Business and Legal Insights

On June 16, 2021, Governor DeSantis signed legislation amending Fla. Stat. 409.2576, imposing revised reporting requirements of new hires, re-hires and independent contractors for businesses across the State of Florida.

Effective October 1, 2021, all Florida employers (regardless of size) are required to report new hires and rehires to the State Directory of New Hires within 20 days of hire. The amendment is a significant change for Florida businesses and imposes new requirements for employers who were not previously affected.

Two key changes in the law, impacting all employers across the State, are:

• No Minimum Size
  • Removing a prior reporting threshold of 250 employees, the updated legislation now imposes the reporting requirements on businesses of all sizes, regardless of the number of employees. Employers with less than 250 employees who have never had to report on new hires will now need to comply.
    • One exception may apply, but is only applicable to employees working with a federal or state agency performing intelligence or counterintelligence functions.

• Independent Contractors
  • The reporting requirement is no longer limited to only employees. Employers now also must report on independent contractors who will be paid $600 or more per calendar year for services.

The purpose of the statutory change was primarily to assist the State in tracking and enforcing child support obligations. However, the information reported is typically available and utilized by other state agencies as well.

For more information and resources related to this reporting requirement, see the Florida Department of Revenue Child Support Services for Employees website (https://servicesforemployers.floridarevenue.com/Pages/home.aspx).

If you employ personnel in more than one state then you are considered a multistate employer, and may report such new hires or re-hires via the federal Multistate Employer Registry (https://ocsp.acf.hhs.gov/csp/mser).