By Lowell Walters (June 12, 2018, 5:30 PM EDT) -- All entities, including governmental entities,[1] are now potentially liable for overpaying higher-ranking employees. For-profit companies have been at risk for losing their tax deduction for excessive salaries, with publicly traded companies subject to a specific $1 million limit [2] and certain nonprofit organizations have been at risk for "intermediate sanctions."[3] Effective Jan. 1, 2018, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act created an excise tax with newly enacted Internal Revenue Code Section 4960, to be imposed on tax-exempt organizations and governmental entities. At first glance, this section — titled "Tax on Excess Tax-Exempt Organization Executive Compensation" — appears to target the highest paid employees at universities, colleges and hospitals, but because of the amounts that count toward the threshold and the number of employees that can trigger the excise tax, many unsuspecting entities are at risk. Fortunately, there may be opportunities to avoid these excise taxes through planning with retirement plans....