Archive for December, 2009

13.12 2009

When Candy Isn’t Candy (For Tax Purposes) – A Round-Up of the Year’s Oddest Sales and Use Tax Laws

Budget shortfalls have forced many states to get creative about raising revenue during an economic recovery. Tax software provider Sabrix, Inc. recently put together a list of some of 2009’s oddest sales and use tax changes:

  • The Illinois candy tax: Illinois changed their tax laws in regards to taxing candy. Chocolate bars, yogurt- or chocolate-covered nuts or fruit, honey-coated nuts, caramel popcorn, lollipops, snack mixes containing yogurt or chocolate, breath mints, and gum are considered candy and taxed at the standard sales tax rate. H

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12.12 2009

The Business Of Basketball

Amid a painful recession, teams like the Indiana Pacers, Minnesota Timberwolves and New Jersey Nets slashed prices to lure fans and The Detroit Pistons, Miami Heat and New York Knicks saw revenue from pricey club seats and luxury suites drop. Read more…

11.12 2009

Non-Profit Entity Requirements

If you’re starting a non-profit business, are there any non-profit entity organization requirements? You may qualify for a 501(c)3 tax-exempt status, but do you need to follow the same rules as conventional corporations? We’ll take a look here and also provide sample templates in our Media Gallery.

Non-Profit Must Haves

You’ve just received your 501(c) 3 tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service for your new non-profit organization but what other items are required? Most non-profit corporations must follow the same rules conventional corporations do as defined by their state’s Corporation Commission. Ski

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11.12 2009

Dollar rises to 2-month high on euro

NEW YORK (Reuters) — The U.S. dollar jumped to a two-month high against the euro Friday after surprisingly strong consumer data boosted expectations the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates sooner rather than later.

Retail sales posted the largest advance since August last month, while consumer sentiment improved sharply in early December. The reports stoked optimism about a recovery in the world’s largest economy and pushed the euro below $1.46 for the first time since early October.

“The much stronger-than-expected retail sales number has rekindled expectations of a rate hike sooner than anticipated,” said Samarjit Shankar, managing director of global FX strategy at BNY Mellon in Boston. “It does appear that the U.S.

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11.12 2009

Writing a Business Plan

Yes! Once you have an idea for starting a business that you want to pursue, writing a business plan should be one of the first things you do.

People think of writing a business plan as something that’s only necessary if you’re trying to get a business loan or persuade investors that your business is worth their money, but actually, writing a business plan is necessary no matter how you intend to finance your new business.

The main purpose of writing a business plan when you’re starting a business is to test the viability of your business idea. Writing a business plan will tell you if the business you’re thinking of starting has a chance of becoming a successful business.

Writing a business plan when you start a business forces you to do the research and get the information that you’ll need to turn your idea into a successful venture. And

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11.12 2009

Bonus Backlash May Boost Wall Street Pay

A shift to stock grants and higher fixed salaries could more than make up for lighter cash handouts.


Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein

The politically charged atmosphere around banker compensation may result in an unintended consequence: Wall Streeters making far more money than the 2009 bonus season already indicates.

Fixed, or salaried, compensation has been rising across all ranks of bank employees as banks scramble to make bonus season look less rewarding. Higher fixed salaries can balance out flat to lower bonus payouts and help retain star deal makers and traders.

Banks are also shifting the mix of their bonuses away from cash into stock.

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10.12 2009

Free Telephone Number Porting With Toktumi’s Take Back Your Number Program!

Here at Toktumi we believe your phone number belongs to you, not the phone company. Traditional phone companies allow you to transfer your number to another carrier only because they are required to do so by the FCC.  To create barriers to this, they impose high fees and delays upon customers looking to transfer their number to a better phone service. We don’t think that is fair.  So to combat this practice we’re launching our “Take Back Your Number” program.

We’ll pay your transfer fee for your local, 800, or cell phone number when you sign up with Toktumi hosted PBX phone service. That way yo

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