BILL NUMBER: S9755A
SPONSOR: SUTTON
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring a
payroll services business to compile and provide annual wage and tax
statements and/or year-end forms to clients
 
PURPOSE:
This bill would prevent a payroll services business from withholding,
delaying, or otherwise failing to deliver its client's and client's
employees' annual wage and tax statements and/or any year-end forms.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 - Amends the general business law by adding a new section
394-j that would require payroll services businesses to compile and
provide annual wage and tax statements and/or any year-end forms to a
client business (and its employees) without additional cost or delay or
due to any dispute. Any payroll services business that violates this
section is liable for a civil penalty of not more than one thousand
dollars for a first violation and a civil penalty of not more than one
thousand five hundred dollars for each succeeding violation. Defines
"payroll services business."
Section 2 - Sets the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Payroll services businesses like to tack on fees for annual wage and tax
statements, as well as year-end forms; however, employees of the client
business then find themselves in the middle of a dispute between their
employer and the payroll servicer, leading to delays in receiving neces-
sary forms in order to file their taxes on time. Payroll services busi-
nesses will withhold year-end forms unless and until the amounts they've
requested are paid even if those amounts are disputed, leaving client
businesses with the only choice to pay disputed fees in order to have
statements and forms released by the payroll servicer. This bill aims to
require payroll services businesses to deliver annual wage and tax
statements and year-end forms to client businesses and their employees
regardless of any billing disputes, which should be handled civilly.
Payroll services businesses should not use these types of statements and
forms as leverage to tack on additional charges to the detriment of
employers and employees.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
 
FISCAL IMPACT ON THE STATE:
None
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become a law.