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THE 80% FUNDING MYTH

April 30, 2023

We recently had a sponsor that inquired about amending their program to improve benefits. The program was exactly 80% funded as of January 1, 2023. One of the questions that came up during the discussion was if the plan was funded well enough to consider an amendment. Normally, it would be preferred for a program…

MISCELLANEOUS ACTIVITIES CATEGORY

March 31, 2023

One of the point system categories is Miscellaneous Activities. The state law provides: (vii)Miscellaneous activities—maximum fifteen points. Participation in inspections and otheractivities covered by the volunteer firefighters’ benefit law and not otherwise listed—one point peractivity. The three main criteria for an event to be a miscellaneous activity is: 1) It must be an activity. For…

2022 LOSAP INFORMATION FOR INCOME TAX PREPARERS

February 27, 2023

This post is not intended to be tax advice. Firefly Admin Inc. does not provide tax advice, and all participants and beneficiaries who receive a LOSAP benefit are strongly encouraged to consult with a qualified tax professional regarding the information provided in this post. The information contained herein is accurate as of the date of…

IRS RAISES MAXIMUM LOSAP BENEFIT TO $7,000

January 1, 2023

Towards the end of 2022, the IRS released Notice 2022-55, which made cost-of-living adjustments for the benefit limitations provided in certain sections of the Internal Revenue Code. One of those limitations is the maximum benefit that can be accrued in a Length of Service Award Program. The maximum benefit was increased from $6,500 to $7,000…

POINTS FOR ONLINE TRAINING

December 30, 2022

In this post, we will provide some insight on awarding points for self-directed, online training. In other words, training that is not interactive with an instructor or moderator, but an e-learning course that can be taken at the pace of the individual. The online course may include intermittent quizzes to ensure the individual is learning…

SEVERE WEATHER EVENTS IMPACTING POINTS FOR DEPARTMENT RESPONSES

November 23, 2022

When severe weather impacts a region, we know that is when communities step up to help neighbors in need. Sometimes these efforts reach the news, like recently when Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen needed help clearing his driveway so he could catch a plane to Detroit for the game. But most times, it is what…

A FIREFLY PROPOSAL TO AMEND THE LOSAP STATUTE

October 25, 2022

Over the years, we have fielded many questions that begin with “Can we” Most of the time, these “can we” questions are about awarding points for certain activities. We decided to create a Memorandum outlining four amendments to Section 217 of the General Municipal Law that would address the most frequent “can we” questions. In…

DUTY CREWS

September 30, 2022

With greater frequency we are handling questions about a fire department wanting to implement duty crews to ensure they have adequate staffing to respond to emergencies. This is a common practice with ambulance squads, but I’m sure anyone reading this blog doesn’t need us to explain how operationally different an ambulance call is vs a…

ROLLOVER ALTERNATIVES FOR LOSAP

August 31, 2022

In a post from May 20, 2019, we discussed why a LOSAP benefit cannot be rolled over to a qualified plan. You can read that article HERE. Additionally, since a LOSAP benefit is not earned income (for Firefly clients, the income is reported on a 1099-MISC in Box 3), it cannot be deposited into an IRA. …

IN NY STATE, A LOSAP CAN BE “ABOLISHED”

June 30, 2022

In our last post we reviewed Section 215 of the New York State General Municipal Law (GML), which is entitled “Purpose”. We saw that this section of the statute states that a LOSAP is not guaranteed by the State constitution like the retirement system. The benefits provided by the retirement system are constitutionally guaranteed, which is why the tier…

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