Returning Value Blog

The week of September 13-17 has been declared National Small Business Week by the Small Business Administration. To commemorate the week, here are three tax breaks to consider.

The Treasury Department’s Green Book outlines proposals supported by the Biden Administration that would increase federal tax rates for corporations and high-income individuals, generally effective for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2021. Under these proposals:

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the restaurant industry has been one of the hardest hit by the pandemic’s impacts, leading to spikes in business closures, continued capacity limitations, and unprecedented loss in both jobs and sales. However, many establishments were able to keep their doors open and continue to serve customers throughout the course of the pandemic with the help of federal aid issued through the CARES Act programs, Restaurant Revitalization Fund, and other relief programs. As a result, restaurants may be subject to the Single Audit this year.

The need for innovation and creativity is not going away now that businesses and workplaces are opening up again. Business leaders need to consider how they can continue encouraging these traits as they navigate to a new normal. One way to accomplish this is by ensuring your business is a psychologically safe space where employees can feel free to be themselves, be right or wrong, and present out-of-the-box ideas without feeling threatened or diminished.

In the midst of mounting inflation, supply shortages, geopolitical turmoil, threats of cyberattacks, and continuing COVID-19 concerns, public stock prices are expected to fluctuate in the coming months. This situation has unsettled shareholders and makes long-term strategic planning challenging. Now might be a good time to consider getting off the rollercoaster by taking your company out of the public eye.

As we’ve reported this year, the Biden Administration has made tax policy a legislative priority, and the Treasury Department’s Green Book, released on May 28, provides additional details on these tax policy proposals. Congressional Democrats have also indicated their interest in tax legislation. The question is: Will we see federal tax legislation in the near future? To answer this question, we need to look at the Administration’s and Congress’ infrastructure legislative plans.

Updated accounting rules for long-term leases took effect in 2019 for public companies. Now, after several deferrals by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), private companies and private not-for-profit entities must follow suit, starting in the fiscal year 2022. The updated guidance requires these organizations to report — for the first time — the full magnitude of their long-term lease obligations on the balance sheet. Here are the details.

By now, most restaurant operators are familiar with the Employee Retention Credit (ERC). As we discussed in a previous blog post, the ERC is a fully refundable payroll tax credit designed to encourage businesses to retain and compensate employees during periods in which businesses are not fully operational. 

The greatest wealth transfer in U.S. history is underway. Americans age 70 and older hold an estimated $35 trillion, according to Federal Reserve data.^[1] This means that over the next several decades, millions of Americans will be contemplating how to distribute their life savings to heirs, charities, and other beneficiaries. To make matters even more interesting, wealthy Americans also face the potential for a once-in-a-generation increased tax liability. The Biden Administration has proposed increasing taxes on wealthy Americans to raise revenue for various spending initiatives.