{"id":6883,"date":"2020-11-12T17:35:13","date_gmt":"2020-11-12T22:35:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress-858360-3021026.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=6883"},"modified":"2020-11-12T18:56:42","modified_gmt":"2020-11-12T23:56:42","slug":"covid-19-business-update-12-november-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lepperaccounting.com\/covid-19-business-update-12-november-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Business Update \u2013 12 November 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

The pandemic hasn\u2019t hit everyone equally economically, as this article in the Wall Street Journal<\/a> explains. Manufacturing has largely recovered, but occupations that require face-to-face interaction, such as service industries, tourism, and restaurants, are faring less well. \u201cThis divide between manufacturing and services means the pain has fallen especially heavily on female and immigrant workers and on economies with large informal sectors or with heavy exposure to tourism, entertainment and travel.\u201d Until a vaccine is widely available and distributed, economies and employers that focus on services will struggle.<\/p>\n

To help keep our staff and the clients we are fortunate to serve healthy, we are still working remotely most of the time. We do have people back in both of our office locations occasionally.<\/p>\n

\"\"
We’re still here for you!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Though, particularly given the recent increase in COVID-19 cases in our area, we ask that you continue to interact with us virtually whenever possible for the time being.<\/p>\n

Our business hours remain the same, and we are always happy to connect with you via email, phone, or video conferencing. If you are still not comfortable with video conferencing, we can help you ease into that as well.<\/p>\n

CARES ACT UPDATES<\/h3>\n

Another stimulus bill?<\/h4>\n

Now that the election is over \u2013 although there is still some uncertainty about the outcome \u2013 both House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have pledged support for another round of financial support<\/a> for Americans. However, the contents of the new stimulus bill remain unclear. McConnell is in favor of a smaller, limited scope package, while Pelosi continues to push a larger deal that includes another round of stimulus payments and enhanced unemployment benefits. But with an uncertain level of support from President Trump, the outcome is not clear. Our team is continuing to monitor any developments closely, and we will be prepared to provide you with any guidance that may be helpful as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

Economic Impact Payments (aka Stimulus Checks)<\/h4>\n

The IRS has extended the deadline to November 21<\/a> for non-filers to enter information using the IRS non-filers tool<\/a> so that they may receive a stimulus payment by year\u2019s end. Millions of people are eligible for stimulus checks but have not yet received them because their income was too low to require filing a 2018 or 2019 tax return. Using the secure non-filers tool will allow the IRS to send payments to eligible recipients this year. Otherwise, they will have to wait until 2021 when they file a 2020 tax return. As always, if you have any tax questions, our team of tax experts is available to help answer any questions and provide any assistance you may need.<\/p>\n

New EIP Scam<\/h4>\n

The scammers are not taking any days off. The IRS is warning about a new text scam<\/a> that tricks people into revealing their banking information under the guise of receiving a stimulus payment. The IRS is reporting that people have received texts that say the following: \u201cYou have received a direct deposit of $1,200 from COVID-19 TREAS FUND. Further action is required to accept this payment into your account. Continue here to accept this payment \u2026\u201d and includes a link to a fake phishing website. The IRS does not send unsolicited texts or emails.<\/strong> Anyone who receives such a text should send a screenshot of the text to phishing@irs.gov<\/a>. Be sure to include the date, time and time zone where the message was received, the number that the message came from, and the number that the message was sent to.<\/p>\n

Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)<\/h4>\n

Last week, the SBA sent out a questionnaire to businesses that received PPP loans over $2 million, and some of the questions are causing uproar among businesses and bankers, according to this article in Politico<\/a>. This nine-page \u201cloan necessity questionnaire<\/a>\u201d includes questions that loan recipients did not anticipate about quarterly revenues, capital expenditures, dividend payments, and employee compensation. Banks and business owners alike are concerned that their answers may jeopardize loan forgiveness, and may cause headaches, especially if data entry mistakes are made.<\/p>\n

This additional scrutiny on the PPP comes as investigators are discovering widespread fraud<\/a> in the program. The SBA\u2019s inspector general found tens of thousands of businesses that received funds that they were not actually eligible for, including companies that did not exist before the pandemic, companies that exceeded the 500 employee limit for eligibility, and companies that seem to have received more funding than their actual payroll levels would allow. The SBA also discovered bank accounts or addresses that received multiple loans.<\/p>\n

Did your company receive a PPP or EIDL loan? If so, the name of your company, your address, and the amount you received may soon be publicly available. A federal judge recently ordered the SBA to release full details about all PPP and EIDL loans disbursed<\/a>. Previously, the SBA released full details for loans over $150,000 and loan amounts and states for smaller loans. Now, that judge sided with news organizations who requested that information, reminding the SBA lawyers that the possibility of the release of all loan details was included in a disclaimer included in the loan applications.<\/p>\n

Payroll tax deferral guidance<\/h4>\n

An executive order by President Trump on August 8, 2020, gave employers the ability to defer collection and payment of the employee portion of Social Security taxes from their employees\u2019 paychecks from September 1 through December 31 of this year. Employers who participate are then required to withhold and deposit those deferred taxes starting on January 1, 2021. All payroll taxes deferred during 2020 must be deposited by April 30, 2021. The IRS has now released guidance<\/a> for reporting the payment of those deferred taxes. As soon as the full amount has been collected from employees, employers are to report the payment of those taxes on a corrected 2020 W-2, Form W-2c and to provide those W-2c\u2019s to employees promptly for preparing their 2020 tax returns.<\/p>\n

Main Street Lending Program<\/h4>\n

The Federal Reserve just lowered the minimum loan level for its Main Street Lending Program from $250,000 to $100,000<\/a> in an effort to reach more small businesses that need help. While this program has the capacity for $600 billion in loans, fewer than 400 loans totaling $3.7 billion have so far been funded. The Federal Reserve also eased restrictions for those who have also received PPP loans: the amounts of those loans will not be counted in an applicant\u2019s debt load. Main Street Loans are aimed at companies with fewer than 15,000 employees and with 2019 revenues of $5 billion or less. For more information about this program, go to the Federal Reserve\u2019s dedicated website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

TAX ISSUES<\/h3>\n

The IRS is making it easier for those impacted by COVID-19 to settle up their tax debts<\/a>. Here are some of those changes:<\/p>\n