The IRS and other federal agencies are preparing new official guidance on how to handle administration and compliance matters after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on June 26, 2013, that struck down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in the landmark case of E.S. Windsor, 2012-2 USTC ¶60,654. “Married” now means same-sex as well as opposite-sex marriage for a wide range of federal issues. The Department of Homeland Security and the federal Office of Personnel Management have already issued their first guidance information, and much more is to come from the IRS.

Ahead for payroll are many changes and challenges to implement into your systems, policies and procedures. Retirement plans, life and health insurance, education benefits, cafeteria plans, COBRA, HIPAA, Health FSAs, Health Savings Accounts, dependent care plans, adoption plans, FICA tax paid on spousal benefits previously categorized as taxable, and the many areas impacted by the Affordable Care Act, are all impacted. Join noted payroll consultant Jerri LS Langer, of Cokala Tax Reporting Solutions, on September 3 as she updates us on what is to be expected from the Windsor decision as it impacts payroll processes, including these and many other important questions:

•Which marriages will be federally recognized: based on residence, domicile, or place of ceremony?
•What will happen if the couple moves from a state that respects same sex marriage to a state that does not, or where the couple is married in a state that respects the marriage, but lives in a state that does not?
•Is Windsor retroactive? Reflect on the possibility of required retroactive changes in plan coverage.
•What about Registered Domestic Partnerships and Civil Unions?

In the Windsor case, Edith Windsor was the heir of her spouse Thea Spyer (a marriage recognized by the state of New York) but when Windsor sought to claim the federal estate tax exemption as a surviving spouse she was barred from doing so by Section 3 of DOMA. Windsor paid $363,053 in estate taxes and sought a refund, which the IRS denied. Windsor sued for the refund. On June 26, 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that DOMA is unconstitutional as a deprivation of the equal liberty of persons that is protected by the Fifth Amendment, because by history and tradition the definition and regulation of marriage has been treated as being within the authority and realm of the separate States, and by seeking to injure the very class of persons New York seeks to protect under its marriage laws, DOMA violates basic due process and equal protection principles applicable to the federal government. Join us on September 3 as we examine the impact on your treatment of married gay and lesbian employees, their spouses and children and other dependents.

Learning Objectives:
•Identify the benefit plans that could be affected and the changes regarding spousal benefits.
•Look at the need to obtain new W-4 forms and changes in income tax withholding practices.
•Consider the need for Social Security and Medicare tax reclaims for prior periods where benefits such as health care coverage provided to same sex spouses generated taxable wages.

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