Year-End Expert Tax Tips
December 30, 2013
There are a couple of days left in 2013, but according to tax expert Marshall Mennenga, there are some steps people can take before 2014 arrives to not only lower their tax bills, but to help others at the same time. He suggested contributions to charitable organizations.
“Maybe you need to clean out some closets and give some clothes to Goodwill…or many of the other organizations out there that are nonprofit organizations, that will accept your goods, your household furniture, clothes, and things like that,” he advised. “Of course, the fair market value of those items is deductible.”
Another suggestion is cash contributions, but Mennenga said to make sure to get receipts documenting the amounts. He noted there are very few tax-law changes from last year to be aware of. Every year, the Internal Revenue Service puts out a guide for tax preparation called Publication 17.
“Last year, it was like February 10th before it was available for distribution,” he recalled. “For right now, here in late December, it’s already available, so there’s no major changes coming.”
Another tip is not to jump the gun and try to fill in your tax return before you have everything you need, such as your 1099 forms for interest and dividends.
“Wait before your do your tax return to make sure you have everything. Use your previous year’s tax return as a guideline,” he said. “Check off each one of the places you received interest from or you received dividends from. Or, if you’re a small business, make sure you have good, accurate record-keeping; make sure you deduct everything that you’re entitled to.”
Mennenga said keeping good records of deductible expenses all year long is the best way to prepare for filling out the annual tax return. Many people just throw all their receipts in a shoebox or file drawer, and then have to spend hours sorting it all out at tax time.
by the Public News Service – FL
Man Guilty Of Robbing Four Hwy 29 Businesses To Pay Girlfriend’s Court Costs
December 29, 2013
An Escambia County man that committed a string of robberies along Highway 29 to pay his girlfriend’s court costs won’t be seeing her anytime soon.
Marquis Charles Baldwin, 23, was convicted on multiple counts of armed robbery and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He was sentenced by Judge Scott Duncan to 10 years in state prison for the holdups.
Baldwin used a pump-action BB gun during the robbery of four businesses on Highway 29 — November 30, 2012, at the the Kangaroo gas station at 7950 Pensacola Boulevard, December 6, 2012, at the Waffle House at 7999 Pensacola Boulevard, January 3 and January 9, 2013, at the Waffle House at 6913 Pensacola Boulevard.
Baldwin told investigators that he committed the robberies in order to pay off his girlfriend’s probation costs, which deputies said were paid in full after the January robbery.
FWC Continues To Study New Deer Hunting Regulations For Northwest Florida
December 29, 2013
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is continuing to study a proposal that would divide the state’s Hunting Zone D (from Pensacola to Tallahassee) into two deer management units (DMUs), each with its own unique set of deer antler-point regulations and antlerless deer harvest days.
These proposals for Zone D, which if passed at the April 2014 Commission meeting, would take effect during the 2014-15 hunting season and are part of a larger, statewide project aimed at managing deer on a more local level and providing stakeholders with a greater say in deer management. The Commission also directed staff to provide an update on this issue at the February Commission meeting.
The FWC conducted a public outreach and input process in northwest Florida during the first three months of 2013. During that period, the Commission received input and comments from hunters, farmers and the general public regarding how they would like to see deer managed in the newly proposed DMUs.
As a result of this outreach process, the FWC is considering rule proposals for both public and private lands in both of the DMUs in Zone D, specifically north and south of Interstate 10. Currently statewide on private lands and most wildlife management areas, bucks that are legal to take must have at least one antler that is at least 5 inches long.
The proposals would require that bucks harvested north of I-10 in Hunting Zone D have antlers with at least three points (each point having to be at least 1 inch long) on one side. South of I-10 in Zone D, the minimum antler requirement would be two points on one side.
The proposal includes an exception to the antler requirements in both DMUs whereby youth 15 years old and younger may continue to harvest bucks with at least one antler that is 5 inches or more in length.
Also, the FWC is proposing a change to the antlerless deer season (“doe days”) on private lands within Zone D. Currently in that zone, the season to take deer of either sex (except spotted fawns) runs for seven consecutive days: Dec. 26 – Jan. 1. In the proposed rules, those dates north of I-10 would change to eight days distributed across four weekends (Saturday-Sunday after Thanksgiving, first weekend of muzzleloading gun season, third weekend of general gun season and the weekend after Christmas).
South of I-10, in Zone D, the proposal would change the antlerless season to four days consisting of two popular holiday weekends (the weekends after Thanksgiving and Christmas).
The purpose of modifying the antlerless deer season, the FWC said, is to spread out the hunting opportunity, so that more hunters may be able to participate without substantially reducing deer populations. These changes would be monitored to measure the impact on the deer harvest and hunter satisfaction within each DMU.
United Way Seeks Income Tax Prep Volunteers
December 29, 2013
United Way of Escambia County is seeking volunteers for the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA).
VITA volunteers provide free tax preparation help for those with low-to-moderate income. In 2013, 52 volunteers helped return over $900,000 in earned income tax credit and a total of over $2.8 million in refunds to 2,055 families in our community. The overall financial impact of this initiative was $3.3 million
VITA volunteers will:
- Volunteer in the role of either as a Tax Preparer or Greeter.
- Be able to commit to one to four hours per week from January 14th
- Receive IRS training and certification.
- Expand your knowledge of federal tax return procedures.
- Add a new skill to your resume.
- Receive CRA credit (for depository institutions only).
- Serve local citizens and help stimulate the local economy.
VITA site locations will include Pensacola State College (multiple campuses), Friendship Missionary Baptist Church, Central Credit Union (Spring Street branch) and St. Sylvester Catholic Church in Navarre. Sites will open January 14, 2014.
Training starts for volunteers in December for sites in Pensacola, Milton and Navarre. United Way will train tax preparers and greeters. The online portion of the training can be completed at the volunteer’s pace.
To become a VITA volunteer, call (850) 444-7128 or email name and contact information to lyndi@unitedwayescambia.org.
Half Cent Sales Tax Watchdog Group Elects New Chair
December 29, 2013
Alvin Wingate has been elected as chairperson of the Escambia County School District’s One-Half Cent Sales Tax Watchdog Committee for the current school fiscal year, and Ashley Bodmer has been elected vice chair.
The One-Half Cent Sales Tax Watchdog Committee is tasked with ensuring that all referendum funds are used for school capital projects such as the construction and support of Escambia County schools. The first five-year program was voter approved in 1997 followed by a second in 2002. In 2007, voters overwhelmingly voted for a 10-year extension of the tax. The One-Half Cent Sales Tax Watchdog Committee is charged with ensuring that only those projects voted for in the referendums are undertaken.
Funds provided by this sales tax referendum built Blue Angels Elementary School and Global Learning Academy; provided many security enhancements; the modernization of several schools; continued HVAC and roofing updates as well as media centers and athletic facilities. Current sales tax funded projects include the reconstruction of Ernest Ward Middle School and A. K. Suter Elementary School.
Wingate has been a member of the committee since its inception in 1997.
The committee meets bi-monthly. The next meeting of the One-Half Cent Sales Tax Watchdog Committee is scheduled for January 16, 2014, 8:00 a.m., in the Superintendent’s Conference Room located in the McDaniel Building, 75 North Pace Blvd.
Pictured: The August groundbreaking for the reconstruction of Ernest Ward Middle School. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Teen Injured In Byrneville Wreck
December 29, 2013
A teen was injured in a single vehicle accident Saturday afternoon on Byrneville Road near Neal Road.
A 17- year old male reportedly lost control of his vehicle and struck a tree. He was transported to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola by ambulance with non-life threatening injuries.
The 5 p.m. accident is under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol. Further details have not yet been released. The Century Station of Escambia Fire Rescue and Escambia County EMS also responded to the accident.
Florida Lawmakers Send Message To Congress, Voters With Memorials
December 29, 2013
State lawmakers have often sent non-binding, declarative messages to Congress to score political point backs home, make demands on the federal government or publicize their opinions about hot topics.
Memorials considered by the GOP-controlled Florida Legislature over the past few years “ordered” Congress to build the Keystone pipeline, make BP pay for environmental cleanup from the Deepwater Horizon disaster, abolish the U.S. Department of Education and limit congressional terms.
Few of the proposals ever make it to Washington, D.C., where “there is a huge dumpster somewhere outside the U.S. Capitol where they throw all of our memorials,” former Florida Senate President Jeff Atwater once said.
And most of the measures, often replete with numerous “whereas” clauses and lofty-sounding titles, are ignored in Tallahassee as well. The memorials typically languish without a committee hearing in either chamber.
The 2014 Legislative session won’t be any different.
Mixed with the bills filed for the 2014 session are memorials that include the “Marketplace Fairness Act of 2013″ in support of a national retail sales tax (SM 196), a call for Congressional term limits (HM 81), and a request for Congress to enact federal immigration reform (HM 253).
Those measures are among 15 so far introduced for the 2014 session, about half the number typically filed in recent years.
Legislators “often propose things they know will not pass but do it to satisfy key constituents or fellow legislators in key positions – or soon to be in key positions,” said University of South Florida political science professor Susan MacManus.
One of the memorials (SM 476) filed by Rep. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla, calls for a convention to propose amendments to the U.S. Constitution that would limit the power of the federal government.
“It’s giving America, the average people, the right to control the legislation and the right to control the demagoguery that is coming from Washington,” said Sen. Greg Evers, R-Baker, in reference to Hays’ memorial. “It’s causing such a tremendous problem on the states and local government.”
Only two of 22 memorials filed during the 2013 session received legislative and gubernatorial support.
One (SM 1266) called for Congress and the President to award the Congressional Gold Medal to the U.S. 65th Infantry Regiment, the “Puerto Rican regiment” known as the Borinqueneers. The second (SM 1478) urged U.S. Homeland Security to hasten immigration applications for Haitians impacted by the 2010 earthquake seeking to join family members already in the U.S.
The main reason politicians use the memorials is to reaffirm their positions with local constituents, said Kevin Wagner, an associate professor of political science at Florida Atlantic University.
“Proposing legislation that they know cannot pass, or even if it passed would not be constitutional, is a simple way to attract voters,” Wagner said. “The fact that it is otherwise meaningless doesn’t really matter, and is actually a benefit, since there are no potential consequences to the bill.”
But Aubrey Jewett, an associate political science professor at the University of Central Florida, said there are a variety of less-cynical reasons legislators file proposals that have little hope of passing.
Lawmakers may want to bring attention to an issue or placate certain interest groups, Jewett said. Or they may repeatedly offer a memorial in the hope of building momentum, he said.
“Some legislators are just very passionate about certain issues and so bring them up over and over again regardless of the chance of passage because they really believe in them,” Jewett said.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Floirda
Register Now For Third Annual NWE Flag Football Tournament
December 29, 2013
Now is the time to register for the 3rd Annual NWE Flag Football Tournament.
The tournament is scheduled for February 1, 2014, (Super Bowl Saturday) at Ernest Ward Middle School. Registrations are being accepted now. Call (850) 449-3185 to register a team.
There are no age limits. The registration fee is $150 per team. All proceeds will benefit the Northwest Escambia 2014 Youth football season.
Fire Destroys Cantonment Shed; Firefighters Save Other Structures
December 28, 2013
Fire destroyed a detached shed late Friday night at a Cantonment home.
The fire was reported about 11:45 p.m. at home in the 100 block of Madrid Road, just north of Isabella Road. The shed was fully involved when the first firefighters arrived on scene. They were able to quickly knock down the blaze and prevent it from spreading to any other nearby structures.
The cause of the blaze was not immediately known. There were no injuries reported.
The Cantonment, Molino, Ensley and Beulah stations of Escambia Fire Rescue were dispatched to the blaze, along with Escambia County EMS.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Smith, click to enlarge.
Company Defends Work On Troubled Unemployment System
December 28, 2013
Deloitte Consulting contends it has completed the work outlined in its contract for Florida’s new online unemployment-assistance system, which the company says “has surpassed the performance of the unsustainable systems it replaced.”
Deloitte issued a statement after the state Department of Economic Opportunity on Friday started to impose fines of $15,000 per business day against the Minnesota-based company and withheld a $3 million payment for failing to deliver a “fully functioning” system.
The $62.8 million Connect system went live on Oct. 15 and continues to pose problems for many users and headaches for state officials.
Deloitte spokesman Jonathan Gandal said in a news release late Friday that the company has completed the “tasks and activities outlined in our contract.”
“In just 60 days, the new system has surpassed the performance of the unsustainable systems it replaced, meeting or exceeding longer term key performance indicators by reducing average time to adjudicate separation issues, reducing the number of claims requiring staff intervention, and decreasing average time to implement lower authority appeals,” Gandal said in the release. “Performance will continue to improve as the system matures and as both departmental users and claimants become acclimated to its new functions.”
A Department of Economic Opportunity spokeswoman disputed Gandal’s appraisal of the status of the unemployment system and the state contract.
“No, DEO does not agree with that assessment,” spokeswoman Jennifer Diaz said Monday in an email.
Diaz cited a letter the state sent to Deloitte on Friday that pointed to 25 still-unresolved technical issues and 26 new problems that have cropped up since the system went live.
“For some users of the system — claimants needing a financial bridge as they transition back to employment — the delays caused by these defects have proven to be a true hardship,” department Executive Director Jesse Panuccio wrote in the letter to Deloitte official Jessica Blume.
On Friday, Panuccio announced that the daily fine would be imposed until the technical problems were resolved.
“We always said there are issues with the system, and the question is at what point do we withhold payment and institute penalties,” Panuccio said in an interview. “We think we’ve reached that point.”
No deadline has been set for the system to be fully functional, but additional penalties could be applied if Deloitte is unable to complete the work without more consultants and vendors being brought in to direct and monitor the work.
Gandal in his statement said remaining issues “require departmental actions or are otherwise beyond Deloitte’s control.”
“We will continue to provide warranty support to DEO, in accordance with our contract, and work diligently to resolve any warranty items as they are identified,” Gandal said “We will also continue to work with DEO to clarify the true nature of the remaining issues and will hold ourselves strictly accountable for fixing anything within our control as quickly as possible.”
Connect has been in the works since 2009 to replace a 30-year-old system people used to claim their weekly benefits, monitor accounts and request information. The department provides up to $275 weekly to more than 200,000 jobless Floridians.
The changeover, which is in part covered with federal tax dollars, includes about $28.2 million for Deloitte Consulting to set up the website.
Deloitte was penalized $4.5 million last year by the Department of Economic Opportunity due to project delays.
by The News Service of Florida