A bill introduced by U.S. Representatives Mike Thompson, D-Napa, and Diane Black, R-Tenn., would simplify the Affordable Health Care Act for businesses, the two members of Congress said.

Thompson represents Benicia in the U.S. House.

Their bill, HR 2712, is called The Commonsense Reporting and Verification Act of 2015.

Thompson said if it is approved, the legislation would provide “workable options for employers to administer and offer health coverage to their employees” by creating a voluntary prospective reporting system and streamlining businesses’ reporting process.

“While the health care law isn’t perfect, it was an important first step toward making quality, affordable health care a reality for all Americans,” Thompson said.

“Now it’s time to work across the aisle to make common-sense improvements to the law, and that is exactly what this legislation will do.”

He said he has been hearing from constituents who are employers of multiple-sized staff. He said these employers want to offer health care to their employees but tell him of challenges they face complying with the ACA’s administrative requirements.

“This bill would allow employers to maintain employer-sponsored health coverage while reducing reporting burdens on businesses so they can focus on what they do best — creating jobs and growing our local economies,” Thompson said.

“Our bill would also increase consumer protections by requiring that eligibility for subsidies be based on the most recent tax data,” he said.

“This will increase accuracy and ensure that individuals and families aren’t hit with a large and unexpected tax bill at the end of the year.”

Christine Pollack, vice president of government affairs at the Retail Industry Leaders Association, said her organization supports Thompson and Black and their bill.

Pollack said HR 2712 would “bring clarity to the health exchange subsidy process and provide employers with relief under the ACA reporting requirements.”

Under the current reporting requirements established by the Affordable Care Act, businesses are required to collect information and file annual reports about the coverage they offer to the Internal Revenue Service and their employees.

The information reporting is intended to verify compliance with the individual and employer mandates established by the health care act and to administer subsidies through the insurance exchanges.

In addition, employers and insurers are supposed to collect Social Security numbers of all covered individuals, including dependents. That is information that many do not have, Thompson said.

These reporting requirements have proven to be “a challenging and inefficient way to gather the necessary information and administer subsidies,” he said.

He said his legislation is designed to refine the information reporting process, improve accuracy and minimize the risks of employees having to repay part or all of premium tax credits or cost-sharing subsidies in cases where exchanges made an incorrect eligibility determination. It also enhances privacy protections for individuals and families, he said.

Specifically, the Commonsense Reporting and Verification Act of 2015 would create a voluntary prospective reporting system that would let employers voluntarily file general information with the IRS about their health plan for the current year and would increase accuracy of eligibility determinations for exchange tax credits.

State and federal exchanges would have secure access to the information through a data services hub.

The legislation would streamline the reporting process by easing employers’ reporting burdens if they use the voluntary prospective reporting system, Thompson said.

It would do this by requiring reporting statements only for those employees for whom the employer has received notification that the employee or their dependents enrolled in coverage on the exchanges or received a subsidy rather than issuing reporting statements for the entire workforce.

It would protect privacy by eliminating a requirement that employers and insurers collect dependents’ Social Security numbers.

The bill would allow electronic transmission of employee and enrollee statements rather than require this information be provided only by paper statement sent through the mail.

It would establish oversight of reporting and tax credit verification by requiring a Government Accountability Office study of how availability of employer-sponsored insurance is being verified by state and federal exchanges. The study also would suggest improvements to the appeals and prospective reporting systems, Thompson said.

In addition, the legislation would require the exchanges to review the most recent tax filing for those automatically re-enrolled in exchange coverage, and make any necessary adjustments.