The Small Business Tax Help Blog

Posts Tagged ‘economy’

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Question: Policy Question: Why is employer-provided health insurance not deemed income to the employee?

It seems to me that much of the problem with health insurance is that people don’t have much of an impression of its cost, so that they have no incentive to “shop around” for a better plan.

Also, people who are self-employed have to pay for insurance in after-tax dollars – why are they treated less advantageously?

I am interested in President Bush’s plan to make the insurance plan taxable as income and give everyone a tax credit to purchase insurance. I think forcing every employer to buy insurance for its employees or pay a tax is going in the wrong direction, encouraging people to think someone else has to “take care of them.”

Why should health insurance be part of an employment package anyway? Food, clothing, and shelter – which are every bit as necessary as health insurance, if not much more so – are not provided by employers. We receive income from working, and buy it ourselves.

What do you think?

Answer: Health insurance first became a benefit to employees back during World War II. There was a shortage of trained manpower and in order to attract skilled workers, employers started offering health insurance. My guess, it was during a war and government was willing to let employers do just about anything as long as they reached production schedules so they just never made a big deal out of it. After the war people just came to expect it--------and we all know how government doesn't want to upset the people.

UI's interim president shares his thoughts on future

Stanley O. Ikenberry, interim president of the University of Illinois, spoke at length last week with News-Gazette reporters Julie Wurth and Paul Wood about budget cuts in his first weeks of office. Ikenberry talked candidly about the need for the UI to make painful cuts, his hopes for future revenues and parings of the budget, the likelihood that the state income tax will be increased, his ...

Anna Bligh in Townsville: new payroll tax incentive scheme for apprentices and trainees

What a year! For many, 2009 is a year they would like to forget. Between overleveraged mortgages, banks that failed or were too big to fail, and a restructuring of the auto industry, many individuals and businesses alike are ready to ring in 2010 with a more hopeful outlook.

In the coming months, the healthcare debate, business incentives and changes to the tax code will be at the forefront of local and national debates. Though important, these are issues in which the individual small business owner has minimal say. Instead of focusing on these larger issues, entrepreneurs should focus their efforts on enhancing small business productivity, prudence, and profit as we move into 2010.

Productivity

In the last few years, many companies learned to do more with less as cuts in spending and employment left many small businesses demanding more out of their employees. In 2010, small business productivity will remain vital as employees continue to carry a heavy workload. For companies to succeed, they need to arm their employees with the right small business productivity tools.

By identifying and implementing the right small business solutions, entrepreneurs can get more out of their employees and save money. Increased productivity among full-time employees can result in more sales, the development of better products and services, faster completion of tasks, and improved customer service.

Regardless of the industry, many companies will turn to small business communication solutions that can improve productivity. For example, a doctor’s office may select an Interactive Voice Response system (IVR) to more efficiently handle and direct calls during and after business hours. Companies with hourly employees, like field service repair companies, may use location-based services to track field technicians and redirect them based on cost drivers like fuel consumption. Or, many companies may look to deploy BlackBerrys to their staff to help them stay connected anytime, anywhere helping fuel better small business productivity. Finding small business solutions that improve productivity will greatly impact a bottom line.

Prudence

While the economic freefall has halted and the economy even had some bright spots in 2009, most companies are not popping celebratory champagne. And as much as we’d all like to see 2010 herald a recovery of small business productivity, many economists and so-called “financial experts” are predicting only a slightly stronger economy in 2010. Next year, prudence will be the name of the game when it comes to small business solutions.

With a sharp eye on spending, small businesses will need to be prudent in their decision making and ensure they are making the right investments. Finding employees that have the right skill set, investing in developing or marketing your best product, and selecting small business solutions that will help your company grow will all demand prudence.

But this careful decision making will not only focus on spending, but on all aspects of small business productivity. Many companies may reexamine their niche market or how they “have always done things” to find new and better small business solutions. Just as Thomas Jefferson once wrote, “…a little rebellion now and then is a good thing,” a shake-up of how your small business operates may be in order.

Profit

One consequence of the downturn is that many companies unfortunately closed their doors. As a result, those who survived the recession now have fewer competitors vying for customers. As the economy stabilizes, banks begin to loan more money and businesses are more comfortable with spending money, the small businesses that positioned themselves correctly will have a stronger opportunity for market penetration than they’ve likely seen in recent years. By making prudent decisions and focusing on driving small business productivity, companies will be well-positioned to profit in 2010 and beyond.

If the past 12 months have taught us anything, it’s that no amount of economic forecasting is completely precise. But, let’s all look forward to 2010 with a focus on small business productivity, prudence, and profit, as well as the promise of what a new year will bring to small businesses.

This story first appeared in Corp! magazine Dec. 3, 2009.

BoI poised to scrap housing incentives

The Board of Investments (BoI) is bent on removing incentives on housing projects particularly vertical construction in the 2010 Investment Priorities Plan (IPP) after granting perks even to high-end condominium projects located in Metro Manila including the central business district of Makati.

Senator Johnny Isakson in Reintroducing the Housing Tax Credit