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New Hire Reporting - What It
Is and How It Works
Effective October 1, 1998, state and federal laws require all employers to
report each new and rehired employee to a state Directory of New Hires (20
Illinois Compiled Statute 1020, and section 313, Personal Responsibility Work
Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, 42 U.S.C. 653A). Congress and the
states adopted these laws to increase child support collections on both state
and national levels and reduce fraudulent unemployment and worker's
compensation payments.
In Illinois, employers submit information on newly hired or rehired employees
to the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES), New Hire Directory.
IDES then forwards the data to the Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement
(OCSE), where it becomes a part of the National Directory of New Hires.
IDES compares the information employers submit against current state child
support files. When a match occurs, the Illinois Department of Healthcare and
Family Services, Division of Child Support Enforcement, issues an Order/Notice
to Withhold Income for Child Support. Likewise, the National Directory
of New Hires compares the data received from one state with child support
information from other states and when a match occurs, provides the information
to the appropriate state agency. With new hire reporting, state child support
enforcement agencies have the ability to promptly issue an Order/Notice to
Withhold Income for Child Support - the most effective means of
collecting child support.
Reporting Basics
For additional information, employers can call: 312-327-HIRE (4473).
For information regarding the file format for reporting via magnetic cartridge
or diskette, employers can call: 312-793-6298.
Multi-State Employer
Reporting
A multi-state employer:
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Hires and employs people in two or more states; and
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Conducts business within each state.
A multi-state employer may select one of the following two reporting options:
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Report newly hired employees to the various states in which they are working,
following the individual state's New Hire Reporting Program regulations,
requirements and timeframes; or
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Select a single state to report all newly hired employees.
An employer choosing to send all reports to one state must:
Notify the United States Department of Health and Human Services in writing.
The National Directory of New Hires maintains a list of multi-state employers
who have elected to use single-state notification. The designated reporting
location chosen by these employers is available to all states.
The employer should include the following in the written notification:
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Employer's FEIN
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Employer's name (associated with FEIN)
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Employer's address (associated with FEIN)
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Employer's telephone number (associated with FEIN)
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Corporate contact person
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Name of the state where all reports will be submitted
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Each state in which the employer has employees
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Names and FEINs, as well as the states where those subsidiaries have employees
working, if the company is reporting new hires on behalf of subsidiaries
operating under different names and FEINs
The employer can complete written notification online,
click here.
Mail notification to:
Department of Health and Human Services
Office of Child Support Enforcement
Multi-State Employer Registration
P.O. Box 509
Randallstown, MD 21133
Fax notification to:
Fax: 410-277-9325
Multi-state employers, who choose to report to one state, must submit New Hire
Reports electronically or magnetically. The multi-state employer should contact
the state agency to which it will be reporting to obtain that state's current
electronic/magnetic data specifications.
For additional information regarding multi-state reporting, employers can
contact 410-277-9470, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Eastern Time.
Benefits of New Hire
Reporting
New hire reporting has many benefits - for families and children, employers,
the state and taxpayers. New hire reporting strengthens child support
enforcement in Illinois and across the nation by providing a current source of
data on the employment of non-custodial parents and alleged fathers.
The most significant benefits are derived from the state's enhanced ability to
expedite:
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Issuance of initial Order/Notices to Withhold Income for Child Support
in new cases;
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Transfer of Order/Notices
when a non-custodial parent changes jobs; and
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The payment of support to custodial parents.
Prior to new hire reporting, employment data from other sources would often be
six- to eight-months old. New hire reporting provides a quick turnaround time
for getting the information from the employer to child support agencies,
increases the reliability of the data received, and ultimately improves the
well-being of the families and children depending on child support.
Through data sharing with other programs, new hire reporting provides a
powerful tool for reducing fraud in Illinois' public assistance, workers'
compensation, and unemployment insurance programs. Employers in particular
benefit through the cost savings that come with the reduction and prevention of
fraudulent unemployment insurance payments. Timely receipt of new hire data
allows each state to cross-match this data against its active unemployment
claimant files - either stopping payments or recovering erroneous payments.
In addition, new hire reporting promotes more stability in the workforce,
because employees have less incentive to job hop in order to avoid paying child
support, since officials can quickly track their movement from job to job. And,
employees who are due child support have the additional resources needed to
stabilize their home lives and focus on their jobs.
Taxpayers also benefit from new hire reporting through a reduced tax burden.
When parents who have not been supporting their children begin paying child
support:
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Families may no longer have a need to apply for assistance or if on public
assistance, may no longer need it; and
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State and federal governments may be reimbursed for public assistance payments.
Employer Penalties for
Noncompliance
An employer's failure to report new hires may result in a civil penalty of $15
for each individual whom the employer does not report.
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