Jon W. Newcomer, CPA PC

01/24/2023

We are looking to hire a part time administrative person at our accounting firm in Cu***ng, GA. Competive pay and flexible work hours with a fantastic team make this a great opportunity for the right person! If you or someone you know is interested please call our office at 770-886-9009 or email me at [email protected]. Accounting experience is not required but would be helpful!

03/31/2020

Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Information that we know as of this point in time:

With the passing of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. $10 Billion has been allotted for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) and $350 Billion for Paycheck Protection Loans.

Economic Injury Disaster Loans

The Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) are the first line of support. These loans aren’t new. They’ve always been available in the event of disaster. However, this is the first time a virus or pandemic event has been defined as a disaster. Because of that declaration, businesses in every state and territory are now eligible to apply for Economic Injury Disaster loans.
The SBA offers many favorable terms in their EIDLs:
• Loans are up to $2M
• The term is 30 years
• Interest Rates are 3.75% for small business and (2.75% for non-profits)
• The first month’s payments are deferred a full year from the date of the promissory note.
The EIDLs expanded provisions include:
• EIDLS can be approved by the SBA based solely on an applicant’s credit score (not repayment ability and no tax return is required). A prior bankruptcy doesn’t disqualify you.
• EIDLS smaller than $200,000 can be approved without a personal guarantee. They are also not requiring real estate as collateral and will take a general security interest in business property.
• Borrowers can receive $10,000 in an emergency grant cash advance that can be forgiven if spent on paid leave, maintaining payroll, increased costs due to supply chain disruption, mortgage or lease payments or repaying obligations that cannot be met due to revenue loss.
• It expands access to sole proprietors or independent contractors, as well as tribal businesses, cooperatives, and ESOPs with fewer than 500 employees and all non-profits including 501(c)(6)s.
The $10,000 emergency cash grants are particularly interesting. Applicants can get the emergency cash even if they don’t qualify for additional funds. Because lending decisions are based on self-certification and the applicant’s credit score, the review process should go quickly. CARES also waives the requirement that you be unable to obtain credit elsewhere. That means you can apply even if you already have a credit line.
You apply for these loans directly through the SBA at www.SBA.gov/disaster. There are no loan fees, guarantee fees or prepayment fees. As of March 30, the new streamlined online application is up and running. Make sure to apply for Economic Injury for the Coronavirus, rather than physical damage due to another disaster (that is a different declaration number).
You have to have been in business by January 31, 2020 to qualify, so you can’t start a business now and receive this kind of grant. The SBA also offers other information and programming at www.sba.gov/coronavirus.
How long will it take to get the money? Unfortunately, there is not a definitive timeline from application to approval on these loans. There are some 30 million small businesses in the United States. In a busy year, the SBA processes 800,000 applications. If the 3.3 million unemployment numbers show anything, there will be a lot of demand for this relief (and systems may be overloaded). My advice: apply as soon as you can.

Paycheck Protection Program Loan Guarantee

Final details are being worked on this program and should be out this Friday (April 3). Currently lenders do not have the program guidelines available for this Loan.

The CARES Act’s Paycheck Protection Program Loan

Guarantee offers another source of help. Under this program, the SBA backs small-business loans through local lenders. According to William Briggs, Deputy Associate Administrator in the Office of Capital Access in the SBA, they currently work with 1800 lenders and plan to expand that given the anticipated demand.
Here are the particulars of this loan program:
• Offered to small businesses with fewer than 500 employees, select types of business with fewer than 1,500 employees, 501(c)(3) non-profits with fewer than 500 workers and some 501(C)(19) veteran organization (have to be in operation before February 15, 2020)
• Self-employed, sole proprietors, freelance and gig economy workers are also eligible to apply (again, you have to be in operation before February 15, 2020).
• Loans are given up to a maximum of the lesser of $10 million, or 2.5 times the average monthly payroll costs – including wages for employees making under $100,000, as well as expenses for paid sick leave, healthcare and other benefits - during the 1-year period before the date on which the loan was made.
• The maximum interest rate under this program is 4%
• The loan term is up to 10 years
• No personal guarantee or collateral is required for the loan
• Payments are deferred up to six to 12 months
• Part of this loan may be forgiven and not counted as income to you, if it’s spent during the first eight weeks on operating expenses.
As with the $10,000 advance in EDILs, loan forgiveness provisions are generous. Loans are forgiven when the proceeds are used for any of these costs:
• Payroll costs, excluding prorated amounts for individuals with compensation greater than $100,000
• Rent pursuant to a lease in force before February 15, 2020
• Electricity, gas, water, transportation, telephone, or internet access expenses for services which began before February 15, 2020
• Group health insurance premiums and other healthcare costs.
Be careful here. In order for the amounts to be forgiven, you must maintain the same average number of employees for the first eight-week period beginning on the origination date of the loan as you did from February 15, 2019 - June 30, 2019 or from January 1, 2020 until February 15, 2020. If you don’t meet this requirement, the amount forgiven is reduced. You incur additional reductions if you cut compensation for employees who make under $100,000 by more than 25%, as compared to the most recent quarter.
And of course there’s an exception to the exception: you won’t be penalized for a reduction in employment or wages during the period from February 15, 2020 to April 26, 2020, if you rehire employees that you previously laid off or restore any decreases in wages or salaries by June 30, 2020.
As I mentioned above, you apply for the Paycheck Protection Loan directly through your local lending institution. As a business owner, you must personally certify that your company qualifies as a small business (you can check the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) small business standards here).
Experts expect very significant demand for this type of loan. According to Mr. Briggs, they are already working on guidance to go out to these local institutions as soon as possible. You can help yourself prepare by using this checklist from the Chamber of Commerce and contacting your local lender.
Both of these programs can provide a significant boost to struggling businesses. You can use these loan proceeds to pay a variety of working capital — payroll, rent, utilities, etc.
The demand will be high, so it’s important to make sure you apply for the right type of loan for your business. Here are some other helpful tips from the webinar that may come in handy:
• Apply! If you need funding now, or think you may need it in the future, you might as well apply now. You’re under no obligation to take the loan. And as I mentioned, there are no guarantee fees, servicing fee or prepayment fees.
• EDILs are based on working capital needs, so make sure you have a good sense of what those are.
• You can apply for both types of loans, as long as they cover different expenses (not a duplicative purpose). This is also true if you’re pursuing other local or regional government assistance.
• For the EDILs in particular, the SBA does not work with “loan packagers.” So, there’s no need to pay someone to put an application together for you. You can apply directly through the website.
• Make sure to specify the economic loss as it pertains to COVID-19. There’s no need to fill out the physical damage part, if that doesn’t apply to you.
While both of these loans are widely available, there are still some companies that won’t have access to these loans. Cannabis companies, for instance, won’t qualify, as their business is still illegal on the federal level, despite being legal in 11 other states and DC. If that applies to you, you’ll have to find other funding.
Good luck in getting the funding you need for your business. As I’m sure a lot of issues and questions will come up as the CARES provisions roll out we will do our best to keep you informed.

The SBA provides low-interest disaster loans to help businesses and homeowners recover from declared disasters.

03/10/2020

If you are ready to file your taxes but are missing important tax forms here's what you should do, If you have questions about your Forms W-2 or 1099 or any other tax-related materials, don't hesitate to contact our office.

Form W-2
You should receive a Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, from each of your employers for use in preparing your federal tax return. Employers must furnish this record of 2019 earnings and withheld taxes no later than January 31, 2020 (allow several days for delivery if mailed).

If you do not receive your Form W-2, contact your employer to find out if and when the W-2 was mailed. If it was mailed, it may have been returned to your employer because of an incorrect address. After contacting your employer, allow a reasonable amount of time for your employer to resend or to issue the W-2.

Form 1099
If you received certain types of income, you may receive a Form 1099 in addition to or instead of a W-2. Payers have until January 31 to mail these to you.

In some cases, you may obtain the information that would be on the Form 1099 from other sources. For example, your bank may put a summary of the interest paid during the year on the December or January statement for your savings or checking account. Or it may make the interest figure available through its customer service line or Web site. Some payers include cumulative figures for the year with their quarterly dividend statements.

You do not have to wait for Form 1099 to arrive provided you have the information (actual not estimated) you need to complete your tax return. You generally do not attach a 1099 series form to your return, except when you receive a Form 1099-R, Distributions From Pensions, Annuities, Retirement or Profit-Sharing Plans, IRAs, Insurance Contracts, etc., that shows income tax withheld. You should, however, keep all of the 1099 forms you receive for your records.

When to Contact the IRS
If, by mid-February, you still have not received your W-2 or Form 1099-R, contact the IRS for assistance at 1-800-829-1040. When you call, have the following information handy:

the employer's name and complete address, including zip code, and the employer's telephone number;
the employer's identification number (if known);
your name and address, including zip code, Social Security number, and telephone number.
Misplaced W-2
If you misplaced your W-2, contact your employer. Your employer can replace the lost form with a "reissued statement." Be aware that your employer is allowed to charge you a fee for providing you with a new W-2.

You still must file your tax return on time even if you do not receive your Form W-2. If you cannot get a W-2 by the tax filing deadline, you may use Form 4852, Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, but it will delay any refund due while the information is verified.

Filing an Amended Return
If you receive a corrected W-2 or 1099 after your return is filed and the information it contains does not match the income or withheld tax that you reported on your return, you must file an amended return on Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.

Health Insurance Forms 1095-A, 1095-B, or 1095-C
Most taxpayers will receive one or more forms relating to health care coverage they had during the previous year. If you think you should have received a form but did not get one contact the issuer of the form (the Marketplace, your coverage provider or your employer). If you are expecting to receive a Form 1095-A, you should wait to file your 2019 income tax return until you receive that form. However, it is not necessary to wait for Forms 1095-B or 1095-C in order to file.

Form 1095-A. If you enrolled in 2019 coverage through the Health Insurance Marketplace, you should receive Form 1095-A, Health Insurance Marketplace Statement in early 2020.

Forms 1095-B or 1095-C. If you were enrolled in other health coverage for 2019, you should receive a Form 1095-B, Health Coverage, or Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health insurance Offer and Coverage by early March.

02/20/2016

12/08/2011

This is a quick little read with some basic tax information.

Millions of taxpayers overpay their taxes every year by overlooking just one of these deductions.

01/07/2011

Tax tip of the day:
Good news and bad news with the new tax law. As most of you have heard the withholding for social security has been reduced by 2% so our net pay should increase - good news. Unfortunately this net pay increase will most likely be offset by an increase in federal withholding tax due to expiration of the "making work paying credit".

01/06/2011

01/06/2011

Welcome to Jon W. Newcomer, CPA PC we are a full service Certified Public Accounting Firm located in Cu***ng, GA. . What you will discover about us, more than anything, is that we have a passion to serve our clients. Check the information tab for more about our firm and the services provided.