N.Y. Tax Law § 171-H – State directory of new hires

(1) Establishment. The department shall establish an automated directory known as the "State Directory of New Hires" which shall contain information supplied by employers in accordance with subdivision three of this section, regarding each newly hired or re-hired employee.
(2) Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the terms "employer," "employee," and "business day" shall have the following meanings:
(a) "employee" means an individual who is an employee within the meaning of chapter twenty-four of the internal revenue code of 1986, and does not include an employee of a federal or state agency performing intelligence or counterintelligence functions if the head of such agency has determined that a report made pursuant to this section with respect to the individual could endanger the safety of the employee or compromise an ongoing investigation or intelligence mission.
(b) "employer" means an individual or entity within the meaning given the term employer in section three thousand four hundred one (d) of the internal revenue code of 1986 and includes:
1. (i) any governmental entity, and
2. (ii) any labor organization as defined in section two (5) of the national labor relations act, including any entity (also known as a "hiring hall") which is used by such labor organization and an employer to carry out the requirements described in section eight (f)(3) of the national labor relations act with respect to any agreement that may exist between the labor organization and the employer.
(c) "business day" means a day on which state offices are open for regular business.
(3) Employer reporting requirements:
(a) General. Employers shall furnish to the state directory of new hires a report that contains the name, address, and social security number of each newly hired or re-hired employee who works in the state, and the employer's name, address, and identification number as assigned pursuant to section six thousand one hundred nine of the internal revenue code of 1986. Employers also shall report if dependent health insurance benefits are available and the date the employee qualifies for the benefits.
(b) Format. Each report shall be submitted on a W-4 (employee's withholding allowance certificate) form or, at employer option, an equivalent form and transmitted by first class mail, magnetically, or electronically to the state directory of new hires. In addition, if each report is submitted on a W-4, an additional form as prescribed by the department shall be submitted to report if dependent health insurance benefits are available and the date the employee qualifies for the benefits. That additional form shall be transmitted by first class mail, magnetically, or electronically to the state directory of new hires.
(c) Timing. Employers must submit reports to the state directory of new hires within twenty calendar days of the employer's hiring or re-hiring of the employee. However, in the case of an employer transmitting reports magnetically or electronically, by two monthly transmissions (if necessary), such reports shall be transmitted not less than twelve calendar days nor more than sixteen calendar days apart.
(d) Multistate employers. An employer that has employees who work in New York and employees who work in one or more other states, and transmits reports magnetically or electronically, may designate New York or one of the other states in which such employer has employees as the state to which the employer will transmit the report to the state directory of new hires. Any employer which transmits reports by this method must notify the secretary of the federal department of health and human services in writing as to which state such employer designates for the purpose of sending reports.
(e) Federal government employers. Any department, agency, or instrumentality of the federal government shall transmit new hire reports as required by section four hundred fifty-three A (b)(1)(C) of the social security act.
(4) The department shall:
(a) notify all employers of the requirements for reporting information to the state directory of new hires as provided in subdivision three of this section;
(b) enter information into the database maintained by the state directory of new hires within five business days of receipt from an employer pursuant to subdivision three of this section;
(c) make automated comparisons of social security numbers between the state directory of new hires and the state case registry maintained by the office of temporary and disability assistance for administration of the child support enforcement program and, where there is a match, provide the office of temporary and disability assistance with the name, address, and social security number of the employee to whom the social security number is assigned, and the name and address of the employer and the employer's identifying number assigned to the employer under section six thousand nine of the internal revenue code of 1986, within one business day after the date the information is entered into the state directory of new hires;
(d) transmit new hire information to the national directory of new hires maintained by the federal department of health and human services within three business days after the date the information is entered into the state directory of new hires;
(e) conduct matches with the office of temporary and disability assistance, the department of health, and the department of labor to verify individuals' eligibility for the various programs specified under section one thousand one hundred thirty-seven (b) of the social security act and for other public assistance programs authorized by state law, and for the purposes of administering state employment security programs, and with the workers' compensation board for the purpose of administering workers' compensation programs;
(f) on or before October first, nineteen hundred ninety-seven, enter into written agreements with the commissioners of the office of temporary and disability assistance, health, and labor on behalf of the office of temporary and disability assistance and the departments of health and labor respectively and the chair of the workers' compensation board on behalf of such board, which shall:
1. (i) provide for the disclosure of information obtained from the reports required to be submitted pursuant to this section to such departments and board for the purposes set forth in this section;
2. (ii) specify the frequency with which the department shall furnish information obtained from such reports to such office, departments, and board, which shall be within one business day after the date the information is entered into the state directory of new hires;
3. (iii) set forth the procedure for reimbursement of the department by such office, departments, and board subject to the approval of the director of the budget for the additional costs of carrying out the provisions of this section;
4. (iv) include such other matters as the parties to such agreement shall deem necessary to carry out the provisions of this section; and
(g) furnish to the national directory of new hires, on a quarterly basis, extracts of the reports required under paragraph six of subsection (a) of section three hundred three of the federal social security act to be made to the secretary of labor concerning wages and unemployment compensation paid to individuals, by such dates, and in such manner as the secretary of health and human services shall specify by regulations. The state department of labor shall, consistent with the authority contained in paragraph e of subdivision three of section five hundred thirty-seven of the labor law, disclose to the state directory of new hires, such wage and unemployment compensation information as may be necessary to allow such state directory to comply with the provisions of this paragraph.