Orange County Rescue Mission Running Club

Our firm has had the privilege of partnering with the Orange County Rescue Mission to start a running club. We are working with the students (all residents at the Rescue Mission are students) at the Village of Hope to train them to run the Surf City USA half marathon on February 7, 2010.

This has been an awesome opportunity for us to be able to volunteer in an activity that I have enjoyed so much over the years and give back to people that could really benefit from completing a half marathon.

Although we started just 4 weeks ago, we can already see the benefits of this training. The students have seen tangible changes in their health fitness and we are encouraging them to keep it up. Now is the time when aches and pains start showing up and it is hard to get out of bed. We want to keep encouraging them to stay the course.

If you would like to read more about the project please check our our running blog at http://stephenetierney.wordpress.com/.

DSAOC Buddy Walk 2009

On November 8, 2009, the Nienow & Company crew headed over to the 2009 Down Syndrome Association of Orange County Buddy Walk.  The DSAOC is an organization dedicated to providing the means necessary to empower individuals with Down syndrome to reach their full potential and to continue this mission until every person with Down syndrome is a valued member of society.

We brought a game called ladder ball and set-up a booth with prizes for everyone who showed up to play. We had all ages from toddlers to adults show up and play. There were several bands, a rock climbing wall, bounce houses and a DJ. About 3,000 people came to the Buddy Walk and raised approximately $240,000 to continue the vision and mission of the DSAOC. It was an honor to serve at this event alongside my coworkers.

For more information on Down syndrome, please visit the DSAOC website: www.dsaoc.org.

Playing Ladder Ball

Helping a Girl Play

Enjoying Ladder Ball

Economic Problems Contributing to Child Endangerment

Some of you may know that I serve on the Orange County Board of Trustees of an organization called Olive Crest.  Olive Crest is dedicated to preventing child abuse, to treating and educating at-risk children and to preserving the family.  It accomplishes this mission through various programs and initiatives.  You can learn more at their website: http://www.olivecrest.org.

I recently received the following note from Donald Verleur, the CEO of Olive Crest:

“Attached is a heartbreaking report released yesterday that 5 children are dying each day in the United State from child abuse – and those are only the confirmed cases.  Just 3 years ago, it was reported that 3 children lost their lives each day due to the injuries sustained from abuse.  We need to stop this trend! 

Research demonstrates that increased stress on the family can lead to neglect and abuse.  This significant jump in child deaths appears to correlate with the socioeconomic challenges facing today’s families.  It is horrific to think that our society is not taking action, but turning its back on its future generation.  If we want to make lives better in our communities, we need to act now.  And, we have the answer – a strong family!  We believe that Strong Families result in Safe Kids. 

Whether strengthening the family of origin through family preservation or education, providing foster and adoptive families, or providing a safe family for families in crisis, Olive Crest will be able to help stop the alarming trend of abuse by creating stronger families.

Most state child welfare agencies are inundated and are only able to address the most severe and blatant episodes of abuse, leaving thousands of children and their families at risk.  Olive Crest’s continuum of services, including our new Safe Families For Children program that works independent of the state child welfare system, is designed to strengthen the family and help keep kids safe. 

Please spread the word within your community, family, faith, and business networks.  Again, thank you for all you do for Olive Crest and for standing with us in the fight against child abuse.”

The full report can be found here: http://www.everychildmatters.org/National/News/Press-Release-We-Can-Do-Better.html

As we approach the time of year when many of us begin to project our income taxes and make plans to minimize them, would you consider Olive Crest as part of your charitable giving?  If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me, as i would be happy to help you learn ways you can support Olive Crest with your time, treasure and talents.

New California Use Tax Registration Required for Small Businesses

The California State Board of Equalization (BOE), pursuant to newly added Section 6225 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, is now requiring “qualified purchasers” to register with the Board of Equalization (BOE).  In an effort to collect sales and use tax on internet and out of state purchases, this seems to be another effort by the state government to raise revenue to deal with the budget deficit.

In general, persons or businesses that collect at least $100,000 in gross receipts per calendar year and are not otherwise already registered with the BOE, must register as a “qualified purchaser”.  Additionally, qualified purchasers must then file a return and pay the associated tax for the 2009 calendar year by April 15, 2010.  Additionally, the BOE is requesting these individuals and businesses report and pay tax on purchases from 2007 and 2008 as well, which were due by January 31st of the following years, and is not offering any abatement of related penalties and interest.

The BOE has started sending registration forms and an explanatory letter to businesses throughout the state.  Following is a link to the notice and application recently received by Nienow & Company, LLP:

http://img202.imageshack.us/img202/1260/im451020091025113908.pdf

Please contact us if you would like assistance with registration under this plan.

California State Controller Sets Date to Stop Issuing IOU’s

State Controller John Chiang has announced that after his stress test of the Department of Finance’s cash projections, the state should be able to stop issuing IOU’s on September 4, 2009.

A complete copy of the State’s press allowance can be found here.

California –Corporate, Personal Income Taxes: Tax Relief Available to Santa Cruz County Wildfire Victims

The California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) has announced special corporation franchise and income and personal income tax relief available to California taxpayers affected by the recent wildfires in Santa Cruz County. Taxpayers that have lost homes or suffered property damages as a result of the fires can quickly get some financial relief by immediately claiming their disaster losses on their tax returns.

The Franchise Tax Board has instructed that taxpayers claiming the disaster losses should write "California Wildfires 2009" in red ink at the top of their tax returns to alert the FTB to expedite tax refunds. Original and amended return forms for the 2008 tax year are available on the FTB’s Web site at http://www.ftb.ca.gov.

Taxpayers needing copies of lost or damaged state returns should complete Form FTB 3516, Request for Copy of Tax Return, and print "California Wildfires 2009" in red ink at the top of the request. Disaster victims can receive copies of their tax returns for free.

OC EcoFest and Mud Run

On July 18, 2009, four of us from Nienow & Company, LLP, decided to join forces and conquer the mud pits.  We signed up for a 5k through sand traps, mud bogs, tires and lagoons.  This was the inaugural year for the Orange County EcoFest and Mud Run.  There are a few kinks to be worked out for next year, but overall it was a great experience.

We arrived bright and early and managed to all pull up next to each other in the parking lot despite there being over 7,000 participants.  After taking some time to pin on our bibs and tape our shoes to our feet, we were off for 3.1 miles of mud, dirt, sand and the hot sun.  The course was at Hidden Ranch Park behind Wild Rivers in Irvine.  We gladly crossed the finish line covered from head to toe in mud and started looking for the nearest shower, hose or water bottle in attempts to clean up.  It was a great morning of team building and we look forward to doing a similar event in the future.  We may even be able to convince others to join us!

Here’s a before picture:

And here’s a picture of us in all our muddy glory:

ARC Loans for Small Businesses

In order to provide small businesses with temporarily relief from a slow economy, the American Recovery Capital or ARC Loan program was designed.

This program went into effect on June 15th and provides a deferred payment loan of up to $35,000.  The loans will be used to make six months of principal and interest payments.  The funds can be used to pay any business debts such as lines of credit, secured and unsecured loans, credit card debt and even mortgages. 

After the six month disbursement period it is followed by 12 months with no repayment of the ARC principal.  This is followed by a repayment period of 5 years.  The SBA pays all the monthly interest to the bank.

The loans will continue as long as their are funds available or through September 30, 2010 whichever comes first. 

For more information and eligibility requirements see the following links.

http://www.sba.gov/recovery/arcloanprogram/index.html

“Cash for Clunkers” Trade-In Vouchers

Via Spidell Publishing

On June 24, 2009, the President signed the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Act of 2009 (H.R. 2346), commonly known as “Cash for Clunkers.” Car dealerships that register for this voluntary program will receive vouchers for qualifying trade-ins on the purchase of new vehicles where the fuel efficiency of the new car exceeds the fuel efficiency of the trade-in by specified amounts. The voucher amounts will be $3,500 or $4,500, depending on the increase in fuel efficiency and are to be treated as the down payment on the purchase or part of the down payment. The Act is effective for purchases made between July 1, 2009, and November 1, 2009.

Under the Act, the voucher is not treated as gross income of the purchaser. We believe that unless the Legislature enacts conforming legislation, the voucher will be treated as gross income for California purposes.

Social Security Economic Recovery Payments

Via the social security website

On May 7, 2009, the federal government issued the first economic recovery payments to people receiving Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.  The payments are being issued on a staggered basis throughout the month of May.  Please do not contact Social Security unless you have not received your payment by June 4, 2009.

In February, President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.  This act provides for the one-time payment of $250 to more than 50 million individuals who get Social Security and SSI benefits.