STRATEGIC
ISSUES...ONLINE
For week of January 23, 2006,
Issue #246
Featured Articles:
1. Credits for Installation of
Energy Efficient Home Improvements and Purchase of Alternative Vehicles
2. Focus on Fraud: Corporate &
Identity Theft, Part 14 - Notes
3. Tech Tip Weekly: Ending a
Numbered List in MS Word
4. Compliance Calendar
If you would like to have
further information on any of these articles, let us know. We
would appreciate receiving your comments and/or suggestions, anytime!
acarroll@pmcpa.com
1. Credits
for Installation of Energy Efficient Home Improvements and Purchase of
Alternative Vehicles
A newly released IRS Fact Sheet informs taxpayers
of tax benefits provided by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The law provides
tax credits for the installation of energy efficient measures in principal
residences and for the purchase or lease of some energy efficient
automobiles. The credit for energy efficient home improvements can be claimed
for qualifying energy efficient items including insulation systems, windows,
furnaces, and solar panels placed into service after December 31, 2005, and
before January 1, 2008. A credit may also be claimed for the purchase or
lease of qualified vehicles including hybrid vehicles, fuel cell vehicles,
alternative fuel vehicles and heavy hybrid trucks.
Energy Efficient Products
Code Sec. 25C, as added by the Energy Act provides
a credit for individuals who make improvements to their homes that are energy
efficient. Individuals may claim a credit of ten percent of the cost of
purchasing insulation systems that reduce heat gain or loss, exterior windows
(including skylights), exterior doors and metal roofs that meet Energy Star
requirements.
Additionally, a credit is available for costs of
residential energy property that meets treasury requirements. The available
credits are:
(a) $50 credit for each advanced main air
circulating fan;
(b) $150 credit for each qualified natural gas,
propane or oil furnace or hot water heater; and
(c) $300 credit for each item of qualified energy
efficient property.
The maximum credit for each year is $500 and no
more than $200 of the credit can be attributable to windows.
An additional credit is available for the addition
of qualified solar panels, solar water-heating equipment or qualified fuel
cell power plant. The credit for solar panels is 30 percent of the cost, but
no more than $2,000. No credit is allowed for systems used to heat a pool or
hot tub.
Alternative Vehicles
A credit is also available for the purchase or
lease of alternative vehicles. Depending on the type of vehicle, the weight
and the fuel efficiency of the vehicle, the credit can be as much as $12,000.
The credit is available for hybrid vehicles and/or
advanced lean-burn technology vehicles, but only until the first calendar
quarter after the manufacturer records its 60,000th sale of a hybrid vehicle.
Fuel cell automobiles or light trucks, which are
powered by one or more cells that convert chemical energy into electricity
through the combination of hydrogen and oxygen, may qualify for a credit of up
to $8,000, depending on size. Alternative fuel vehicles fueled by compressed
natural gasses, liquefied petroleum gas, hydrogen and any liquid that is
85-percent methanol and weighing less than 8,500 pounds can qualify for a
maximum credit of $2,500. The maximum credit for heavy hybrid vehicles ranges
from $3,000 to $12,000, depending on weight.
2. Focus on Fraud: Corporate &
Identity Theft, Part 14 - Notes
Legal Requirements for Businesses
The burden of preventing identity theft lies with businesses for 2 reasons:
The majority of identity thefts occur in the workplace
Businesses are required by law to develop, document, and implement
information security programs
The problem is, what is an information security program and how do businesses
go about developing it – the laws do not provide this.
Businesses are required under several federal laws to develop, implement, and
document evidence for “information security programs” or risk being fined
Problems – laws are innumerable; too broad and too flexible; fail to cover
“people” within the businesses who access the personal information and do not
concern the “work process” the people perform
Five federal laws require information security, including,
FCRA Fair Credit Reporting Act
Privacy Rule of FTC
Banking Guidelines
HIPPA
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act
GLB Act Gramm-Leach-Bliley
Safeguards Rule
Part 15 – Notes . . . next week Legal Requirements for Businesses – More on
GLB
3. Tech Tip Weekly: Ending a
Numbered List in MS Word
To end a
numbered list and tell MS Word that you want to go back to writing normal
paragraphs, press the Enter key twice. Pressing Enter twice stops the
numbering, but it also puts in an extra paragraph. To stop the numbering,
press Enter after the last numbered item; then, on the next numbered line,
press the Backspace key. That stops the numbering and leaves you on the same
line.
4. Compliance Calendar
January 27
-Monthly depositors deposit Social Security,
Medicare and withheld income tax for January 21, 22, 23, and 24.
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