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Cell Phone Tax	IRS Now Asks to Drop Tax on Cell phones The Internal Revenue Service is backing away from proposals to more uniformly enforce a law that taxes personal use of employer-provided cell phones. IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman on Tuesday asked Congress to repeal the 20-year-old law to ensure that neither companies nor workers will be subject to taxes for employees' personal use of work cell phones.
Cell Phone Use by Drivers of Buses	U.S. Dept, of Transportation Bans Hand-Held Cell Phone Use by Drivers of Buses and Large Trucks
Cell Phones	Cutting the Gordian Knot of School Cell Phones Dennis Malone, CFO of Head Royce School in Oakland, CA, had a problem: Keeping track of all the school cell phones was driving him crazy. So, this is what he did:
Challenges Schools Will Face in the New Year	*The New School Year: Three Challenges Schools Will Face* Education Newsletter - Suzanne Bogdan, of Fisher & Phillips LLP Wage-Hour Liability Many schools (as well as other types of employers) continue to have to respond to claims under the Wage Hour Law (Fair Labor Standards Act) that they have either misclassified employees as exempt from overtime or have not paid non-exempt employees for all hours worked.
Changes in FMLA	Changes in FMLA *FMLA for Schools* Although schools (regardless of size) are required to comply with the notice-and-posting requirements of the FMLA, they need only provide job-protected FMLA leave if the employee meets the Act's eligibility requirements where at least 50 employees are employed within 75 miles; be employed for 12 months, which need not be consecutive (there can be as much as a 7-year gap); and have worked 1,250 hours in the 12 months preceding the start of the leave. (FMLA leave notice for handbook is posted on the SOS website.)
Charitable Raffles in Texas	Texas Charitable Raffles *What does the law permit?* The Charitable Raffle Enabling Act, effective January 1, 1990, permits ""qualified organizations"" to hold up to two raffles per calendar year, with certain specified restrictions.
Checklist for Crisis Management Planning	Checklist for Crisis Managment Planning The following checklist was presented at the 2012 SAIS/MISBO conference as part of the presentation, "School Violence: Schools Are Not Exempt" Presenters were: Bill Rollings, President,School Office Services Suzanne Bogdan, Education Chair, Fisher&Phillips,LLP Bill Keslar, President, Building Solutions
Child Labor Laws	Child Labor Laws Summer is almost upon us! There have been a number of questions from member schools regarding employment laws covering children that may be hired to work summer camps and other positions that are available: What hours can students work when school is in session? What hours can they work in the summer? Are there any other requirements or rules that we need to know about?
Childrens Health Insurance Program	CHIPRA Went into Effect on April 1, 2009 CHIPRA (Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act) of 2009 went into effect on April 1, 2009. It extends coverage to four million children and includes laws that effect employer provide group health plans.
CHIPRA: The Children's Health Insurance Program Act	CHIPRA: The Children’s Health Insurance Program Act On February 4, 2009, the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (“CHIPRA”) was signed into law. In order to comply with CHIPRA, employers who offer group health plans must provide notice to their employees of their rights under CHIPRA. On February 4, 2010, the Department of Labor issued a model CHIPRA notice, which can be located on their website - http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/chipmodelnotice.doc
Claim vs Occurrence	Claims Made Versus Occurence Forms Charges of sexual molestation don’t necessarily surface at the time of the incident. Connecticut now allows charges to be made up to 30 years after the alleged incident. Catholic priests recently had charges brought by their victims 10 or 20 years after alleged molestation occurred. So it is important to understand what liability coverage you have in place. Liability policies are written as one of two forms: *claims-made* or *occurrence.*
Classification - Employee or Contractor	Worker Classification - Employee or Contract Labor Can you pay some school staff members as contract labor? It depends. There are some jobs at schools that fall into this category:
Classification of Pre-K Teachers in California	Classification of Pre-K Teachers in California On April 14, 2011 SOS received a question about whether Pre-K teachers in California should be classified as exempt or nonexempt employees. We asked Tamara Devitt, attorney at Fisher & Phillips, LLP, to give a legal opinion:
Coaches Qualify for Professional Exemption	Coaches Qualify for Professional Exemption (DOL Opinion Letter) Coaches qualify for the exemption if their primary duty is teaching and imparting knowledge to students in an educational establishment.
COBRA - Denial of Request of Premiums	Denial of Request for COBRA or Reduced COBRA Premiums If you, as an employer, deny a request for COBRA or COBRA reduced premiums of a covered employee, the employee may apply to the U.S. Department of Labor to review your denial.
COBRA Coverage After Cobra	Coverage After COBRA A growing number of the unemployed are exhausting their extended Cobra health-insurance subsidies, eligibility for which expired at the end of May. There's a slim chance that Congress could extend the 65%, 15-month subsidy again this fall, but most experts think it's unlikely due to mounting concerns about federal spending. As a result, more unemployed, and workers facing reduced hours and wages, are contacting online providers of health-insurance information about less-costly alternatives.
COBRA Model Notices	COBRA MODEL NOTICES ARRA, as amended by the Continuing Extension Act of 2010 (CEA), mandates that plans notify certain current and former participants and beneficiaries about the COBRA premium reduction.
COBRA Notices 2010	COBRA Notices 2010 ARRA, as amended by the Department of Defense Appropriation Act, 2010 (2010 DOD Act), mandates that plans notify certain current and former participants and beneficiaries about the premium reduction.The Department created model notices to help plans and individuals comply with these requirements.
COBRA Terminiation Update	COBRA - December Terminations May Not Receive ARRA Subsidy In a recent development, the Department of Labor and Internal Revenue Service have interpreted the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) to read that employees with a COBRA start date of January 1, 2010 (or later) will not be eligible for reduced/subsidized rates. Why is this an important interpretation? Group health plans that provide coverage through the end of the month of termination (in this case December) have a COBRA start date of January 1, 2010.
COBRA Who is Entitled	Who is entitled to benefits under COBRA? There are 3 elements to qualifying for COBRA benefits. COBRA establishes specific criteria for plan coverage, qualified beneficiaries, and qualifying events:
Common Sense Can Ease Flu	Employers' Common Sense can Ease Flu Charles S. Caulkins, Fisher & Phillips LLP You can't open the paper, turn on the TV or peruse a web site without hearing some staggering statistic about the flu. In one report, 70 percent of the American population is suffering from the flu - or just recovered. In fact, Boston and Chicago had to take dramatic action with Boston declaring a state of public health emergency and some Chicago hospitals turning patients to other facilities. This kind of outbreak takes its toll on people and on business. How should employers handle it?
Community Service for Financial Aid Students	Community Service for Financial Aid Students - Good Idea? I was asked by a school if it could require families receiving financial aid to "volunteer" a the school. We ask Debra Wilson, counsel for NAIS and Mark Mitchell, VP of School and Student Services to weigh in on this topic:
Comparing HRA and HSA	Comparison of an HSA and an HRA Armstrong, Doyle, & Carroll, Inc. (Click on comparison below)
Conducting Investigations	The Art Of Investigation One of the most challenging, but increasingly common, tasks a school will face is conducting an investigation into misconduct by a student, employee – or possibly even a parent. Nearly every instance of alleged wrongdoing a school learns about mandates some type of investigation. For example, schools should conduct investigations when a student complains of teacher misconduct, an employee complains of co-worker harassment, or the school suspects a student has cheated on a test.
Confidentiality of Internal Investigations	When "Let's Keep It Quiet" Is An Unfair Labor Practice Raymond Haley, Fisher & Phillips LLP On July 30, 2012, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a bad decision for any employer that expects employees to maintain the confidentiality of internal investigations (such as investigations of employee misconduct, allegations of discrimination, and the like). In Banner Health System the Board held that a blanket rule prohibiting employees from discussing an ongoing investigation violated their legal rights, unless "legitimate and substantial justification exists."