California Governor Jerry Brown is preparing to release a budget revision that will include new
U.S. payroll legislation drawn up with the aim of reducing payroll costs in the upcoming fiscal year, according to the Sacramento Bee.
State employee union leaders recently met with representatives from Brown's office to discuss the impending release. The
Bee's sources, who declined to be identified due to the secretive nature of the talks, told the media outlet that the governor is aiming to cut payroll costs by at least 5 percent in an effort to offset the state's rising budget deficit. They also shared that they were asked to come up with ways to make the new
U.S. payroll compliance measures a reality.
Brown estimated in January that California's deficit would be at $9.2 billion through 2012 and 2013, but the total is now believed to be considerably higher, prompting the state government to spearhead further reductions.
Last month,
Bloomberg reported that the deficit could widen by more than $1 billion due to the fact that lawmakers opposed early spending cuts and alternative reductions were blocked by lawsuits.
The Ohio House recently passed legislation that would require internet cafes and similarly unregulated gaming storefronts to register with the state in order to facilitate the creation of an inventory of existing enterprises.
The
inventory legislation comes ahead of a proposed moratorium on internet cafes and sweepstakes parlors in the state.
"We had some concerns that new places might just pop up anyway after the moratorium is effective," explained State Senator Larry Obhof, the Medina County Republican who is sponsoring the bill, as quoted by
Dix Newspapers.
According to Obhof, the list will help ensure
inventory compliance by requiring owners to tell authorities "which places ... were already operating when the moratorium went into effect so that we know which ones were around and which ones weren't."
WFMJ-TV notes that the impetus for the bill came from the fact that the state's four casinos and seven racetracks are regulated by the state, but internet cafes are not.
According to the
Everest Group's recent Finance & Accounting Outsourcing (FAO) Annual Report 2012, the finance and accounting outsourcing market is set to rebound this year following a slowdown in growth in 2011.
Specifically, 2011 saw the annual contract value for multi-process finance and the outsourcing of
accounting consultants rise by 11 percent - a significant drop from the 18 percent increase observed the year before. In 2012, growth is expected to rise by as much as 15 percent.
Despite the slowdown, the United States made up more than half of total FAO contracts in 2011, indicating that American companies are still eager to have their finances taken care of in a way that ensures
accounting compliance without having to bring a professional on staff.
"Looking forward, we expect to see buyers continue to focus on cost plus value proposition solutions that are comprehensive, industry-specific and end-to-end process driven," noted Everest Group vice president Saurabh Gupta.
According to
NJBIZ, nonprofits looking to get ahead should invest in FAO in order to improve their financial performance in 2012.
Following the unanimous passage of
manufacturing legislation by both houses of the Wisconsin legislature, the state's Department of Workforce Development recently launched a pilot program that allows residents to continue collecting unemployment insurance while enrolled in job training programs, the
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.
The program, dubbed Wisconsin Workers Win (W3), will also provide eligible participants with a $75 weekly stipend while they are undergoing training related to
manufacturing compliance and skills. W3 is set to launch in five counties - Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, Walworth and Rock - by next month, according to the news source.
"Through a pilot program and a process we get those individuals trained with employers that have job openings, with the endgame being they're trained, and they develop a skill set and the employer hires them," explained Reggie Newson, secretary of the Department of Workforce Development, as quoted by WITI-TV.
According to the media outlet, the program is projected to serve 500 workers over the course of a year.
Companies are planning to ramp up their focus on
accounting compliance, according to a
recent poll conducted by Deloitte.
The majority (57.7 percent) of companies polled said they plan to dedicate more time and resources to improving their compliance programs in order to ensure they are following
accounting legislation and other related requirements.
"After years of seeing corporate America cut compliance budgets and headcounts, it's good to see that many companies seem to be getting back to investing in and continuing to hone their compliance programs in the near term," said Donna Epps, Deloitte partner and national leader of the company's anti-fraud consulting group, in a statement.
The potential for management to override controls was identified as the top compliance program concern and was named by 17.2 percent of respondents. Other worries included inadequate tone at the top and excessive pressure related to driving unrealistic sales and performance, which were both named by 14.5 percent of polled companies.
The Governmental Accounting Standards Board recently issued two new accounting statements aimed at clarifying compliance requirements. As Accounting Today reports, these are expected to aid companies in their efforts.
Are you new to Sage BusinessWorks accounting software and the Job Cost module? Do you wonder if Job Cost will fit your business needs? Do you use Job Cost but you know it can do more for you but do not know how to maximize the benefits. This class will give you the tools to help manage your jobs and take full advantage of all the features in this powerful feature. If you are a current Sage Business Care (formerly ClientCare) customer, this course may be free of charge. Please contact support if you have not received your promotional code.Register for this and other courses on
SageU.com.
Nearly one-third of taxpayers are unaware of the recently passed
U.S. payroll tax legislation to keep payroll taxes at 4.2 percent, despite prolonged media coverage of the extensive congressional deliberation that preceded it, according to a recent survey by John Hancock Financial Services.
Specifically, 30 percent of the 1,006 investors surveyed in February reported not being aware of the
U.S. payroll legislation - a 4 percent rise from last year.
The decision to extend the 2 percent payroll tax cut through the end of 2012 was arrived upon in February. However, the issue was also in the news in December, when lawmakers managed to pass the two-month Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011 just eight days before the expiration date of last year's provisions.
In addition to maintaining the 2 percent reduced payroll tax rate, the legislation also reinstated long-term unemployment benefits and removed a scheduled 27 percent Medicare pay cut for physicians.
Packed with powerful new features and enhancements, Sage BusinessWorks Accounting 2012 can give your business the edge it needs to compete even more successfully. Because we determine the improvements made in each version of Sage BusinessWorks with our customers in mind, you can be assured this latest edition will again offer you increased efficiency and productivity.
The official launch of Sage BusinessWorks 2012 is scheduled for April 26th. Watch your email inbox for notification that the file is ready for download.
So you may be wondering what powerful new features and enhancements you can expect with the new release! Let me tell you . . .
- Enjoy easier, safer customer payments with new PA-DSS-compliant, integrated credit card processing
- See the details faster with new, customizable General Ledger financial reports that also allow you to drill down to see the detail
- Better manage your payments with an upgraded user interface to the Accounts Payable manual invoice selection
- Save time and reduce mouse clicks, thanks to the new Enter Payments user interface
- Stop tedious searching for a specific invoice with a new Find Invoice field in Post Receipts
- Reduce printing, stuffing, and postage costs with direct deposit payroll check emailing
- And much more . . .
Sage BusinessWorks 2012 has the potential to save you time and money the very day you install it!
The Alabama Senate recently unanimously approved
inventory legislation to make looting a felony if it occurs after a state of emergency has been declared in an area.
The
inventory compliance legislation change - which was spurred by the outbreak of tornadoes that hit Alabama last year - was developed by Attorney General Luther Strange in collaboration with state law officers. It was unanimously passed in the House last month.
Specifically, Senate Bill 302 and House Bill 340 make the looting of a company's inventory or a home's contents a class C felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of as much as $15,000.
"I am pleased that the House and now the Senate has acted to protect Alabamians in these times of severe disaster and crisis," said Strange in a statement. "It has become all too evident that Alabama needs a stronger law to protect our citizens."
"This bill will ensure that those who prey upon the victims of tragedy will not simply receive a slap on the wrist," said Tuscaloosa Republican Senator Gerald Allen, as quoted by WALA-TV.
A coalition of executives, labor leaders and trade policy experts is calling for
manufacturing legislation that would boost employment in the sector while simultaneously protecting national security interests.
The Committee to Support U.S. Trade Laws (CSUSTL) issued its call to action at a recent summit, claiming the decline in American manufacturing was exacerbated by government policy failures.
"America has lost a third of its manufacturing jobs since the year 2000 and we have no consistent policy to keep entire industries from continuing to leave our shores," said Gilbert B. Kaplan, president of the committee, noting that the U.S. had the largest trade deficit in the history of the world last year.
The coalition is calling for the alteration of
manufacturing compliance regulations and other U.S. trade policies to reverse the continuing decline within the sector.
Earlier this month, CSUSTL lauded the passage of the GPX bill in the House of Representatives. The legislation, which was approved 370-39, would continue the practice of applying the countervailing duty law to imports of subsidized products from non-market economy countries.