NEWSLETTER

NEWSLETTER

Five Ideas to Attract Staff During the Great Resignation

You're not alone if you're having trouble attracting and keeping staff. A convergence of issues has created one of the greatest talent shortages in our lifetimes. With boomers retiring in large numbers, pandemic and opioid deaths, people not wanting to work for low wages, child care availability disappearing, tighter immigration policies, people re...

Continue reading
  1680 Hits

Tax Provisions in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act

While the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (IIJA) is primarily a bill that improves roads, bridges, and transit, as well as authorizing additional funding for energy, water, and broadband improvement, there are some tax-related provisions included. Employee Retention Credit Changes The Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC), which was a...

Continue reading
  4146 Hits

Starting a business, are start up expenses deductible?

 Starting a sole proprietorship requires money — and plenty of it — depending on the type of business you choose and the number and type of expenses you incur. Unfortunately, you generally cannot recover these expenses until you sell or close the business. But you can deduct some of the start-up expenses from your income the first taxable year...

Continue reading
  833 Hits

Making Customers Pay… You

If you grant credit to customers or make recurring credit card payments, the unexpected can happen: a customer fails to pay on time, the credit card expires, or the check bounces. What can a business owner do to spend as little time as possible on these items but get the cash collected? Plenty. Here are our ideas: Re-examine your credit policy Is t...

Continue reading
  1098 Hits

Health Savings Accounts

 Health savings accounts (HSAs) are a tax-free, government-approved way to save money for medical expenses. Yet many people are unaware that they exist or think that they have to be employed in order to have such an account. HSAs can provide you with the power to protect yourself and your family from financial devastation as a result of an ill...

Continue reading
  2573 Hits

Business Meal Deduction Changes from the Consolidated Appropriations Act

The Consolidated Appropriations Act that was signed into law December 27, 2020 includes a temporary provision allowing a 100 percent write-off for business meals from January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2022.The food and beverages must be provided by a restaurant, although they do not need to be consumed on a restaurant's premises. The deduction a...

Continue reading
  5044 Hits

What Is Internal Control?

In accounting, a key term to know is "internal control." Internal control is the series of processes and procedures that are performed within the organization to ensure the integrity and accuracy of the financial information and reporting of that organization.Internal control is very important to consider in order to protect the business owners, em...

Continue reading
  1021 Hits

Re-Imagining Your Chart of Accounts

The Chart of Accounts is the backbone of your accounting records. It is a list of all of the accounts – bank, loan, asset, revenue, and expense – in your General Ledger, which holds all of your accounting transactions. Think of your Chart of Accounts as a collection of buckets that hold dollars of items related to your business. Each bucket should ...

Continue reading
  1773 Hits

Do nonprofits ever pay taxes?

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations. It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer. The contents of the information provided below should no...

Continue reading
  1069 Hits

The Concept of Independence in Accounting

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations. It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the recipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer. The contents of the information provided below should not...

Continue reading
  2093 Hits

Sale of Principal Residence

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations. It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer. The contents of the information provided below should no...

Continue reading
  1262 Hits

Health Savings Account

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations. It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer. The contents of the information provided below should no...

Continue reading
  1454 Hits

Donor Advised Fund

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations. It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer. The contents of the information provided below should no...

Continue reading
  3090 Hits

Do you wonder if a Roth IRA is right for you?

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations. It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer. The contents of the information provided below should no...

Continue reading
Tags:
  4281 Hits

Should your business become cash-free

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations.  It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.  The contents of the information provided below should not be acted upon without specific professional guidance.  Please call us if you have any questions.

A cashless business is one that processes all cash transactions electronically. There is no paper or coin money taken or handled. While no one society has become 100 percent cashless yet, most organizations are moving in that direction.

A business can become cash-free by providing multiple electronic alternatives to payment. Credit cards are the most common electronic payment implementation. This option most likely includes MasterCard, Visa, Discover, and American Express. Some businesses also have a PayPal account and offer that method for payments. Vemno, owned by PayPal, is an efficient mobile alternative, but it is mostly used for consumer-to-consumer transactions. And there is also cryptocurrency.

Cashless businesses are more efficient, help to reduce crime, and have a better audit trail of transactions. Going cash-free also saves money and time spent counting the money, storing the money, safeguarding the money, protecting employees at risk of becoming theft victims, and physically going to the bank.

Continue reading
  5975 Hits

How to make estimated tax payments

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations.  It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.  The contents of the information provided below should not be acted upon without specific professional guidance.  Please call us if you have any questions.

If you are paid a salary and receive a W-2 from your employer, part of your paycheck goes to Uncle Sam as federal withholding. These are payments toward your taxes. If you earn additional income beyond your salaried income, if you are under-withheld, or if you have your own business, you may need to make estimated tax payments through the tax year. These estimated tax payments can be made on a quarterly basis.

The general rule is that as you earn income, you should also be paying a portion in taxes. If you don’t pay in enough, you may be subject to penalties. To avoid penalties, the amount you pay as a minimum should be the lesser of 100% (or 110% depending on your income level) of your prior year tax or 90% of your current year tax during the year.

Whether the payments are made via withholdings or estimated tax payments, the IRS expects those payments to be made evenly and consistently throughout the year. If you don’t make any payments at all throughout the year and then pay a large amount late in December, you might get an estimated tax penalty because you didn’t remit payments as you earned the income.

Exceptions are allowed if your earnings substantially fluctuate throughout the year, quarter-by-quarter. You can complete Form 2210 to help minimize any penalty if you have fluctuating income and tax payments.

Generally, estimated tax payments become applicable when you have either Schedule C or flow-through business income or significant investment income (interest, dividends, and capital gains), because there is usually no withholding on that type of income.

Continue reading
  1003 Hits

The Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations.  It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.  The contents of the information provided below should not be acted upon without specific professional guidance.  Please call us if you have any questions.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA 2021) became law on December 27, 2020, and among many other things, provided for a second round of potentially forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans to small businesses that were financially impacted by the effects of the pandemic.

The Act not only provides funds and guidelines for a round two of PPP money; it also expands PPP round one in a number of ways. Here are a few of the highlights.

Changes to PPP Round 1 Loans

Existing borrowers with PPP loans can reapply for a loan or request a loan increase as long as they have not received forgiveness. This includes borrowers that returned all or part of their PPP loan or whose loan maximum has increased due to regulations implemented after receipt of their loan.

Continue reading
  2281 Hits

Deductibility of PPP related expenses

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations.  It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.  The contents of the information provided below should not be acted upon without specific professional guidance.  Please call us if you have any questions.

One of the biggest tax issues of 2020 has been clarified with the signing of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, (CAA 2021), and that was whether expenses that are normally deductible and that were paid with the proceeds of a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan that is forgiven are truly deductible.

The CARES Act, which became law on March 27, 2020, was drafted so quickly that the question of deductibility was left out, but several members of Congress made it clear that deductibility was the intent all along. The IRS went the other way, publishing a notice (2020-32), a revenue ruling (2020-27), and a revenue procedure (2020-51), that took the opposite stance: PPP-related expenses that were forgiven were not deductible, therefore potentially causing business’s taxes to become much higher.

Congress has now reversed the IRS’s position with CAA 2021 in Section 276 (PPP) and 278 (EIDL). Gross income does not include forgiveness of PPP loans and emergency EIDL grants. Deductions are allowed for normally deductible expenses paid with PPP loan proceeds that were forgiven. It also provides deductibility for Second Draw PPP loans. This is all good news for taxpayers with PPP loans.

However, there could be timing issues that could reduce the deductibility of the full amount of the PPP expenses. There could also be amounts “at risk,” which is a tax term that limits your deductions in certain cases.

Continue reading
  1785 Hits

A new round of stimulus checks

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations.  It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.  The contents of the information provided below should not be acted upon without specific professional guidance.  Please call us if you have any questions.

On December 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 which included measures for both COVID-19 relief and sweeping funding provisions for the government through September 2021. While there are many sections of this law to explore, this article will focus on the stimulus checks.

Qualifying individuals will receive these economic impact payments, and the Washington Post reports that more than 85 percent of US households will receive a check. To qualify:

• For individuals making up to $75,000 per year, or if a couple, making up to $150,000 per year, the check will be $600.
• For individuals making between $75,000 and $86,900 (couples: $150,000 to $173,900), the check will be between $595 and $5. In this phaseout, the amount of the check decreases by $5 for every $100 of income above $75,000/$150,000, phasing out completely at $87,000/$174,000.
• The amount sent will be based on the amount you earned (adjusted grow income, to be exact) on your 2019 tax return.
• Includes children. The definition for child will be the same as the one used to calculate the child tax credit.
• Excludes dependent adults over 17 at the end of the tax year.
• Excludes persons who died on or before January 1, 2020.
• Includes individuals who file jointly with an ITIN, but excludes the person with the ITIN.
• Includes 2019 non-filers who receive benefits from Social Security Administration, Railroad Retirement Board, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Here are some examples: A family of four – mom, dad, and two children under 17 – that earns a total of $100,000 per year will receive $2,400. A single man earning $80,000 per year that lives with his disabled father will get $350 (80,000 – 75,000 = 5,000 / 100 = 50 * $5 = $250. $600 - $250 = $350). A woman with 2 small children earning $87,000 will not get anything.

Continue reading
  2589 Hits

ABLE Accounts

Please note the information below is intended to provide generalized information that is appropriate in certain situations.  It is not intended or written to be used, and it cannot be used by the receipient, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties that may be imposed on any taxpayer.  The contents of the information provided below should not be acted upon without specific professional guidance.  Please call us if you have any questions.

ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) accounts are for eligible individuals with a disability – they are tax-favored savings accounts to which contributions can be made to help pay for qualified disability expenses. The IRS recently released final regulations providing guidance related to various issues surrounding the requirements for 529A ABLE accounts.

ABLE accounts were established under the ABLE Act of 2014, in an effort to address the financial hardships for families with children having disabilities, as well as the anticipated increasing financial needs throughout those disabled individuals’ lifetimes. Proposed regulations were released in 2015, and then again in 2019 to address modifications under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA).  The regulations provide a transition period of two years for ABLE programs to implement applicable provisions, and it is expected that IRS may issue additional guidance during that time as uncertainties and concerns arise.

Here are a few of the key areas of ABLE accounts.

Multi-State Programs: The final regulations clarify that an ABLE program may be maintained by two or more states if each of the states in the program sets all the terms of the program and is actively involved in its administration.

Continue reading
  5734 Hits