Tomorrow ( June 16 ) is the Blues Festival in Saint Georges! It's for a great charity, CSO, inc, which is preparing to support the region in disaster relief and recovery efforts! It is being put on for us by Blue Horizon Promotions

It is from noon till 8pm at the old Commodore McDonough School... which is the location that CSO is recycling to be the multi-purpose disaster relief resource.

It will be a family atmosphere event, so bring 'em!

We will also be putting on a Bluegrass festival on July 14.

How FBAR Affects Business with Foreign Bank Ties

In 1970 the U.S. government passed the Bank Secrecy Act, aimed at discovering financial accounts and transactions that U.S. taxpayers held in foreign banks. Specifically, to ensure proper taxes were being paid on any income. The original goal of the Foreign Bank Accounting Reporting (FBAR) was to aid the Department of the Treasury in combating money laundering involving international criminal networks. It wasn’t until 2008, however, that the government defined more specifically who was subject to FBAR requirements.

FBAR enforcement authority lies with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, which authorized the Internal Revenue Service to enforce FBAR on its behalf. Therefore, it’s important to note that while you file FBAR with the Department of Treasury and it is enforced by the IRS, your filing of FBAR alone will not result in taxes owed. Although failing to include your foreign bank account on your tax return will result in penalties as the form data is shared. Your filing will also be shared among government agencies.

If you have more than $10,000 in foreign bank accounts you are required to file an FBAR form, Form TD F 90-22.1. You must file this form every June 30 or you will be subject to fines and potential jail time. So if you’re a business owner and have never filed a FBAR form and have more than $10,000 in foreign bank accounts, you best consider filing this year.

In 2011, the IRS offered an Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (OVDI) program which basically granted amnesty to anyone who had never filed or needed to file an amended FBAR form. It is not clear if they will offer the program again in the future. However, it is clear that failing to file the FBAR form will result in fines and even jail time. Your business’ CPA can tell you if you need to file an FBAR form. There are a few things to keep in mind however:

• U.S. taxpayers that have more than $10,000 in a foreign bank account at any one time throughout the year must file an FBAR form.

• You must file annually and the FBAR form must be received by the Department of Treasury no later than June 30. Not mailed by June 30, received by June 30.

• Electronic filing is not available and you cannot request an extension.

• FBAR applies to businesses as well, but not to individual officers with signature authority over a business account (they would still need to file if their personal account met the requirements).

Typically, the IRS will not prosecute someone who voluntarily comes forward and admits they failed to file, even if it’s outside the voluntary disclosure period. So if you missed the June 30 deadline and/or the OVDI program deadline, you should still file your FBAR form before the IRS figures out you should have. Your CPA can provide you with guidance specific to your situation and provide a detailed picture as to what fines you may face.

If you are required to file the FBAR form and you fail to do so voluntarily, you will be subject to fines and even jail time. The fines start at $100,000 or half the value of the account, whichever is more, per year. That’s a pretty steep penalty for not filing. And while there has been a concerted effort by many to reduce the penalties or burden of filing FBAR, you’re still better off voluntarily filing than waiting for the IRS to catch you.

The form itself is fairly straight-forward. Part I is all about the filer: your EIN, address, business name and so forth. Part II collects all the data on the foreign bank accounts that are owned solely. This includes the maximum value of the account, its type (i.e. bank, securities or other) and where the funds are held. Part III of the FBAR form is similar to Part II, but is for foreign bank accounts that are jointly owned. The same information is required in Part III as in Part II, but you must also provide the name and, if known, identification number of the person or entity with which the account is jointly held. Part IV is if you have foreign accounts in which you have signature authority over, but no financial interest. Part V is for those eligible to file a consolidated FBAR. Your CPA can assist in determining which parts of the FBAR form you need to fill out.

If you haven’t filed an FBAR form and are required to do so, contact your CPA immediately and schedule a meeting with them. It is important that you file the FBAR form voluntarily, or else you will be subject to hefty fines and even jail time. Save yourself a future headache, by filing now. For more information on Filing FBAR forms, visit the Internal Revenue Service or call toll free 1-800-829-4933 for businesses or 1-800-829-1040 for individuals.


By Grant Webb with Bisk Education. For more than 40 years Bisk has been training accountants and financial professionals to pass the Uniform CPA Exam so that business owners whose accounts require FBAR form processing have a dedicated and licensed professional to facilitate these processes.

The Sad State of Dispute Resolution- Why Can't We Just All Get Along?

Where is the best venue for dispute resolution?

I guess that one way of looking at it depends on where you stand in the dispute.

Your every day average Joe figures to have their best shot in a courtroom, possibly with a sympathetic jury. Businesses tend to favor a professionally managed arbitration proceeding.

The US Supreme Court has recently announced will take up a new arbitration dispute in the fall (CompuCredit Corp. and Synovus Bank v. Wanda Greenwood, 10-948) that is in line with this way of thinking. The Washington Post reported on it earlier this week:

Supreme Court to hear new arguments over arbitration between customers and companies

Perhaps the question best asked here is not what is the best venue for dispute resolution, rather what is the best deterrent to prevent disagreements from escalating into full blown disputes in the first place?

This blog has shared some perspective on his issue, particularly as it relates to the State of Delaware, in the past (here and here).

Are there alternatives?

Universal Recycling Bill

Do you hate separating out your recyclables, paying to have them picked up, or taking them to the recycling center? So much so, that you don’t recycle? Well, no more. A new law was signed Spring of 2010 to offer curbside recycling throughout the state of Delaware.

Starting in fall 2011, recycling bins and a regular recycling collection will be provided to all single-family homes. This service will be expanded to businesses and apartments over the next few years. The goal is to reduce the amount of trash that goes into expensive landfills, thus reducing the cost to the people of Delaware and reducing pollution as well.

The law eliminates the 5 cent deposit on bottles and replaces it with a 4 cent recycling fee. This fee will end by December 1, 2014 or possibly sooner if the recycling fee raises $22 million total. This fee creates the Delaware Recycling Fund, which will help purchase the bins and other equipment needed.

Position Available

Delaware Intercorp wants to expand their company with a new team member. They are looking to fill a part time office position for a responsible, hardworking person with good people skills who isn’t afraid to learn and to work. The skills needed for this position are good phone, written and in person communication skill. The applicant must be organized with a high attention given to detail. Proficiency is needed with Microsoft Outlook, Word and Excel. The applicant must be able and willing to learn new computer applications in a fast paced multi-tasking environment that is their growing company.

Applicant must be able to maintain a pleasant disposition and positive attitude under stressful conditions. The compensation will start at $9.25 hourly rate and schedule advancement at 6 months and 1 year. The schedule will be Monday through Friday from 10 am to 2pm each day. These twenty hour weeks will start a transition to thirty hours per week within several months as training progresses. There are mandatory drug and record screenings.

Send resume to: Delaware Intercorp, Inc, Attn: Angelica Endres, 113 Barksdale Professional Center, Newark, DE 19711; or fax to (302) 266-9940; or email to angelica@delawareintercorp.com

The President Shouldn't Travel

Really?  I thought one of our head of state's duties was to travel and meet other heads of state, and receive them here.  Sure, it would be great if that travel were free.  The truth is that travel for our head of state is expensive.  And it is necessary.

Recent media hoopla about it is just another example of the fraud that these political commentary and politicians are perpetrating upon the citizens of the United States.  To publish such absolute lies and propaganda goes beyond responsible commentary and is more like fraud.

I am not for or against a particular politician or candidate.  I am for honesty and integrity in our process, and for improving government.

There is a number of folks of various parties who make it their focus to negatively attack whoever and whatever decisions are made by our leaders.  Negativity for the sake of negativity is a form of that fraud.  I hope that most of us can see through the rhetoric.  Although, sometimes I wonder.

Loud Commercials - Where can we turn?

I am frustrated on a daily basis with the lack of our government's responsiveness to the millions of physical assualt that are perpetrated upon us by loud commercial broadcasts over the television... broadcasts where the volume of the commercial is significantly louder than that of the programming.

The FCC, in true bureaucratic form has this to say: 

Loud Commercials. The FCC does not regulate the volume of broadcast programming, including commercials. Surveys and technical studies reveal that the perceived loudness of particular broadcast matter is a subjective judgment that varies with each viewer and listener and is influenced by many factors, such as the material’s content and style and the voice and tone of the person speaking. The FCC has found no evidence that stations deliberately raise audio and modulation levels to emphasize commercial messages.


Manually controlling the set’s volume level or using the “mute” button with a remote control constitutes the simplest approach to reducing volume levels deemed to be excessive. Many television receivers are equipped with circuits that are designed to stabilize the loudness between programs and commercials. These functions usually must be activated through the receiver’s “set up/audio” menu. Should these techniques fail to resolve the problem, you may consider addressing any complaint about broadcast volume levels to the licensee of the station involved. Additional information about loud commercials can be found at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/backgroundnoise.html.
 
Talk about Noise!
 
Have there been any criminal assualt charges placed against the tv stations for bombarding us with those unwanted sound waves?  Maybe there should be.  Somehow there has to be some relief!