Question

MA EMAC payments not being computed properly in Enhanced Payroll

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MA EMAC is an employer contribution when an employer reaches 5 or more employees in a calendar quarter. in 2023, the rate is .034% on an employees first $15,000 of gross earnings after the employer hits the 5 employee mark. If the employer goes under 5 employees in a particular quarter, no EMAC contributions are due.

This is a problem for QB. We had 3 MA employees in Q1 and have had more than 5 in Q2 and Q3. Fortunately, MADUA calculated the correct contribution amounts in Q2 and I was able to create payroll liability adjustments for each affected employee. I subsequently set up MA DUA contributions with the help of payroll support, however the withholdings continue to be calculated in Q3 despite several employees reaching the earnings limit of $15,000 and employer contributions of $51 (.034% * $15,000) in Q2. All but one employee has achieved $15,000 in earnings between Q2 and Q3, but the EMAC contribution continues to show up on my payroll reports on pay over $15,000.

How do I instruct QB to calculate this additional employer contribution only when there are more than 5 MA ee's in a quarter (i.e. what would happen if on Jan 1 24 I start with 6 ee's, but have only 3 on March 31? All of those contributions need to be adjusted because they will not be paid. Similarly, how does the program know to consider earnings only in those quarters where there are more than 5 massachusetts employees? And how can I get the program to stop calculating an employer liability for contributions after the employee reaches $15,000 of earnings in those quarters where there were 5 or more MA employees?

I've spent hours on the telephone with QB payroll support and keep knocking my head on the wall in frustration because no one seems to understand my dilemma and no one accepts that this might be a programming issue that needs to be addressed.

I'd like to get this escalated and fixed. Can anyone please help?

QuickBooks Desktop Payroll

BigRedConsulting

Some of what you're seeing, where the tax keeps calculating, is because each tax in QuickBooks keeps track of it's own taxed wages. Based on your description, it sounds like the tax was not included on some or all of the employees for a period, like a quarter. If so, then the wages didn't accumulate during that period.

QuickBooks won't do what you ask, to auto-calculate a tax if there are enough employees for a quarter, or to exclude it if there aren't.

Probably the best thing to do for next year is:

- Set up all of the employees with the tax and let it calculate.

- At the end of the quarter, if it turns out you don't owe the tax, then enter a liability adjustment for each employee that negates the tax amount, but not the wages.

- Repeat as needed each quarter.

This way, the wages will accumulate, as well as the liability. And then if you need to pay it you'll know how much to pay. And if not, then adjust it away.

M

MECINC

There use to be a checkbox years ago to avoid this issue. It said if you have fewer than 6 employees then check this box. It would then set the contribution rate to 0.

Ever since they removed this box I have spent countless hours on the phone with support (each and every quarter) because it auto updates to .34%........

My questions are:

Why was the checkbox removed?

Why can't they configure it to calculate % based on the number of employees in a given quarter?

Is there a corporate contact to finally get a resolution to this?

Everyone I speak with over the years tell me they will send feedback, but nothing has changed.

M

MECINC

I am also working with online payroll and have to spend hours on the phone or via chat EVERY QUARTER to reset my rate to 0%.

This past quarter I finally got fed up and ignored it - the form calculated everything correctly but now the system thinks I still owe EMAC taxes - and I am past due paying it.

I forwarded the email I received about your post to the office of the president.

They have been in touch with me regarding the same thing that’s been happening for the past 7yrs….

Hopefully we swill see a fix sometime in the near future.

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