It’s always risky to misclassify someone who should be an employee as an "independent contractor," but President Obama’s 2011 budget proposal will increase the risks for employers.  According to this budget summary from the U.S. Department of Labor, the misclassification of employees as contractors is estimated to cost the Treasury Department over $7 billion

The Department of Labor has published four model  notices to help employers, plans and individuals comply with the notice requirements of the COBRA subsidy provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).  Each model notice is designed for a particular group of qualified beneficiaries and contains information to help satisfy ARRA’s notice provisions. Click