FAS Division .us



OFFICE OF UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION TAX SERVICES (UCTS)The Office of Unemployment Compensation Tax Services collects approximately $3 billion annually from approximately 300,000 employers and is charged with administering the taxing provisions of the Pennsylvania Unemployment Compensation Law, to emphasize uniform, consistent and continuous collection of UC taxes.UCTS operates from 17 sites (Labor and Industry Building plus 16 locations throughout the Commonwealth) with a designated complement of 269. UCTS is directly responsible for the overall effective administration and enforcement of the contribution, reporting, and coverage provisions of the Pennsylvania UC Law. As such, UCTS plays a key role in the ongoing effort to maintain a fiscally sound, self-sufficient UC Trust Fund, one able to meet the costs of financing jobless benefits for those eligible workers temporarily faced with involuntary unemployment. The overall role of UCTS encompasses the following responsibilities:To continually review, monitor, and manage the employer tax operations of Pennsylvania’s UC system, ensuring that it continues to operate in conformity with the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA); the regulations and policies of the United States Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration; and also in compliance with the Pennsylvania UC Law and the policies of the Governor and the Department of Labor and Industry.To provide for adequate allocation of all material and personnel resources needed to maintain the viability of the various tax operations and services for which UCTS is responsible.To provide Pennsylvania’s employer community with accurate and timely information on their individual tax obligations, taxability of various types of payments and employment, and determinations of employer-employee relationships vs. independent contractor status under the Law, through personal contacts, correspondence, visits, meetings, workshops, and seminars.To promptly identify newly liable employers and register them for coverage. To issue contribution rates timely and accurately after notification of a full and/or partial business merger and acquisition.To account for taxes paid and to maintain complete, accurate, and up to date information of each individual employer account and provide pertinent statistical data for planning and management purposes.Together with the Office of the Budget Comptroller Operations and Department of Treasury, issue refunds to employers and complete fund transfers.To promptly identify and collect delinquent employer and employee taxes and other amounts due the Fund and undertake any other actions geared to bring about a proper and fair resolution of such delinquency cases.To process employers’ quarterly returns and deposit employer and employee contributions as expeditiously as possible to ensure the maximum amount of interest earnings possible; promote efficient cash flow; and obtain the most current employee wage record detail for unemployment compensation benefit eligibility purposes.To conduct a comprehensive audit program designed to identify liable employers, and to disclose under/overpaid taxes, unreported employees, and/or previously missing wages, and all other compliance related issues under the tax provision of the Law.To collect and maintain all applicable employer account information needed for proper determination of annual employer contribution rates as prescribed by the Pennsylvania UC Law and in accordance with the regulations of the Department of Labor and Industry.Participate in the commonwealth clearance and compliance programs and issue certifications as requested, either electronically or on paper.To provide the administration appropriate information, consultation, and expertise with regards to UC Law and the Rules and Regulations promulgated there under, and the program in general. To assist, as requested, in developing a continually sound administrative strategy to sustain Pennsylvania’s UC Trust Fund solvency.Under the leadership of the Bureau Director, UCTS is comprised of two distinct divisions, the Field Accounting Service (FAS) Division and the Central Office Division, which interact to perform the services needed to fulfill the program criteria.FAS DivisionThere are seven FAS Division Regions, which include 16 physical sites located throughout the Commonwealth.Philadelphia – Region 1 Norristown – Region 2 Wilkes-Barre – Region 3 FAS Administration (FASA)– Region 4 Harrisburg – Region 5 Erie – Region 6Pittsburgh – Region 7 The primary function of these offices is to audit employer records for mis-classified workers and to collect the additional taxes due; however, FAS staff performs the following additional functions in their auditing role: Conduct status investigations to resolve questions related to employer/employee classification and tax liability.Handle employer inquiries and requests for technical assistance concerning reports to be filed or notifications received from UCTS.Collect delinquent UC contributions, interest and penalties, enforce payment plans, secure delinquent quarterly tax reports, and recommend legal action or assessment when taxes cannot be collected or delinquent reports cannot be obtained.Represent the Department in legal proceedings.Verify the accuracy of information supplied by business enterprises.Investigate potential UC fraud. Investigate missing wages for blocked claims.Provide educational opportunities for our customers regarding the PA UC Law and Regulations.Also, reporting under the FAS Division: FAS Administration (FASA)The FASA is comprised of the Status Determinations Unit, Audit Support Unit and the Bankruptcy and Compliance office. In general, FASA is responsible for the following:Investigate all blocked claim investigations and forward any to FAS that involve misclassified workers for audit.Make determinations on employee/employer relationships, and covered employment and wages.Establish audit leads from various sources for FAS and track and monitor results. Coordinate the maintenance of the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors (PSATS) accounts. This includes the yearly establishment of additional accounts and the deletion of accounts. Also, this office serves as a resource point for PSATS when they need UC guidance.Status Determinations Unit (SDU)Receives, processes and verifies employer registration documents.Responds to employer inquiries (telephone, written, and electronic) and requests for assistance concerning reports to be filed or notifications received from UCTS.Makes determinations of mandatory/not mandatory transfers of PA UC experience records and reserve account balance.Approves all requests for reversals of PA UC experience records and reserve account balances. Investigates and issues determinations on Employer/employee relationshipsInvestigates and issues determinations on Employee Leasing (PEO) issues.Approves and processes all Election of coverage requests on exempt employmentApproves and processes all Reciprocal agreementsApproves and processes all Transfer of contributions between statesProcesses registration documents for Reimbursable employers and maintains a record of collateral deposits submittedProcesses all reimbursable collateral renewals and changesApproves and processes all conversions to the method of financing UC (reimbursable to contributory or vice versa)Investigates missing wages for blocked claimsHandles employer inquiries and requests for assistance concerning coverage issues or employer tax liabilityAudit Support UnitReviews data from a variety of resources to provide quality audit lead information and monitors results to ensure all federal performance criteria is met.Responsible for protecting and establishing guidelines related to Federal Taxpayer Information (FTI)Collections UnitResponsible for monitoring bankruptcy delinquencies, filing claims and attending hearings as needed.Responsible for Treasury Offset Program monitoring, submissions and reporting. All functions related to FAS as mentioned previously. Central Operations DivisionThe Central Operations Division is comprised of three separate sections, Registration and Document Management, Data and Funds Management and Employer Account Services. Registration and Document Management (RDM) The Registration and Document Management section is comprised of three units, the Registration Unit, the Experience Correction and the Document Retention Unit, each with unique duties.Registration Unit Processes paper documents and electronic data to register new accounts, reactivate existing accounts, update registration data and record additional businesses resulting from acquisitionsPerforms alphabetical and FEIN searches, as applicable, on all non-coded documents received in UCTS to determine if an account exists and if not, creates a new accountProvides quality control for electronic receipt/processing of registration dataExperience Correction UnitAudits and completes Reserve Account Balance adjustments resulting from reversals of experience, transfers of experience, appeals, or system errors Verifies the monthly/yearly posting of UC benefit charges to individual Enterprise accountsCompletes the reversal process for any transfers of experience that were processed in error due to either incorrect information provided by Enterprise(s) or Bureau oversightInvestigates, in conjunction with Office of UC Benefit-Policy (OUCBP), incorrect benefit charge postings Oversees the reviewing, testing, and reporting of the purge/load of contribution rates and fiscal year data at the beginning of each calendar year.Document Retention UnitMaintains and retrieves UCTS on-site historical records including Info image, microfilm and microfiche records of documents and reportsPrepare, transfer, record, report and retrieve historical records transferred to the State Records Center for off-site archival purposesData and Funds Management (DFM)Deposits all remittances received into the UC Trust Fund.Processes all incoming remittances and reports and ensures data is updated to the employer’s record.Initiates and/or completes fund transfers. The fund transfers may involve other state agencies or may come from external sources. Associates dishonored remittances, both paper checks and electronic notifications with the proper employer account and payment. Assesses penalties as appropriate.Resolves banking errors when notified. Notification may be received either from the financial institution or by telephone or electronically.Acts as a liaison with the FAS to ensure all incoming correspondence and remittances are properly routed for processing.Administration of the various Tax Clearance Programs, including Liquor Control Board, Department of State, Commonwealth Contractor Responsibility Program, Sales Tax, Small Games of Chance, Keystone Opportunity Zone, Department of Community and Economic Development loans and grants and miscellaneous special clearance programs, such as Best Places to Work in Pennsylvania. Reviewing and responding to tax clearance certificate requests from employers and other state agencies regarding unemployment compensation tax liability.Receives incoming calls related to electronic banking and filing inquiriesEmployer Account Services (EAS)Issues billings, adjustments and refunds to contributory and reimbursable employers.Corresponds with contributory and reimbursable employers and the FAS to reconcile discrepancies on accounts.Processes employer registrations involving acquisitions and mergers, reinstatements and reversals including the calculation or determination of the applicable rateInvestigates and responds to contribution rate appeals, including debit reserve adjustments and voluntary contributionsAnalyzes and prepares the documents to effect a partial transfer of the experience record and reserve account balanceApproves the filing of liens against delinquent employersPrepares proofs of claim in sheriff sale proceedingsResponds to employer inquiries (telephone, electronic and written) Issues federal certifications of wages and contributions reported to PA for employers and IRS.Reallocates remittances and performs adjusting entries to employer ledgers.Review employer accounts for discrepancies and take appropriate corrective actions.Home of the Employer Contact Center which handles all incoming calls to the bureau except those related to electronic filing and bankingThe Assistant Director’s Office handles all higher level rate appeal and refund issues that are addressed to the Tax Review Office. This includes the preparation and certification of all documents for the bureau for the hearings as well as monitoring all pending cases. Closed cases are retained for historical purposes.Administrative and Program Support Resource Management UnitDevelop requests for IT acquisitions, plans for installation of devices, and maintain IT inventory for the UCTSDetermine network and mainframe access for new employeesMaintain UTCS complement and budget Respond to disclosure requestsCoordinate purchasing card and corporate card programs, and employee ID badgesMaintain Continuity of GovernmentCoordinate HR transactionsTimekeeping Also, reporting under the Administrative and Program Support Resource Management Division are the following three units: Special Projects UnitConducts State Unemployment Tax Act (SUTA) dumping case analysisProvide assistance for UCMS updates and testingMaintain and update website Training and Communications Unit Review and answer staff and employer inquiries of the operation of the Unemployment Compensation Management System (UCMS)Identify, record and prioritize UCMS defects, design changes and service requestsCreate test scripts for testing of the UCMS applicationConduct testing of the UCMS application for deployment of design changes, defect fixes and product upgradesCommunicate UCMS activities to internal and external customersRequest, prioritize, track and test data fixes deployed by OITCoordinate training activities for UCTS, conduct a training needs assessment, prepare an annual technical training plan, and prepare Out Service Training RequestsCoordination of UCTS Procedural ManualsPreparation of CommunicationsFinancial Integrity UnitResponsible for the federally mandated oversight program, Tax Performance System (TPS). The Tax Performance System is a federal oversight program designed to review all areas of the State’s UC Tax operations through system reviews and statistical sampling. TPS examines 13 Tax functions:Status Determinations - NewStatus Determinations – SuccessorStatus Determinations – Deactivation CashieringReport DelinquencyCollections Field AuditContribution Reports ProcessingDebits/Billings – ContributoryDebits/Billings – ReimbursableCredits/RefundsBenefit ChargingTax Rates Prepares the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) Audit Memo and coordinates both the GAAP and Single Agency Audit for Tax Services.Provides quality control, system, and program review and analysis, including suggested improvements, and assists with training, as required.Reviews the State UI Internal Security and Control in Pennsylvania’s UC Tax Operations (USDOL Risk Management Analysis)Reviews the USDOL’s Contribution Operations report, ETA 581, for accuracyWorks with CWIA to ensure the data reported on the ETA 581 is based on transactions in the database (USDOL’s Data Validation). Monitors Pennsylvania’s Tax Services performance on the USDOL criteria established under Unemployment Insurance (UI) Performs, compares our performance relative to the top ten states in employer populationCoordinates Tax Services submission of the State Quality Service Plan to the USDOL and provides quarterly updates, as needed, on any Corrective Action PlansDevelops, prepares and implements Tax Services supplemental budget requestsReviews and resolves all UCTS related invoice problems in the financial system.Tracks, monitors, analyze, and controls expenditures against allocations received and available for Tax Services and all its programs.Tracks employer delinquent receivables and prepares quarterly UC Tax financial reports.Reviews specific allegations of irregularities in employer tax accounting records and FAS office activities that require investigationRecommends program improvements based on the results of investigationsIn March 2011, UCTS began using the new Unemployment Compensation Management System (UCMS) internally. UCMS replaced the 40 plus year old legacy tax system with a new integrated tax system that added additional real and near real time features for internal staff and many online real time features for external users. In October 2012, the UCMS application was made available for employers to file and pay their quarterly tax and wage reports electronically. Electronic filing of quarterly tax and wage reports has been required since the 1st Quarter of 2014.To date, UCMS has over 197,000 employers and Third Party Administrators registered to use UCMS.During the 1st Quarter 2015 filing period (April 1, 2015 – April 30, 2015), UCMS tracked and reported:Total # Electronic Filers (Online, FTP and Upload)? – 266,871Total # File Upload – 22,678Total # FTP – 126,166Total #? Online – 117,736Total # Electronic Payments (ACH Credit, ACH Debit, Credit Card)? – 196,743Total # Payments and Dollar Amount ACH Credit – 99,989 payments for $1.1B Total # Payments and Dollar Amount ACH Debit – 89,706? payments for $395M Total # Payments and Dollar Amount Credit Card – 479? payments for $358KPaper Filers – 291Checks processed – 6,568 for $15MConcurrent Users High – 490L&I-OIT Organization OverviewOIT plans, develops, implements and manages a comprehensive information technology shared service organization for the Department of Labor & Industry, the purpose of which is to ensure the coordinated, effective, and efficient utilization of information resources in support of Labor & Industry and Commonwealth enterprise business goals and objectives. OIT provides department-wide services for IT infrastructure, operations, network support, project management, enterprise application development and architecture, business application development, customer support, training and resource management. OIT supports all Department of Labor & Industry locations, including all central and remote sites as well as coordinating services with business partners from other Commonwealth and Federal agencies, along with private employers. In order to perform these functions, OIT is comprised of four bureaus: the Bureau of Business Application Development (BBAD), the Bureau of Enterprise Architecture (BEA), the Bureau of Enterprise Services (BES) and the Bureau of Infrastructure and Operations (BIO). Bureau of Business Application Development The Bureau of Business Application Development applies emerging and existing technology to the business processes of the Department of Labor and Industry, enabling the program office staff to work more efficiently and effectively in delivering services to customers. The Bureau provides planning, analysis, and programming support for the Department’s information systems. Application systems administration is provided for implementation, maintenance and change control of business applications and integration of third party software products. Technical support is provided for the development of applications and training of end users on client/server, web-based, and mainframe platforms.Bureau of Enterprise Architecture The Bureau of Enterprise Architecture is responsible for the development of an enterprise architectural model for all of the Department of Labor and Industry, which consists of networking, computer systems, application, data/information, infrastructure, security, and standards components. The Bureau ensures both fiscal and physical accountability for all Labor and Industry IS/IT resources are achieved and maintained throughout their useful lifecycle. The Bureau develops comprehensive blueprints to guide the transformation from business strategies into value-added systems solutions. The Bureau facilitates and supports the system manifestation, physical implementation of resources, testing, validation, and associated change/re-engineering phases for the subsequent release into operational environments. The Bureau provides life cycle management strategies regarding the recycling, decommissioning, or disposal of the operational systems at the ending of its use in the enterprise operation.Bureau of Enterprise Services The Bureau of Enterprise Services performs enterprise wide IT applications development, web page development, and Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) product administration.? The Bureau handles security administration, password administration, change management processes, enterprise project management, continuity of government and disaster recovery oversight.? The Bureau is also responsible for the coordination of help desk services and customer service.Bureau of Infrastructure and Operations The Bureau of Infrastructure and Operations provides the operations for L&I’s business processing systems and infrastructure. The Bureau ensures the communications network and computing infrastructures are maintained in a state of high reliability, availability, and serviceability. It provides continuous processing services and support to customers and users throughout L&I, managing capacity and performance to maximize operational efficiency. The Bureau manages changes to hardware, software, and systems to ensure continuity and reliability of services, maintains and updates mission critical processing systems as the business and informational needs change. The Bureau provides installation, configuration, security, management and administrative support for all centralized computing platforms, systems and networks within L&I. ................
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