§1763. Rights and responsibilities

A. For purposes of this Chapter, as long as the professional employer services agreement between the PEO and the client remains in force, a PEO shall be deemed an employer of the covered employees to the extent and for the purposes enumerated in the professional employer services agreement. However, the PEO shall have the following employer rights and responsibilities with regard to such covered employees in any case:

(1) It shall pay the wages of covered employees from its own accounts.

(2) It shall have the responsibility for the withholding and remittance of payroll-related taxes of the covered employees from its own accounts.

(3) It shall pay federal unemployment taxes as required by federal unemployment laws.

(4) It shall have the right to sponsor and maintain fully insured employee benefit and welfare plans for covered employees. Nothing in this Part shall prevent a client from including covered employees in a client benefit program or plan or shall prevent covered employees from participating in such a program or plan.

B.(1) A PEO shall be liable for state unemployment taxes for wages paid by the PEO to covered employees but only for the duration of the PEO services agreement applicable to such employees. The PEO shall collect federal and state unemployment taxes. The PEO shall remit all collected federal unemployment taxes to the United States Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service and shall remit all collected state unemployment taxes to the Louisiana Workforce Commission. A PEO shall be required to provide a client with an invoice detailing the services provided which shall include an itemization of the actual federal and state unemployment taxes owed and paid on behalf of the covered employees, as well as any amount the PEO charges for such service.

(2) A PEO shall keep separate records and submit separate quarterly contribution and wage reports for each of its client entities using the client's account number and unemployment contribution rate.

(3) The PEO and the client shall be jointly and severally liable for any unpaid contributions, interest, and penalties due for Louisiana unemployment taxes attributable to wages for services performed for the client by covered employees.

(4) A PEO client shall be released from joint and several liability under Paragraph (B)(3) and the client shall be released from the separate reporting and contribution rate requirements imposed under Paragraph (B)(2) upon the posting and continued maintenance by the PEO of a surety bond issued by a corporate surety authorized to do business in the state in the amount of one hundred thousand dollars to ensure prompt payment of contributions, interest, and penalties for which the PEO is or may become liable. After three years the bond shall be adjusted in accordance with rules promulgated by the Louisiana Workforce Commission.

(5) The PEO shall designate and identify each client and covered employees thereof for each calendar quarter with the filing of quarterly wage reports with the Louisiana Workforce Commission.

(6)(a) No transfer of experience rating will be approved between any client and the PEO unless it is determined by the administrator that an acquisition of assets has occurred. Co-employment of a client's employees without an acquisition of the business and its other assets will not of itself constitute an acquisition for purposes of the transfer of experience rating.

(b) However, the experience rating will transfer between one PEO to another when it is determined by the administrator that an acquisition of assets has occurred, even if such acquisition is only of a clearly segregable and identifiable or a substantial portion of the first PEO's labor force.

(7) If a professional employer services agreement is terminated and, within thirty days, the client engages the services of another PEO, both the terminated or terminating PEO and the new PEO will notify the unemployment insurance tax section of the Louisiana Workforce Commission directly within thirty days, and no other action need be taken.

(8) If a professional employer service agreement is terminated and the client resumes sole employment of previously covered employees, any inactive unemployment insurance account previously held by the client will be reopened under its previously existing experience rating. No transfer of experience rating shall be made from the PEO. If there is no previous account number or the account lies dormant for seven years, a new account will be established in accordance with law. If there is no existing experience rating, one will be established pursuant to state law for new businesses.

Acts 2001, No. 1150, §2, eff. Jan. 1, 2002; Acts 2008, No. 743, §7, eff. July 1, 2008.