Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky Chapter of the American Payroll Association Chapter News

Payroll Tax Cut Extension Update

Arlene Baker — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:42:04 GMT

Legislation to extend a two percentage point cut on the employee side of the payroll tax through the end of 2012 was signed Feb. 22 by President Obama. The Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act (H.R. 3630), which was approved Feb. 17 by the House and Senate, also extends federal unemployment insurance benefits and prevents a scheduled cut in payments to Medicare providers from occurring for the rest of 2012.

Free- Time and Attendence Strategies Webinar

Arlene Baker — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 21:25:03 GMT

Many of today's consumer-based technologies – such as the iPad, Wii, and smartphones – deliver an unprecedented level of functionality through an intuitive, easy-to-understand user experience causing business application software providers to rethink the way their software is designed.

Time and Attendance Strategies for the Modern Workforce: How Consumer-Based Technology is Re-Shaping Workforce Management Software and Payroll Efficiency
Wednesday, February 8 @ 1:00 p.m. ET
_____________________________________

In this free webinar, you'll discover new advancements and trends in time and attendance software and how these new technologies and techniques improve user adoption that results in less work at the front end of the payroll process. We'll also discuss how time and attendance technology has fundamentally changed over the last 5 years – from single-point solutions to integrated workforce management suites that can be deployed on site or in the cloud.

Compliance is compulsory; therefore, education is mandatory.

EVENT DETAILS:
Date: Wednesday, February 8
Time: 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. ET

RECERTIFICATION
CREDIT HOURS:
Earn 1 RCH for attending this webinar.

Payroll Tax Cut Extension

Arlene Baker — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 22:50:39 GMT

A 2-Month Extension to the Payroll Tax Cut Has Been Signed

Friday, December 23, a 2-month extension of the payroll tax cut was signed. This means the employee social security rate will remain at 4.2% through February 29, 2012.

FUTA Credit Reduction from the IRS

Arlene Baker — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 17:35:30 GMT

Employers in “credit reduction” states must remember to calculate a credit reduction as an adjustment to their FUTA tax on their 2011 Form 940 (PDF), Employer's Annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax Return. “Credit reduction” states are states that did not repay the money they borrowed from the federal government to pay unemployment benefits.

The Department of Labor determines the credit reduction states for each year. For 2011, employers in these states must reduce their .054 credit on their Form 940 by the following amounts:

States	Reduction Rate
Arkansas	.003
California	.003
Connecticut	.003
Florida	.003
Georgia	.003
Illinois	.003
Indiana	.006
Kentucky	.003
Michigan	.009
Minnesota	.003
Missouri	.003
Nevada	.003
New Jersey	.003
New York	.003
North Carolina	.003
Ohio	.003
Pennsylvania	.003
Rhode Island	.003
Virginia	.003
Virgin Islands	.003
Wisconsin	.003

Employers in these states must use the Schedule A (Form 940) (PDF) to compute the credit reduction and attach the Schedule A to their Form 940. More information on the credit reduction, including an example on how to calculate the credit reduction is on the Schedule A (Form 940) and also in the Instructions for Form 940 (PDF).

As a result, if employers pay wages that are subject to the unemployment tax laws of a credit reduction state, the employers must pay additional FUTA tax. Employers must include liabilities owed for credit reduction in calculating their fourth quarter deposit.

IRS Eases Tax Rules for Employer-Provided Cell Phones

Arlene Baker — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:35:25 GMT

In Notice 2011-72, issued on September 14, the IRS announced that an employee's business and personal use of an employer-provided cell phone is not taxable income to the employee as long as the employer can show it provided the cell phone to the employee for a legitimate business reason, and not as a substitute for extra compensation. In a memo to its employment tax auditors, the IRS also said that an employer's reimbursement of an employee's cost for a personal cell phone plan is not income if the employer requires the employee to use the phone for business.

2012 Mileage Rate

Arlene Baker — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:34:04 GMT

The IRS has announced that the business standard mileage rate for transportation expenses paid or incurred beginning January 1, 2012, will stay at 55.5 cents per mile, where it has been since July 1, 2011. Read an article from APA about all the mileage rates for 2012.

IRS Increases Mileage Rate to 55.5 Cents per Mile

Arlene Baker — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 17:14:36 GMT

The Internal Revenue Service today announced an increase in the optional standard mileage rates for the final six months of 2011.

The rate will increase to 55.5 cents a mile for all business miles driven from July 1, 2011, through Dec. 31, 2011. This is an increase of 4.5 cents from the 51 cent rate in effect for the first six months of 2011, as set forth in Revenue Procedure 2010-51.

In recognition of recent gasoline price increases, the IRS made this special adjustment for the final months of 2011. The IRS normally updates the mileage rates once a year in the fall for the next calendar year.

Small Employers Claim New Health Care Tax Credit

Wed, 22 Dec 2010 15:35:37 GMT

The Internal Revenue Service released final guidance for small employers eligible to claim the new small business health care tax credit for the 2010 tax year.

The release includes a one-page form and instructions small employers will use to claim the credit for the 2010 tax year.

Follow this link to review the IRS form and instructions.

Advanced Earned Income Credit

Wed, 22 Dec 2010 15:34:20 GMT

The Advance Earned Income Tax Credit (AEITC) program will be terminated effective for all tax years beginning after December 31, 2010.

What Do Employers Need To Do?

The credit is ending starting with paychecks dated January 1, 2011 and later.

You should confirm that your payroll software will change so that the Advance Earned Income Credit does not calculate on checks next year.

If you have employees who take the AEIC, communicate to them that this option is going away, but they will still be able to take a lump sum credit when they file their federal income taxes.

Update | Standard Mileage Rates for 2011

Wed, 22 Dec 2010 15:33:35 GMT

The standard mileage rates for the use of a car, van, pickup truck, or panel trucks are:

51 cents per mile for business miles
19 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes
14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations

Update | 8109 Coupons

Wed, 22 Dec 2010 15:32:41 GMT

Effective Jan. 1, 2011 banks will no longer accept federal tax deposit coupons.

Deposits must be made through the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System.

What’s new in Health Care?

Mon, 14 Jun 2010 14:43:43 GMT

The IRS will be reaching out to small employers by postcards to alert them about the e new Small Business Health Care Tax Credit and encourage them to check their eligibility. Even if you don't receive a postcard, your business still may be eligible. To read more about this effort go to www.IRS.gov.

Is your company eligible?

Providing health care coverage. A qualifying employer must cover at least 50 percent of the cost of health care coverage for some of its workers based on the single rate.
Firm size. A qualifying employer must have less than the equivalent of 25 full-time workers (for example, an employer with fewer than 50 half-time workers may be eligible).
Average annual wage. A qualifying employer must pay average annual wages below $50,000.
Both taxable (for profit) and tax-exempt firms qualify.

What is the amount of the credit?

Maximum Amount. The credit is worth up to 35 percent of a small business' premium costs in 2010. On Jan. 1, 2014, this rate increases to 50 percent (35 percent for tax-exempt employers).
Phase-out. The credit phases out gradually for firms with average wages between $25,000 and $50,000 and for firms with the equivalent of between 10 and 25 full-time workers.

Three Simple Steps for Employers to Qualify

To determine if your small business or tax exempt organization qualifies for the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit, follow the three simple steps on our fact sheet.

2010 HIRE Act

Mon, 14 Jun 2010 14:28:14 GMT

The Hire Act was signed by President Obama on March 18, 2010. The HIRE Act is aimed at providing hiring incentives to restore some of the jobs lost in the latest economic recession. The goal is to help put Americans back to work.

How is payroll affected by the new legislation?

New tax incentives for businesses to hire unemployed workers:

payroll tax exemption of the employers share of Social Security taxes on wages paid to these workers after March 18, 2010.
employer tax credit of up to $1,000 per worker

The requirements to be classified as a qualified employee:

hired between Feb 3, 2010 & Jan 1, 2011
newly-hired employee was unemployed during the 60 days prior to starting work, or worked fewer than 40 hours for someone else during the 60 day period
the employee must sign an employee affidavit such as Form W-11.

FAQs on the IRS website assist you in determining if your new hire is a qualified employee. The Social Security tax exemption only applies on wages paid to a qualified employee

Unclaimed Property Basics Presentation at March Meeting

Mon, 22 Mar 2010 14:24:34 GMT

Michael Ryan came to speak with the chapter at the March Breakfast Meeting. Michael works with Venio and educated the members on Unclaimed Property Basics. Members were able to learn about purposes of unclaimed property laws and get answers to specific questions from an industry expert.

Michael has made his presentation and contact information available to chapter members. You can access this information in the Member's Only blog.

Experience the New Website for Yourself

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 08:28:44 GMT

The Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky Chapter of the APA is excited to announce the launch of their newly re-designed and improved website. We believe this new website will provide you with a more engaging member experience and allow you to maintain your membership records more easily.

Key Features: Chapter News Blog | Improved Event Registration | User Friendly Membership Directory

Experience the New Website for Yourself

Browse the New Website:

Go to www.payrollorganization.org and look around. You can view upcoming events, discover National APA learning opportunities and more. If you are an active member of the local chapter, you can log on and explore the member’s only features.

Logging In the First Time

Locate the Member Login area at the bottom of the left side of the page. It is also pictured here for your convenience.
Sense you are logging into the new website for the first time, you need to create a new password.

Click the Forgot Password link next to the login button to begin.
You will be prompted to enter your email address. This needs to be the email address you maintained in your member profile on the old website. After typing you email address in the box, click Submit to continue.
An email will automatically be sent to the email address we have on file and will contain instructions on how to setup your secure password.
After you have setup your new password, you can return to the Home page at www.payrollorganization.org and login using your email address and new password.

Updating Your Membership Information

After you login to your account you can update your membership information and browse the member’s only section of the website.

The Member Login area has now changed and you can click the View Payroll link in this area to view and edit your membership details. If there is any information in this section you would like to edit, simply click the Edit button at the top of the screen.

You may see a message on your profile stating that “Membership renewal is initiated. Payment is pending.” This message will go away after we receive your payment and update our records.

Having Trouble Logging In?

Send an email to support@payrollorganization.org if you are having trouble logging in to the new website.