for more than one ISO model (e.g., combined Fiscal and Supportive ISO or, in some cases, Support Brokerage). Also, information about ISO models used was not available for some programs.
ACES$ Fiscal Employer Agent (F/EA) Quality Improvement Team:
Director, Public Policy & Initiatives ~ Tina Seidel, CPP Controller ~ Kelly Cole, CPP Director of Financial Operations ~ Duane Seidel, MBA, CPP
The Director, Public Policy & Initiatives has 16 years of experience in F/EA, the Controller has 7 years of experience, and the Director of Financial Operations has 7 years for an aggregate combined total of over 30 years of experience. All are Certified Payroll Professionals with the American Payroll Association and must take annual Continuing Education Units to retain the certification. 
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