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NEWS August 2, 2024 - IRS Announces 2024 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2024, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 67.0 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 21 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations December 30, 2022 - IRS Announces 2023 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2023, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 65.5 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 22 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations December 17, 2022 - Federal & Colorado Tax Update There are several tax law changes at both the federal and Colorado level this year. Below is a brief summary of each. If you would like more information, please open the relevant attachment or follow the relevant link(s) below. Colorado Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program (FAMLI) Under the Colorado FAMLI Act, most private sector employers must provide paid family and medical leave to their Colorado employees. Employers and their employees are both responsible for funding the program and they split the cost 50/50. The premiums are set to .9% of the employee’s wage, with .45% paid by the employer and .45% paid by the employee. Businesses with nine or fewer employees do not have to contribute to the program but need to remit their employees’ share (.45%) of the premium on behalf of the employees each quarter beginning 01/01/2023. All employers, regardless of size, will be required to register with the FAMILI Division before the first premium payment is due at the end of the first quarter of 2023. Benefits will become available to workers starting in January 2024. Please get in touch with your payroll service provider to make sure this is implemented beginning 1/1/23.              To learn more, click here.              Employers - To Register for Colorado FAMLI follow this link - Colorado FAMLI Colorado PTE election Colorado allows pass-through entities to elect to pay and deduct state income taxes at the entity level so individuals can benefit from the deduction without the $10,000 state and local tax limit on Schedule A. If you want the deduction in 2022, you need to act now and pay the tax by year-end. Businesses will be able to elect to pay the tax with their tax filing in 2023, but the federal tax deduction will occur in 2023 instead of 2022. If you expect income to be significantly higher in 2022 than it will be in 2023, then it could make sense to make the payment in 2022. If you want to look at paying the tax in 2022, please contact us and we can help you plan for the best tax result.              To learn more, click here. Colorado Secure Savings Act In 2020, Colorado passed the Colorado Secure Savings Program. This law mandates that business owners enroll in a state-run retirement savings plan. Employers throughout Colorado will be required to comply starting 2023. Businesses will be notified when it is time to register. Businesses will receive an Access Code from this notification. This applies to businesses with 5 or more employees. The retirement plan will be a Roth IRA set up for each employee that will follow the employee if they change jobs. Individual employees will be able to elect out of the retirement plan and may want to do so if they will not be eligible to make a Roth IRA contribution. Each employee will need to consult with their own tax advisor to make this determination. Businesses with a retirement plan already in place will not be required to implement this mandate.              To learn more, click here. Form 1065 and Form 1120S – Schedules K-2 and K-3 Schedule K-2 is an extension of Schedule K of Form 1065/1120S and is used to report items of international tax relevance from operations of the partnership/S corporation. Schedule K-3 is an extension of Schedule K-1 (Form 1065/11020S) and is generally used to report to partners/shareholders their share of the items reported on Schedule K-2. There will be the ability for businesses with no foreign activity and which meet other requirements to avoid preparing these schedules and the related additional preparation cost.              To learn more, click here. Inflation Reduction Act On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act. This Act has many different provisions affecting taxpayers, only some of which impact income taxes. These include electric vehicle credits, clean energy incentives, and excise tax on stock repurchases.              To learn more, click here. June 9, 2022 - IRS Announces Revised 2022 Mileage Rates for Remainder of 2022 Beginning on July 1, 2022, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 62.5 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 22 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations December 17, 2021 - IRS Announces 2022 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2022, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 58.5 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 18 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations December 29, 2020 - IRS Announces 2021 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2021, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 56 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 16 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations December 31, 2019 - IRS Announces 2020 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2020, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 57.5 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 17 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations December 14, 2018 - IRS Announces 2019 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2019, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 58 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 20 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations December 14, 2017 - IRS Announces 2018 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2018, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 54.5 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 18 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations December 22, 2016 - IRS Announces 2017 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2017, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 53.5 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 17 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations June 22, 2016 - Social Security Funded Until 2034 The Social Security Board of Trustees today released its 76th annual report to Congress on the financial status of the Social Security trust funds. Follow this link for an analysis of potential solutions to this problem. Actuarial Analysis of Possible Solutions We should be urging our leaders to find a long term solution to this problem, sooner rather than later. December 22, 2015 - IRS Announces 2016 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2016, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:     * 54 cents per mile for business miles driven     * 19 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes     * 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations November 24, 2015 - IRS Raises Tangible Property Expensing Threshold to $2,500 The Internal Revenue Service today simplified the paperwork and recordkeeping requirements for small businesses by raising from $500 to $2,500 the safe harbor threshold for deducting certain capital items. The new $2,500 threshold takes effect starting with tax year 2016. In addition, the IRS will provide audit protection to eligible businesses by not challenging use of the new $2,500 threshold in tax years prior to 2016. IRS Notice 2015-82 October 1, 2015 - Colorado Springs Startup Week - Oct 5th - 9th, 2015 Startup Week is a new type of conference that builds momentum and opportunity around entrepreneurship, led by entrepreneurs and hosted in the entrepreneurial spaces you love. M3 & Associates is a proud sponsor of this year's event! July 1, 2015 - Simplify Colorado Sales Tax - Join the Movement The Coalition to Simplify Colorado Sales Tax seeks to support Colorado's economy by simplifying the state's overly complex sales and use tax system, which puts a practically impossible burden on businesses. We support reforms to create a simple, fair and predictable system -- without reducing overall revenue for local and state public services. www.simplifycosalestax.org June 1, 2015 - M3 & Associates Has Moved! Effective immediately, we are now in Suite B instead of Suite D. Everything else remains the same. We're looking forward to seeing you in our new offices. December 10, 2014 - IRS 2015 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2015, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:   *   57.5 cents per mile for business miles driven   *   23 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes   *   14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations November 14, 2014 - IRS Scam Phone Calls on the Rise The IRS unveiled a new YouTube video with a renewed warning to taxpayers not to be fooled by imposters posing as tax agency representatives. In a News Release, the IRS reminds taxpayers that the IRS will NOT call to demand immediate payment and asking for credit or debit card numbers over the phone. Remember, IRS does not call about tax debts owed without first having mailed them a notice. If you owe, or think you might owe federal taxes and you get one --of these calls, hang up. Call the IRS at 800-829-1040. The IRS will work with you to pay what you owe. If you don’t owe taxes, call and report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at 800-366-4484. May 30, 2014 - IRS Direct Pay The Internal Revenue Service announced the successful start of its new web-based system — IRS Direct Pay — on IRS.gov, which lets taxpayers pay their tax bills or make estimated tax payments directly from checking or savings accounts without any fees or pre-registration. IRS Direct Pay offers 30-day advance payment scheduling, payment rescheduling or cancellations, and a payment status search. Future plans include an option for e-mailed payment confirmation, a Spanish version and one-time registration with a login and password to allow quick access on return visits. February 2, 2014 - Celebrate Technology! M3 & Associates is excited to sponsor this year's Celebrate Technology event at the Pinery featuring Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple! We've had a long history with CT, going back to it's revival with Hendrik Jordaan and Kara Roberts in 2004 and then in 2005 when our own, Mark Patterson, co-chaired with Jessica Wright. The speaker that year was TJ Rogers from Cypress Semiconductor Corporation. It sounds like it's a sold out event this year. Hope you have your ticket and we hope to see you there! December 18, 2013 - New Tangible Property Regulations During 2013, the IRS finalized the tangible property regulations which provide guidance for the capitalization or deduction of amounts paid to acquire, produce or improve tangible property. The new regulations are lengthy and complex and will likely affect every business in some aspect. One of the key provisions for many businesses which requires action by the beginning of 2014 is the de minimis safe harbor allowing taxpayers to deduct certain limited amounts paid for tangible property that are expensed for financial accounting purposes. For most small businesses that do not get a GAAP audit or review, the business can establish a policy to expense the purchase of tangible property that is less than $500. This policy must be in place by the beginning of the tax year. For a sample capitalization policy - more info December 9, 2013 - IRS 2014 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2014, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:   *   56 cents per mile for business miles driven   *   23.5 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes   *   14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations December 1, 2013 - Colorado Enterprise Zone Credits - Colorado Enterprise Zone Credits - Note businesses will need to pre-certify purchases qualifying for the credit at the beginning of the tax year. October 25, 2013 - Marilue Beverly Joins the Firm as a Partner We're excited to announce that Marilue Beverly has joined the firm as a partner! As a result, the firm will be changing it's name to M3 and Associates, LLP. Marilue brings over 20 years of tax experience with her and will bring a wealth of experience to our current and future client base. There aren't many tax professionals that can match Marilue's research skills and her ability to interpret and apply tax law. We're looking forward to introducing her to you! October 2, 2013 - Government Shutdown IRS Announcement (in case you were wondering):   Due to the current lapse in appropriations, IRS operations are limited. However, the underlying tax law remains in effect, and all taxpayers should continue to meet their tax obligations as normal. May 1, 2013 - Section 1202 Stock For 2013, investing in small C corporations can result in significant tax savings when the stock is held for 5 years or more. Consult your tax advisor for more information. November 26, 2012 - IRS 2013 Mileage Rates Beginning on Jan. 1, 2013, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:   *   56.5 cents per mile for business miles driven   *   24 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes   *   14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations July 31, 2012 - S Corporations - Reasonable Compensation S corporations can provide a valuable tax savings to small business owners by providing some protection from self employment taxes which historically have been close to 15%. For example, let's assume a person provides services to customers and he owns 100% of an S corporation. Before paying himself, the S corporation earns $100,000 for the prior year. If he doesn't pay himself a salary, the person will avoid the self employment tax on $100,000 merely by utilizing an S corporation. However, this scenario is not viewed favorably by the IRS and likely the IRS would have an argument to say that a significant portion of the $100,000 was "earned" by the sole shareholder/officer and should be paid out to its sole officer as wages. This would likely result in payroll taxes, interest and penalties being assessed. Changing the example a little, let's assume the person had 2 or 3 employees working for him that helped to provide services to the customers. At this point business owner has the ability to argue that someone other than himself helped to earn the $100,000 and let's assume that the owner determined that $60,000 was a "reasonable" salary. At this point, the owner would still see tax savings on $40,000 of profits that were not subject to the 15% self employment tax. This scenario would likely be much harder for the IRS to argue that more of the profits should be recharacterized as wages. July 30, 2012 - Incentive Stock Options Incentive Stock Options (ISOs), also sometimes called "Statutory Options" can provide a significant income tax benefit. For someone in an ordinary income tax bracket of 35% and a capital gains tax rate of 15%, the individual has the opportunity to save 20% tax on stock appreciation. Incentive stock options due to their tax advantage, also require companies/individuals to follow a lot more rules in order to qualify for this preferential status. Assuming your company has issued ISOs to you, there are several things you should know. First pay special attention to your holding periods. There are rules regarding how long you must hold the stock after its grant date and how long you must hold the stock after you exercise the option. Generally, you must hold the stock for 1 year after you exercise the option before it can be sold in order to receive capital gain treatment. Oftentimes individuals think there is no tax event upon the exercise of an ISO and oftentimes there is no reporting to the IRS when ISOs are exercised. However, there is a potential Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) that can bite unwary taxpayers. If the individual has the ability to exercise the option in the first quarter of the year, this could give them the ability to sell the stock after 1 year to receive capital gain treatment and not make the additional tax payment until those stock proceeds are received. Lastly, the AMT tax preference that occurs when ISOs are exercised could be hugely detrimental if a large AMT tax burden is triggered and then the stock plummets in value and the stock can't be sold for enough to pay the AMT tax. Individuals should consult their tax advisor before exercising ISOs. June 29, 2012 - Disaster Relief High Park and Waldo Canyon wildfires in Colorado have been declared a federal disaster area. As such, tax losses can be taken in the year the disaster occurred or the year immediately before the disaster which may allow for refund opportunities. The following Disaster Recovery Guide may be helpful to you - click here June 26, 2012 - 83(b) Elections IRS released Revenue Procedure 2012-29 regarding Section 83(b) Elections for employees with restricted stock. Click here for a sample 83(b) election December 9, 2011 - Mileage Rate IRS announces the 2012 mileage rate will be 55.5 cents per mile for calculating the deductible costs of operating a vehicle for business. December 8, 2011 - 3% Withholding for Government Contractors The mandatory 3% withholding on payments to government contractors that was scheduled to take effect in 2013 was repealed by the President and Congress as of 11/21/11. December 1, 2011 - Colorado Enterprise Zone Credits - Colorado Enterprise Zone Credits - Note businesses will need to pre-certify purchases qualifying for the credit starting in 2012. November 4, 2011 - IRS Emails IRS Reminder: Protect Your Personal Information - The IRS does not initiate taxpayer communications through email. October 13, 2011 - EFTPS IRS Reminder: Employers must make federal tax deposits electronically (EFTPS). Payments sent to the mailbox in St. Louis will be returned. August 17, 2011 - Federal Unemployment The Federal Unemployment Tax Act surcharge of 0.2 percent expired June 30. Starting July 1, the FUTA rate for employers is 6.0 percent. From January 1st to June 30, 2011, the rate was 6.2%. June 23, 2011 - Mileage Rate IRS announces an increase to the business mileage rate to 55.5 cents per mile for all miles driven from July 1, 2011 to December 31, 2011. From January 1st to June 30, 2011, the rate for business mileage was 51.0 cents per mile. June 15, 2011 - Foreign Bank Account Reporting IRS June 30 deadline for foreign bank account reporting for accounts over $10,000 at any time in 2010. June 3, 2011 - 3% Withholding for Government Contractors A bill that would repeal the 1/1/12 date for 3% withholding tax for government contractors is gaining momentum in Congress. May 20, 2011 - 3% Withholding for Government Contractors The IRS has postponed the mandatory 3% withholding on payments to government contractors until January 1, 2013. April 5, 2011 - 1099 Reporting New burdensome 1099 reporting requirements to take effect next year were repealed by a new law signed by the President yesterday. April 5, 2011 - Colorado Scam Alert Colo. SCAM - If you receive a notice to file a "Periodic Report" with Corporate Controllers Unit by 4-15-11 & pay a $225 fee, do not pay it. December 13, 2010 - Tax Due Date April 15, 2011 is a legal holiday for FED tax purposes. FED and CO income tax returns normally due on the 15th will be extended to Apr 18. December 12, 2010 - Tax Cuts Extended President Obama and Congressional Republicans agree to extend Bush tax cuts for 2 years and reduce Social Security tax by 2%. December 3, 2010 - Mileage Rates IRS Announces 2011 Standard Mileage Rates - Beginning on Jan. 1, 2011, the rate will be 51 cents per mile for business miles driven. November 18, 2010 - Estate tax No Estate Tax in 2010, but don't forget, the estate can step up $1.3M in asset basis and a surviving spouse can get an additional $3M.

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