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The Employee Ownership Action Network (EOAN) is a free-to-join, grassroots advocacy movement for anyone with a stake in ensuring employee ownership continues to grow and thrive in the US.
Does that sound like you?
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What Our Members Have to Say
“Membership in The ESOP Association is vital to an ESOP owned company. The advocacy and education services are invaluable and are not duplicated by any other organization.”
-David Kelly, CFO at Acadian Ambulance Service Inc.
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Featured Event
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This gathering of ESOP Presidents and CEOs offers a one-of-a-kind platform for peer learning, allowing participants to glean valuable strategies from others grappling with similar challenges.
Upcoming events
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The #EO Solution
The ESOP Association and Project Equity have partnered to create state -by-state data that amplifies employee ownership as a common sense way to preserve businesses, strengthen jobs and build a more resilient post-pandemic economy.
ESOP Association Resources
Forming an ESOP - A New Video Series on Business Succession Planning
Hear from ESOP companies in multiple different industries, and their seasoned advisors, about what an ESOP is and if it’s right for you.
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- About TEA
What is an ESOP?
An ESOP is a retirement plan—but also a way of living and running a company. For insights on both technical and cultural aspects of these plans—which provide benefits to employee owners, the company, the community, and exiting owners—and links to additional resources, see our web page titled What is an ESOP?
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The ESOP Association
ESOP Association Resources
Apr. 14
DOL Commits to Provide Long-Sought Regulatory Clarity with Stakeholder Input on the Valuation of Company Shares to be Bought by an ESOP
Washington, D.C., April 14, 2023 – In a major victory for Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), the U.S. Department of Labor has committed to move forward with a public notice and comment rulemaking on a key regulation the community has sought since ESOPs were first created in 1974. The regulation will clearly define Adequate Consideration under Section 408(e) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).
Washington, D.C., April 14, 2023 – In a major victory for Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs), the U.S. Department of Labor has committed to move forward with a public notice and comment rulemaking on a key regulation the community has sought since ESOPs were first created in 1974. The regulation will clearly define Adequate Consideration under Section 408(e) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).
Dec. 29
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (P.L. 117-328) includes the Worker Opportunity, Readiness and Knowledge (WORK) Act, sponsored by Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Jerry Moran (R-KS), which creates the Employee Ownership Initiative at the DOL to promote employee ownership and directs the DOL to provide formal guidance on the vital issue of properly valuing shares of company stock to be bought by an ESOP– a key rule long missing from the ESOP regulatory landscape. The law included new provisions allowing S corporation ESOPs limited use of section 1042 tax deferral.
Dec. 07
The ESOP Association has been working with Congress during this congressional session on bipartisan retirement security legislation. That important legislation – which includes provisions that affect every ESOP and employee ownership in general – is being considered in the final days of the current Congress. If this bill, which was painstakingly negotiated and enjoys broad bipartisan support, doesn’t pass now, the entire legislative process must start over next year.
Dec. 19
When early drafts of the 1989 deficit reduction bill included eliminating the deduction of dividends paid on ESOP stock, The ESOP Association successfully fights to preserve the deductibility of dividends.