Posts by elitecpas
How long does a business need to keep its records?
Does your office tend to look like our Fayette county landfill with tons of old paperwork? Although there is no single statute of limitations for the many categories of records a business needs to retain, we can offer some guidelines. Here’s our suggested schedule for record retention. In the case of special circumstances, legal action(s), or…
Read MoreAmerican Exceptionalism
Some politicians in Washington may say American Exceptionalism doesn’t exist, but don’t you believe it! Here’s some proof. The photo on the left is a new IBM computer (from 1954). It was considered exceptional because it could store 5 megabytes of data and had a cost (in 1954 dollars) that was beyond the reach of almost…
Read MoreThe real effect of a federal “Stimulus” tax law
We took our SCA hidden camera inside the corporate boardrooms of America and, more often than not, found this reaction by upper management to the federal incentives within the tax stimulus bills. Remember, if it doesn’t make good economic sense, it won’t matter how many tax incentives a law may contain.
Read MorePayroll tax cuts – Are we really robbing the Social Security Piggy Bank?
Our left-leaning friends are often quite surprised at our position on continuing the payroll tax cuts. The reasoning goes something like this, “you call yourself a fiscal conservative yet you want to keep on raiding the social security trust fund? I just can’t believe you would do that!” What most fail to understand is…
Read MoreHow “Qualified” are your relatives?
One of the tests to claim a dependent is that the person must be a qualifying child or relative. Like most things with IRS, the meaning of their terms is never simple. Here are some of the tests used to qualify your dependent as a write-off. Tests To Be a Qualifying Child Tests To…
Read MoreDownside of Online: Cyber Crime & Stolen Data
by Rick Viall (Guest Editor) How safe is private information when stored electronically? You may not want to know the answer to that question. But if you’re just a bit curious, consider visiting privacyrights.org/data-breach. The site allows you to scroll through a frequently updated chronological list of reported breaches of private…
Read MoreDon’t like the “rich” getting lower capital gain rates? Don’t worry; it’s going up 67%!
Before the anti-capitalists rejoice too much . . . Just remember that, in our capitalistic system, all economic benefits for both rich and poor are driven by the formation of capital. If it becomes harder to hang on to your capital, then there will be less fuel for the economy’s engine. That said, here’s where the highest capital gain…
Read MoreHidden provisions in the Extended Payroll Tax Cut
Payroll Tax Cut Extended for All of 2012 On February 22, 2012, the Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011 was permanently extended for all of 2012. This extends the two percentage point payroll tax cut for employees, continuing the reduction of their social security tax withholding rate from 6.2 percent to 4.2…
Read MoreUSA Debt per Capita
You can measure a nation’s relative economic strength by a ratio of debt per capita. This is not our proudest economic moment as a country. (Source Senate Budget Committee)
Read MoreLet the rich guys pay this tax bill
Why wouldn’t we let them pay? The non-payers (but still voters) have almost reached 51%
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