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ESOP Association Resources

Apr. 21
Is your ESOP providing the promised employee motivation, enhanced customer satisfaction and improved profitability? If no, you’re not alone. While studies have demonstrated ESOPs can be powerful tools to strengthen company performance and employee morale and retention, these results are only achieved if stock ownership is combined with a strong employee-owned culture. 
It’s never too late to start or improve the tools you use to get the most out of shared ownership.
 
Apr. 16
Canada’s employee ownership proposal, writes Graeme Nuttall and James Bonham, appears to ignore clear evidence of what has worked in the U.S. and U.K. — but there’s time to fix it.
We have witnessed a recent surge in business transitions toward employee ownership in both the United Kingdom and the United States.
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).
Apr. 14
March was a busy month for TEA’s Chapter Program, which sprang into the new year with in-person conferences and events throughout the nation! In March alone TEA Chapter Officers, Programming Committees, and Chapter Executives hosted a total of 18 Chapter events, with more to come in April. 
Apr. 07
Last year was an extraordinary year for the advocacy efforts of The ESOP Association.  But like most good things, it took the work and resources of many to make it happen.  I would like to take this opportunity to extend a most heartfelt word of gratitude to a handful of Association members who stepped forward last year to help fund a special working group project of the Corporate Council that will benefit the entire community.
Jul. 29
Welcome to the July issue of the ESOP Report. This month we feature a lot of information about employee engagement, growing a culture, and resources to help your ESOP.
Jul. 21
Yesterday the House of Representatives passed H.R. 8294, a package of six fiscal year 2023 federal appropriations bills. The six-bill package includes the FY 2023 Financial Services and General Government funding bill, whose related agencies like the Small Business Administration have regulatory oversight of some ESOP-related issues, and which includes provisions that will directly impact ESOPs and employee ownership in America.
ESOP Blog, Resource
Feb. 28
In this, our final installment on common criticisms of ESOPs—and why they are wrong—we’ll look at the assertion that ESOPs are not real ownership.
According to cynics, ESOPs are “fake” ownership plans. In “real” ownership, they argue, the owners control their assets by determining such things as who runs the company, who sits on the Board of Directors, when major corporate decisions are made that might impact the future of the company, and so on.
But ESOPs are true ownership.
ESOP Blog, Resource
Feb. 14
I often hear three criticisms about ESOPs: The second criticism is that ESOPs are a waste of taxpayers’ money.
Cynics say the tax breaks provided to ESOPs are money losers because the majority of American taxpayers pay higher rates to make up for the cost of ESOP tax benefits.
But anyone who says that must not have done very well in elementary school when they learned basic math. ESOPs offer great returns on tax incentives.
Resource, ESOP Report, Legal Update, Ownership Advantage, Washington Report, President's Page, Valuation, Beneficiary Designation
Feb. 01
The Impact of Tax Reform on ESOP C and S Corporation Business Valuations.