Employer PASS Program
610 W. Oglethorpe Ave. www.catchacat.org
p. 912-629-3916 f. 912-651-0427
Shalonda.rountree@catchacat.org
CAT is delighted to collaborate with businesses and organizations to introduce public transportation and rideshare options to employees. The job market today is tight, which means that businesses constantly compete to get and keep good employees. What kinds of benefits does your company offer your potential or current employees? CAT can work with you to develop a new transit benefit that can make a big difference to your bottom line There are many ways to offer a transit benefit program through CAT. Here are the basic options:
Employer Pass Program Chatham Area Transit offers two employer programs to help make the transition to public transit easier: The Federal Commuter Choice Program and the Employee Bus Pass Program. Both provide a no-hassle way for employees to take public transit to and from work while protecting the environment and saving money. Many employers are choosing to make the Employer Pass Program part of their employee benefit package. The Employer Pass Program is easy to administer and designed to fit each company’s needs. CAT helps employers choose the option that’s right for their business:
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For Employers
Attract and keep the best worker talent
Expand your labor pool
Enhance employee productivity
Increase tax savings
Reduce parking requirements
Position your company as an environmentally-responsible neighbor
For Employees
Low stress commute
Unlimited rides, all the time
Reduced car maintenance and insurance
Guaranteed Ride Home in emergencies
COMMUTER CHOICE TAX BENEFIT The Commuter Tax Benefit program allows employers to give their workers up to $130 each month for transit or vanpool commuting costs as a tax-free benefit. It also allows employers to give employees the option to use payroll deductions to avoid paying taxes on up to $130 a month in commuting costs. Alternatively, employers can share these costs with their workers by paying part of their monthly commuting costs and letting employees pay the balance using pre-tax dollars. This results in a tax savings for commuters and a reduced taxable payroll for employers. As of January 2014, federal tax law allows commuters to set aside up to $130 per month of his/her salary before taxes to pay for transit or vanpool fares and $250 for qualified parking.
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Commuter tax incentive programs are making a difference to thousands of commuters. In addition to monetary rewards, participants enjoy a less stressful commute and take satisfaction in knowing they are helping relieve congestion and reduce the environmental impact of driving alone to work.
Employer-Paid Benefit
Employers offering full transit breaks for employees can take full advantage of this federal tax break. In Chatham County, the total cost of a CAT Monthly Pass is fully deductible for employers, as the cost is less than $130 per month. The cost for the employer is tax-free and deductible as a business expense. Tax Benefits -
The employer receives an equivalent federal income tax deduction.
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Employees do not have to report this as taxable income because it is considered a fringe benefit.
Employee-Paid Pre Tax Benefit
With this option, employee pay for the entire cost of monthly transit with pre-tax dollars of their salary. Tax Benefits -
There is no income tax on these set-aside dollars because obtaining public transportation through the Commuter Choice Program is considered a job benefit, so employees end of paying less income tax.
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Fare Share Benefit
The employer pays a portion of the cost and the employee pays the remaining portion before taxes. Tax Benefits -
The employers saves on payroll taxes.
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The employee doesn’t pay income tax on the set-aside dollar amount.
CAT EMPLOYEE BUS PASS PROGRAM The Employee Bus Pass Program was created to mitigate traffic and parking problems and to encourage employees to use public transit. The goal of this program is to provide unlimited access to the transit system for employees of contracted participants to diminish the cost per trip compared to regular bus fare. CAT Employee Bus Pass Program Eligibility Any employer with 25 employees or more is eligible to enter into an employee Bus Pass Program contract with CAT. Option1 –Provides annual pass for all employees Options 2 – Provides annual pass for selected employees How the CAT Employee Bus Pass Program Works
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When an employer enters into a one-year contract with CAT, that employer purchases unlimited access bus passes for all employees at a negotiated but considerable discounted rate. Any employee will be able to show a CAT bus driver his or her ID cards and enjoy CAT fixed route services for free, with the exception of special services such as Saint Patrick’s Day Shuttle Service, etc. A CAT employee bus pass sticker may be required on employee IDs, depending on the company’s identification card policy. Current Partners
PROVIDING A LOW-COST EMPLOYEE BENEFIT Who’s Eligible?
MAKES GETTING TO
WORKS AFFORDABLE,
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Public and Private Companies
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Federal Government Agencies
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Non-Profit Organizations
SATISFACTION AND
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Members of the Military Services
EXPANDS YOUR LABOR
How is the Commuter Choice Program different from CAT Employee Bus
IMPROVED JOB
POOL.
Pass Program? The local CAT Employee Bus Pass Program has all of the environmental and economic benefits of the Commuter Choice Program but with a few additional perks.
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The CAT Employee Bus Pass Program allow employees’ prepaid, unlimited access to CAT fixed route service.
Commuter Choice requires employers or employees to purchases individual bus passes. With the CAT Employees Bus Pass Program workers simply show their employee IDs and board the bus. – It is that simple.
An annual transaction between the participating employer and CAT ensures unlimited employee transportation for a year, unlike Commuter Choice, which requires constant attention and upkeep.
The CAT Employee Bus Program doesn’t require time from the employer’s personnel to administer the program since an employee ID is all that is needed once a contracted is completed.
A Guaranteed Ride Home (GRH) Program also referred to as an emergency ride home provide employees with a reliable ride to or from work when an unexpected emergency arises such as picking up a such as picking up a sick child from school, handling a family crisis or working unscheduled hours. It reassures commuters who utilize public transportation that they have a timely and inexpensive way to travel when situations outside of routine occur. When a GRH program is in place, employees feel secure knowing that they will not be stranded if they miss their bus or cannot travel with their rideshare group. This increases transit use and ridesharing by removing barriers. CAT guarantees that employees/riders participating in the Commuter Choice or the CAT Employer Pass Program receive a guaranteed ride home – by cab in the event of emergencies. BULK PASS PROGRAM Passes are available for purchase at the Joe Murray River Jr. Intermodal Transit Center, 610 W. Oglethorpe Ave, Monday-Friday 7:00 AM -8:00 PM. Bulk Pass Orders can also be submitted online. Check or credit payment is accepted. CAT’s Bulk Pass Program allows employers to order bus passes/cards for a small discount.
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Who can participate? There is no minimum to participate in the program.
Bulk Pass Sales Program Sales Volume
Discount
0-49
0%
50-149
3%
150-1999
5%
2000-2999
10%
Wage Works Let Wage Works do the work for you. Wage Works offers transit benefits to employees through an online service. Companies can register with Wage Works and pay a small per employee fee to handle the administration of the transit benefits program. Employees log on to Wage Works each month to order their transit pass or fare card and have it delivered to their door. For more information, visit wageworks.com.
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How to Get Started It’s simple to launch an Employer Pass Program at your company. You can begin simply by following these easy steps. Step1. Survey Your Employees Before you begin any commute program, you first need to learn how employees are currently getting to work and which commute alternatives are of interest to them. This information will help you tailor your program to the needs of employees and give it a much better chance of success. Step 2. Choose a Program Based on what you learn from your surveys can help you find the program that will best fit your company. Step 3. Decide Whether or Not to Subsidize Whether or not to subsidize is a big decision. Offering a subsidy is a proven way to motivate employees. Step 4. Contact CAT Business and Development to implement the program that works best for your company. Three-Month Employer Pass Pilot Program For a limited time and as an introduction to acquaint employees with transit, CAT will offer a three-month pilot Employer Pass Program that enables employers to get a better idea of employee participation numbers before entering into a 12-month program. To begin your pilot program, or for more information, call (912) 629-3916.
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