Did you know that the average annual cost of nursing home care is around $75,000? It’s even more troubling that you may not realize and your clients definitely do not know that Medicare doesn’t pay anything for nursing home stays after 100 days! Are your clients prepared to pay out of pocket for themselves or a loved one for an extended 3-5 year stay? Unlikely – so help them start preparing today to prevent a nasty surprise down the road.

Multiple monitors for all employees – an absolute minimum of 2 monitors, but 3 or 4 are even better; this will greatly decrease the time your employees spend navigating between different programs on just one or two screens. If you have laptops, we recommend the Kensington Docking Station – one cable connects to the laptop, and everything runs through the docking station. With 5 USB ports, you can connect a second monitor, printer, and scanner and still have a couple extra ports for storage devices or whatever you need.

High quality scanner and printer – every desk should have a good high speed scanner and a 25 ppm laserjet print. For scanners, the Fujitsu 6130 is a great option. Two side notes – first, make sure all employees know how to use the scanner! Also, all printers and scanners should be the same make and model – this will make them easy to replace if they break down. Imagine needing to print a return for a client and having to reinstall a different printer and drivers – by using the same model, you can simply pull another printer from somewhere else in the office and be up and running in no time!

Business: $0.55
Medical/Moving: $0.23
Charity: $0.14

This bill repealed the 3% federal withholding requirement for taxpayers who receive payments of $10,000 or more from federal, state, or local contractors that was to take effect in 2013.

2 new credits also came out of this bill – 1) 40% credit of the first $14,000 of wages paid to a veteran hired after 11/21 who has been out of work for 6 months or more; 2) 40% credit of the first $6,000 of wages paid to a veteran hired after 11/21 who has been out of work for 4 weeks up to 6 months

By Bob Jennings | Published June 17, 2011| FOXBusiness

Tim Storm, CEO of FatWallet.com previously said, “”I started (my business) in Wisconsin, but moved to Illinois because it is home. I can literally see Wisconsin from my window – it’s five miles away. If I have to move, I will.”

Storm was joined by CouponCabin CEO Scott Kluth in saying, “We’ve grown 100 percent year over year in the last 7 years in revenue, we’re anticipating 54 percent this year. I can’t lose a third of my business and continue to grow and walk away from that growth.”

Of course, Illinois can expect Amazon to sever ties with businesses in the state, as they have done in other states that have passed similar legislation.

Michael T. Carrigan, president, Illinois AFL-CIO had this to say, “The Illinois Internet tax represents much needed revenue for our state. Most states require sales tax on internet transactions. It levels the playing field for retailers who have permanent operations in our state and must charge sales tax.

“Labor has worked closely with business to address this problem in our state, to help protect jobs and grow Illinois’ economy. We were very disheartened at the attempts to stop this legislation by amazon.com who threatened businesses and working men and women at a time when jobs are precious.”

Many argue, however, that the legislation does not actually increase revenue in the state but causes a loss of jobs and an overall decrease in total sales.

Source: http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/archive/2011/03/10/Illinois-Governor-Signs-Internet-Sales-Tax-Law.asp

Schedule A:
Sales tax and conservcation deductions extended through 2011
Direct trustee-to-trustee transfers from IRAs to charities extended through 2011
Mortgage interest premium deduction extended through 2011

Depreciation – Mandatory bonus reinstated at 100% through 2011, 50% for 2012. Must attach election to not take bonus; per asset class life categories, not individual assets.

Individual tax credits – Many of the expired credits were extended through 2011 or 2012

Education:
Student loan interest deduction, American Opportunity Credit, and Coverdell ESA deposit limits extended through 2012
Tuition and fees deduction extended through 2011

Estates – $5 million exclusion; amounts over this limits are now taxed at 35%

Gifts:
Annual exclusion remains at $13,000 per person
Lifetime taxable exclusion now $5 million, maximum tax rate is now 35%

Payroll – 1-year, employee only exclusion for Social Security taxes: 4.2% instead of 6.2%