Business Owner Recap

As a business owner, it is important that you are staying updated on the new laws and regulations. Here is a recap of what we consider some of the most recent changes to the law that affects businesses:

Beneficial Ownership Registration: If you are a business owner and have not reported (most businesses must report) the beneficial ownership to the federal government, make sure you do it now (or by January 1, 2025). If you started your business in 2024, you have 90 days from the date of registration with the Secretary of State office (or a similar office under the law of the State or tribal nation) to report beneficial ownership information. The website to report this information is www.fincen.gov/boi.

Landlord/Tenant: If you are a landlord and have not revised your lease in 2024, most likely your lease has illegal provisions in it. In 2023, the Minnesota legislature passed the most comprehensive changes to landlord/tenant laws in its history.

Earned Sick and Safe Leave: Commencing January 1, 2024, Minnesota businesses had to provide earned sick and safe leave (ESST) to its employees. In the 2024 legislative session, ESST now applies to any employee that is anticipated to work at least 80 hours in a year in Minnesota. The cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis still have local ordinances that have to be followed. There are numerous regulations regarding this state law and some of those regulations were modified in the 2024 legislative session. If you have not provided a policy to your employees or have not updated your existing policy since the 2024 legislative session ended, most likely you are not in compliance with the law.

Exempt Employees: If your business is subject to the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, and you are unaware of the change to the minimum salary that will be effective July 1, 2024, you need to make the change so that you are not in violation of federal law and subject to a Minnesota wage theft claim.

Wage Theft: In 2019, the Minnesota legislature passed the strictest wage theft laws in the nation with bipartisan support. Wage theft refers to anytime that an employer does not pay their workers what is owed to them for work performed. So, wage theft happens, for example, when an employer does not pay its worker minimum wage, overtime, misclassifies a worker as an independent contractor rather than an employee, etc. Under the Minnesota Wage Theft Prevention Act, the legislature added criminal penalties for employers that commit wage theft. Minneapolis has a separate ordinance on wage theft.

Employee Wage Notice: As part of the Minnesota Wage Theft Prevention Act, employers must provide an employee a wage notice that requires notification to an employee before the employee starts employment as to wage, compensation and benefits and prior to any change in wage, compensation or benefits. The City of Minneapolis also has notice requirements.

Spangler and de Stefano, PLLP advises businesses on a wide range of issues.

The material contained herein is for informational purposes only, and is not intended to create or constitute an attorney-client relationship between Spangler and de Stefano, PLLP and the reader. The information contained herein is not offered as legal advice and should not be construed as legal advice.