Category: Small Business
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Notes on 2015 taxation of small business health plans
INCOMPLETE/UNEDITED – This post consists of notes and a rough draft of an article to be published in early 2016 at the beginning of tax filing season. The article covers the tax liabilities and tax reporting requirements of small businesses that provide employee health benefits in 2015. The requirements for a small business fall into to categories:…
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New report on Sandy devastation to NJ fishing-related businesses
A new report published this month by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Marine Fisheries Service shows the devastating impact of Sandy on New Jersey’s fishing-related businesses. I’ve been speaking and writing about the accounting aspects of this topic for almost three years now based on…
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S corporation vs. single member LLC
This issue comes up again and again in my tax practice: why do business owners and professionals establish S corporations when a single member LLC will suffice? Let professionals continue to set up one owner S corps. Single member LLCs offer the same legal protection but are considered “disregarded entities” for tax purposes. An LLC is…
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Is your small business ready for the change in credit card rules?
We are now only six weeks away from a major shift in financial risk that affects every small business that accepts credit card payments. Yet many small business owners are still unaware of the change or have not considered the immediate impact of this fundamental change in their business. Beginning October 1 2015 a business that accepts a stolen…
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How secure is Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive and iCloud?
Editing note: This blog post was first published in August 2015 and updated in September 2016. The concern about hackers is always present but there have been no major data breaches reported for any of these covered services since the date of original publication of the blog post. Meanwhile, data security technology has evolved rapidly over the…
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Clear explanation that there are no “1099 employees”
I like this clear simple language in Employee Benefit News: “Employers face an uphill battle in classifying a worker as an independent contractor due to DOL guidance that defines ‘employee’ so broadly that such a classification should only be reserved for a narrow subset of workers.” It is amazing how many employers are oblivious of…
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Tax planning for small business excise tax penalties under IRC 4980D
Tax professionals are looking for the best way to approach clients in this environment of uncertainty surrounding new excise taxes for small business health plans. The excise tax affects two types of plans: 1) those that use individual health insurance, and 2) those that reimburse employee out-of-pocket expenses (often called an “HRA”). Those who say…
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Fixing the problems of financial do-it-yourselfers
New Jersey financial adviser Michael Kay wrote in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal “Do-it-yourselfers often approach advisers as a last resort when they have an especially complex or urgent financial issue, and advisers should proceed carefully with this type of client.” Since the launch of my own practice six months ago, I notice that a high…
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First case of fraud in small business accounting
I’m dealing with my first case of likely fraud in a small business client’s bookkeeping. It apparently stems from the actions of an incompetent or inattentive bookkeeper and an overly trusting business owner. I should not be surprised knowing that $2 out of every $100 passing through the US economy is based on fraud of…