Purpose

This continues the partnership and collaborative efforts of agency Personnel/Payroll Offices and the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC) in reconciling employee Social Security numbers and names in the NYS payroll system with the Social Security Administration (SSA) system.

Affected Employees

Employees who appear on the Control-D Report NPAY752 (Social Security Number Verification Report)

Effective Date(s)

Immediately

Background

Pursuant to Internal Revenue Service Publication 15 (Circular E), employers are required to enter a correct name and Social Security number on their employees’ Form W-2. This requirement also applies to resident and nonresident alien employees.  To ensure this requirement is met prior to Form W-2 production, OSC and agency Personnel/Payroll Offices reconcile Social Security numbers and names in the NYS payroll system with the Social Security Administration (SSA) twice a year.

OSC Actions

OSC has created a file of employees with taxable wages for 2009 and compared that information with SSA records using the Social Security Administration’s Social Security Number Verification Service (SSNVS).  Control-D Report NPAY752 has been created to identify the discrepancies between the two systems.  The NPAY752 report contains the following information:

• Employee’s Social Security Number
• Employee’s Name
• Reason Why SSN Not Verified.  Reasons provided by SSA may include:
  • 1 = SSN not in file (never issued)
  • 5 = Name does not match; DOB and gender code not checked
  • 6 = Contact local SSA office for more information
• Other SSN

Agency Actions

Agencies must take the following actions to ensure discrepancies identified between PayServ and the SSA system are reconciled:

• Review the NPAY752 Control-D report for your agency code(s).
• Send a notification letter to employees who appear on the NPAY752 requesting that the employee provide proof of updated information to the agency Personnel or Payroll Office as soon as possible.  (A sample letter which agencies may use is provided.)  Agency payroll offices should retain a copy of each letter and any response from employees for four (4) calendar years in the event of an OSC review and/or IRS audit.
• Verify that the Social Security card presented by the employee is the most recent card issued by the Social Security Administration.  If the information reported in the State payroll system does not match the information on the Social Security card, the agency must enter the correct information into PayServ’s Personal Data page as soon as possible.
• If the employee believes that the Social Security information reported in the NYS payroll system is correct, instruct the employee to contact the SSA to verify and correct their records.  Agencies should document and retain this information for four (4) calendar years in the event of an OSC review and/or IRS audit.
• If an employee is listed as Deceased on the NPAY752, obtain a copy of the death certificate and update the  PayServ record.  An employee is listed on the report as Deceased when the payroll record does not match the deceased information provided by SSA.
• When an agency is aware that an employee who has previously separated from State service is deceased, the agency must report this information to ensure any future payments due the employee will be taxed and reported accurately.  In this situation, the date of death can be entered directly in Personal Data as follows:  Administer Workforce>Administer Workforce (GBL)>Use>Personal Data.  On the Identity/Diversity tab, Date of Death must be populated with MM/DD/YY.
• Information must be updated by December 31, 2009 to ensure the accuracy of the 2009 Form W-2.
• Follow existing OSC procedures for issuance of corrected Form W-2s.

Questions

Questions may be directed to the Tax and Compliance mailbox.