Bookkeepers Group of San Diego

April 27, 2021- BGSD Virtual Meeting/Webinar with Kathleen Chadwick - CDTFA

Tuesday, April 27, 2021 6:00 PM | Anonymous

Looking forward to seeing everyone!

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BGSD 2021 Meetings are Here! Join our Live Webinars!

Monday, January 11, 2021 10:27 AM | Anonymous

We are back with this years meetings as Live Webinars!

It will be so nice to catch up and be back in the loop!

See you there! :)

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FTB Tax News Flash: COVID-19 Economic Impact Payments - CARES Act

Wednesday, April 08, 2020 12:59 PM | Anonymous

FTB Tax News

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COVID-19 Economic impact payments - CARES Act

We recently updated our COVID-19 FAQ Page with the following information regarding the taxability of the economic impact payments, treatment of NOLs, and early withdrawal waiver penalties.

Are the payments that individuals receive from the federal government (i.e., $1,200 [$2,400 for individuals filing a joint return] and $500 per qualifying child) under the recently enacted federal CARES Act subject to California income tax?

No, these payments are not subject to California income tax.

Is the emergency increase in unemployment compensation benefits (in the amount of $600 per week) that individuals receive under the recently enacted federal CARES Act subject to California income tax?

No, these payments are not subject to California income tax.

Are the modifications for net operating losses (NOLs) in the recently enacted federal CARES Act applicable for California income and franchise tax purposes?

No, these modifications for NOLs do not apply for California income and franchise tax purposes.

Does California conform to the federal early withdrawal penalty waivers for distributions from qualified retirement accounts under the recently enacted federal CARES Act?

Yes, the federal early withdrawal penalty waivers for distributions from qualified retirement accounts under the federal CARES Act also applies for California income tax purposes.

If you have suggestions or comments, send us an email to: taxnews@ftb.ca.gov

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Your Tax And Employee Benefits Questions About COVID-19 Legislation Answered

Wednesday, April 01, 2020 2:05 PM | Anonymous

Dear Valued Clients, Colleagues and Friends:

Applied Tax Resource Group has prepared this guide to help answer your basic questions about updates to the 2019 tax season as well as available support to businesses and families. We understand that there are many new developments. Be assured that we are monitoring these items and will apply the relevant changes to your personal situation. Please review this information below for clarification regarding your specific circumstances.

For Individuals

Rebates

Rebate of $1,200 for an individual, $2,400 for a married couple. Plus $500 per eligible child
To be eligible for the full rebate, an individual must have less than $75,000 in income. A reduced rebate will be given to an individual whose income is between $75,000 and $99,000
To be eligible for the full rebate, a married couple must have less than $150,000 in income. A reduced rebate will be given to an individual whose income is between $150,000 and $198,000
Rebate will be based on the 2019 tax return if it has been filed. If a 2019 return has not been filed then it will be based on the 2018 tax return.
Eligible child is a child under the age of 17. There will be no credit for “adult” dependents. An adult dependent includes a parent who is a dependent of their child and also includes a child who is 17 or older (including college students).
A person who is a dependent of another person is not eligible for the rebate. This includes a child who is 17 or older and who is a dependent on his/her parent’s tax return.
If your 2018 and 2019 income are too high to qualify for the rebate but your 2020 income decreases so that you are below the income threshold, then you will be eligible for the rebate when you file your 2020 tax return
It is expected that rebates will take about three weeks to start arriving via direct deposit and could take up to six weeks for those taxpayers that have to be mailed a check.

Other benefits

Unemployment benefits will be increased in the amount of $600 on top of base (regular) amount
Unemployment benefits will be extended by 13 weeks
You can take up to $100,000 out of your retirement plan without penalty. Tax on the withdrawal will still apply but can be paid over three years. You will have up to three years to recontribute any funds taken out
Required Minimum Distributions are waived for 2020.
The deadline for funding your 2019 IRA and HSA has been delayed to 7/15/2020

Filing Date Deadlines and Payment Date Deadline

The IRS has delayed the deadline for filing 2019 individual tax returns to 7/15/2020
The IRS has delayed the deadline for paying any balance due on 2019 tax returns to 7/15/2020
The IRS has delayed the deadline for paying 2020 Q1 estimated tax payments to 7/15/2020
As of now, the IRS deadline for paying 2020 Q2 estimated tax payments remains 6/15/2020. We will let you know if this changes.
The California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) has delayed the deadline for filing 2019 tax returns to 7/15/2020
The FTB has delayed the deadline for paying 2019 tax return balance due, 2020 Q1 estimated tax payments and 2020 Q2 estimated tax payments to 7/15/2020
Arizona Department of revenue has delayed the filing deadline for 2019 tax returns and the 2019 balance due payment deadline to 7/15/2020
As of now, it appears that Arizona 2020 estimated tax payments are still due based on the regular payment schedule of 4/15/2020, 6/15/2020, 9/15/2020 and 12/15/2020.
Other states may have also delayed filing and payment deadlines

For Businesses

Payroll tax deferral. Employers can defer the employer payroll tax deposits for 2020. 50% of the deferred payroll tax will be due on 12/31/2021 and 50% will be due on 12/31/2022. Note that only the employer portion of the social security tax is eligible for deferral. The employer portion of Medicare tax is not eligible for deferral. Also, the employee payroll taxes (federal withholding, social security withholding and Medicare withholding) are not eligible for deferral. Please contact your payroll service company regarding how to elect this deferral.

Employee retention credit. A refundable employee retention credit equal to 50% of qualified wages against quarterly employment taxes, up to $10,000 of wages per employee. This credit is for employers whose operations are fully or partially suspended due to a Covid-19 shutdown order and who continue to pay employees. It is also available to employers whose gross receipts declined by more than 50% compared to same quarter in 2019.

Net operating losses arising in 2018, 2019 or 2020 can be carried back five years.

Emergency Paid Sick Leave. If an employee is unable to work due to Covid-19, the employer must provide up to 80 hours of paid sick time. See last week’s email for more detail. With certain limits, payroll tax credits are available for amounts paid for the sick leave. Employees that are able to tele-work (work from home) are not eligible for emergency sick leave. Employers that have fewer than 50 employees may apply for an exemption.

Emergency Family Leave. An employee who is unable to work due to caring for a child whose school or place of care has been closed due to Covid-19 is eligible for up to 12 weeks of paid family leave. With certain limits, payroll tax credits are available for the amount paid for family leave. Employees that are able to tele-work are not eligible for emergency family leave. Employers that have fewer than 50 employees may apply for an exemption.

SBA Loan Program. There will be a new SBA loan program for eligible small businesses to help fund payroll costs, health insurance premiums, rent, mortgage, utilities and interest on debt. Furthermore, a portion of these loans can be forgiven if the employer qualifies. This loan program is the “Paycheck Protection Program” See the SBA.gov Covid-19 website for details or click here for the Paycheck Protection Program details.

There is also an SBA Disaster Loan program. Click here for link directly to the SBA Disaster loan application.

Note that the Paycheck Protection Program and the SBA Disaster Loan program are two different loan programs. You will want to check out both.

California EDD Workshare. California employers who must reduce employee hours (but not entirely eliminate employee hours) may be able to sign up for the California workshare program where the EDD pays the employee for the reduction in pay. Click here for more info.

San Diego Small Business Relief Fund. If your business is in the city of San Diego, San Diego has a small business relief fund to help business retain employees. Click here for more info.

Other Cities and States. For businesses in other cities and states, click here for an article with links to other states’ relief funds.

Be assured that we will guide you as always in making informed and prudent tax decisions. Thank you for allowing us to serve your tax and planning needs.

Sincerely,

Dean Gilger, CPA, EA, CMA
Founder