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Principal Financial has produced a very useful booklet reviewing some of the best ideas of the 10 winners of the 2010 Principal Financial Ten Best Small and Mid-Sized Companies for Employee Financial Security. ESOP companies Clif Bar and RLI were winners this year.

(Updated May 10, 2002)

Private equity investors typically share equity ownership with a select group of very senior managers. The conventional (if empirically wrong) wisdom is that the top echelon of management can "move the needle" on the value of a company, and only the top people understand and value ownership.

The magazine Middle Market Growth, a forum for private equity professionals, includes an article on how private equity firms can best use ESOPs as an exit strategy.

In PLR 200732028, the IRS ruled that a C corporation ESOP can contribute up to 25% of pay to cover principal payments on an ESOP loan, plus contribute up to 25% of pay in addition if the contributions are not used to repay either principal or interest on the loan.

The Senate has now passed the Endless Frontier Act (S. 1260), Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Jerry Moran (R-KS) proposed an amendment that would have incorporated a version of the WORK Act (the Worker Ownership, Readiness, and Knowledge Act).

Pennsylvania Representative Daryl Metcalfe (R-Butler County) and Senator Stewart Greenleaf (R-Montgomery County) have created joint legislation to mirror federal law as it applies to the deferral of capital gains taxation for sales of C corporation stock to an ESOP (the "1042 election").

On April 29, Representatives Dave Reichert (R-WA) and Ron Kind (D-WI) introduced the Promotion and Expansion of Private Employee Ownership Act of 2015 (H.R. 2096).

S. 2298, introduced by Senator John Breaux (D-LA) on April 7, 2004, would make a number of changes in ESOP law. The bill has been referred to the Senate Finance Committee. It would:

On May 6, Senators Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Ben Cardin (D-MD) introduced S.1212, the Promotion and Expansion of Private Employee Ownership Act of 2015.