News and Analysis
Tax Reform Created Employer Credit for Paid Family and Medical Leave
March 23, 2018From OMA Connections Partner, GBQ Partners: “Certain employers that pay family and medical leave to their employees may be eligible to claim a Family and Medical Leave Credit equal to 12.5 percent (or more) of the amount of wages paid to those employees during any period in which such employees are on family and medical leave.”
More here. 3/22/2018
OMA Requests Senator Brown’s Support on Money Market Reg Bill
March 9, 2018This week the OMA asked Senator Sherrod Brown to support The Consumer Financial Choice and Capital Markets Preservation Act (Senate Bill 1117). The bill would reverse an October 2016 regulatory action by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that requires money market funds (MMFs) to account for their underlying net asset value (NAV) on a floating basis.
OMA wrote: “… This new SEC rule requires MMFs to account for their underlying net asset value (NAV) on a floating basis, rather from a fixed sum. This rule change has negatively impacted our larger members who issue commercial paper for short term borrowings.
“Prior to the rule change, the Prime MMFs were generally significant purchasers of commercial paper. These purchases provided a competitive market place for short term financing. … Our members have relied on these fixed NAV MMFs as safe, efficient and reliable sources of short-term financing and cash management. … Senate Bill 1117 would revert back to allowing MMFs underlying NAV to be fixed, as it was for 40 years prior to this recent SEC rule.” 3/7/2018
General Assembly Unveils Capital Budget Bill
March 2, 2018This week the House and Senate unveiled the capital appropriations budget bill. The bill is designed to fund capital improvement projects throughout the state. This year the bill is focused on funding opioid treatment with $222 million for health and human services projects.
Other major funding allocations include $600 million for school construction, $483 million for universities and community colleges, $514 million for local infrastructure projects, $234 million for parks, and $147 million for local community projects.
The budget is expected to quickly move through the legislature and be approved this month. You can view all the projects to be funded in the proposed budget here. 3/1/2018
Plastic Injection Molders: Consider the R&D Tax Credit
March 2, 2018From OMA Connections Partner, Tax Credits Group: “… most injection molders who are working to develop new or improved products or processes can meet the necessary requirement to claim the R&D credit. … these injection molders also have the opportunity lower their tax bill and use the savings to reinvest into further R&D efforts to keep them competitive in the future–which is basically what the R&D tax credit is all about in the first place.”
Read more from Tax Credits Group here. 2/27/2018
Muni Tax Collection System Found to be Constitutional
February 23, 2018A Franklin County Common Pleas Court judge has Muni tax class action dismissed>, brought by about 160 Ohio municipalities, challenging a new law that allows the State of Ohio to collect local business taxes.
House Bill 49, which is Gov. John Kasich’s two-year budget bill, allows business owners the option to file municipal net profit tax returns directly with the Ohio Department of Taxation, instead of with the municipality in which the business operates.
OMA backed this law change because it streamlines the filing process for businesses, which often operate in multiple municipalities.
Joe Testa, state tax commissioner, said that businesses that want to take advantage of the state’s new streamlined system for 2018 taxes have a deadline of March 1 to register through the Business Gateway. 2/22/2018
Understanding Partnership Liability Under New Audit Rules
February 23, 2018From OMA Connections Partner, Clark Schaefer Hackett: “The rules from the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 are now in effect. One of these rules is that any underpayments of tax by a partnership will be attributed to a partnership’s current partners, not those who owned the entity during the year under examination. Many partnerships may be surprised to learn that they are subject to this tax audit rule.”
Read more from CSH about what partnerships need to know about tax liability, options for relief and how to protect your organization. 2/16/2018
Recent Money Market Fund Regs Hurt Manufacturers
February 16, 2018The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) passed a rule, effective October 2016, which requires money market funds (MMFs) to switch from a fixed net asset value (NAV) to a floating NAV, causing many MMF managers to liquidate their funds and exit the MMF business.
This rule negatively affects manufacturers by:
1) Causing borrowing costs to rise above the Fed’s recent interest rate increases;
2) Reducing potential return on short-term cash flow investments.
Join a brief webinar on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 10:00 a.m. to hear a complete explanation of the issue from experts at OMA Connections Partner, Roetzel, and learn what businesses can do to fix this problem. Register here. 2/14/2018
New Budget Agreement Brings Additional Tax Changes
February 16, 2018This just in from OMA Connections Partner, Clark Schaefer Hackett: “… The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (BBA), which President Trump signed into law on February 9, 2018, contains several tax-related provisions that could reduce the amounts some taxpayers owe for the 2017 tax year.”
And: “The BBA’s inclusion of provisions applying retroactively to 2017 taxes is sure to cause some confusion, particularly for those taxpayers who have already filed their tax returns. The IRS has indicated that it’s reviewing the BBA and plans to provide additional information as quickly as possible. …”
Read about these provisions here. 2/15/2018
Tax Reform and Pass-Through Entities
February 16, 2018OMA Connections Partner, Gilmore Jasion Mahler LTD, offers insights into the pass-through entity income tax changes that came about as a result of tax reform. 2/15/2018
Use New Withholding Tables Not Later than February 15, 2018
February 9, 2018The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released IRS Notice 1036, Early Release Copies of the 2018 Percentage Method Tables for Income Tax Withholding. The notice updates the income tax withholding tables for 2018, reflecting changes made by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Employers should begin using the 2018 withholding tables as soon as possible, but not later than February 15, 2018. The new withholding tables are designed to work with the Forms W-4 that workers have already filed with their employers. 2/5/2018