Page 49 - BusinessWest October 26, 2020

PPP Loan
Continued from page 29
• Salary and wages were not reduced by more than 25% during the loan period and you were unable to oper- ate the same level of business due to compliance with requirements to any work or customer safety requirements related to COVID-19. Similar to the 3508S application, there are no calcula- tions required. Taxpayers instead need to confirm and provide support that the loan proceeds were used for eligible costs.
The last form is the standard Form 3508. This application is for all taxpay-
Lawsuits
Continued from page 36
provisions of the act.
The act mandates that employers
provide 80 hours of paid sick leave to employees to care for:
• An individual who is subject to a governmental quarantine or isolation order or is advised by a healthcare pro- vider to self-quarantine due to COVID concerns; or
• Their child if the child’s school or daycare is closed or the childcare provider is unavailable due to the
ers who do not meet the thresholds
to file one of the previously discussed forms. This standard application is much more detailed and complex, and may require some additional time and supporting documents. Taxpay- ers might want to seek assistance from their professional advisors.
Additionally, if your business
also obtained an EIDL advance, that amount needs to be subtracted from the amount of loan proceeds that would otherwise be eligible for for- giveness. This applies for all three loan-forgiveness forms. Legislation has also been introduced (U.S. Senate Bill 4321) that details potential automatic
for leave were improperly denied or that they were retaliated against for availing themselves of their rights under the act.
The ‘Take Home’ Cases
The ‘take home’ cases are the scari- est of them all as they carry the big- gest monetary exposure to businesses. The crux of them is this: an employee contracts COVID-19 at his or her workplace. A family member becomes infected and becomes very ill or tragi-
forgiveness for any PPP loan under $150,000 if the debtee “signs and sub- mits to the lender an attestation that the eligible recipient made a good-faith effort to comply with the requirements under section 7(a)(36) of the Small Business Act.” The status of the bill is uncertain at this time.
Once you have submitted your application, the loan provider has 60 days from the date the application was received to issue a decision to the SBA. The SBA then has 90 days to review the application and remit the forgiveness amount to the lender.
When it comes to PPP loan-for- giveness applications, remember the
for workplace injuries. The reason for the workers’ compensation system was to limit employers’ exposure to large, multi-million-dollar damage awards
in personal-injury cases, as workers’ compensation laws impose caps on damages. Take-home cases, however, are not capped and could potentially generate a nuclear verdict.
There is precedent for take-home cases in the asbestos litigation space. Indeed, family members have received landslide settlements and verdicts from
three different levels: less than $50,000, between $50,000 and $150,000, and above $150,000. As of now, taxpayers have to apply for forgiveness within 10 months of the end of the loan period. Be sure you complied with all the rules and guidelines on what the qualified expenses are and kept accurate and complete records. And don’t be over- whelmed by the applications. If you need assistance, there are resources for you. u
Jeff Laboe is a senior tax associate with MP CPAs; www.thempgroupcpa.com
wrongful-death lawsuit, the daughter alleges her father’s employer should
be on the hook for the exposure to her mother that her father ‘took home’ to her, which ultimately caused her moth- er’s death. Other take-home cases have begun to emerge around the country as well.
What Can Be Done to Mitigate Risk?
Two words: comprehensive plan- ning. Proper planning includes know- ing what laws apply to your company, assessing them and assessing your overall areas of risk, taking proactive steps, and designating a team to help create, implement, manage, and adapt to COVID-related issues. Then, put pen to paper and document your efforts. u
Amy B. Royal, Esq. is a litigation attorney who specializes in labor
and employment-law matters at the Royal Law Firm LLP, a woman-owned, women-managed corporate law firm that is certified as a women’s business enterprise with the Massachusetts Supplier Diversity Office, the National Assoc. of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms, and the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council; (413) 586- 2288; [email protected]
Attorney Hyman G. Darling is a shareholder and the head of the probate/estates team at Bacon Wilson,P.C.Heisapastpresidentof
the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and has been a frequent presenter for the Massachusetts Bar Assoc., MCLE, and many Springfield civic and professional groups. He is a member of the Special Needs Alliance and many local planned-giving committees, as well as an adjunct faculty member in the LLM Program
at Western New England University School of Law and Bay Path University; (413) 781-0560; hdarling@baconwilson. com
“Good-intentioned employers that have told their older workers or those with known pre-existing conditions to work from home, take a leave of absence, or accept a furlough while bringing back their younger or non-disabled counterparts are getting smacked with age and disability discrimination claims.”
pandemic.
Further, the Emergency Fam-
ily Medical Leave Act portion of the FFCRA permits employees to take 12 weeks of job-protected leave to care for their child if the child’s school or day- care is closed or the childcare provider is unavailable.
In these FFCRA lawsuits, employees are claiming either that their requests
Taxes
Continued from page 38
For income-tax purposes, there are several options to consider. One easy one is the ‘above-the-line’ charitable deduction for up to $300 if given to a qualified charity. This is not for dona- tions of clothing, as it must be a gift of cash, and it qualifies for everyone, even if a person is not itemizing.
Another significant option is that,
in 2020, a minimum deduction is not required to be made from an IRA or other qualified plan. However, some people who have little to no other tax- able income may still want to take a distribution as their tax bracket may be low enough to eliminate taxes this year.
cally dies. A claim is then brought by the family member against the employ- er for negligence under the theory that the employer failed to warn or failed to take reasonable precautions.
Workers’ compensation laws are generally the exclusive remedy to employees for workplace injuries. This means employees cannot bring neg- ligence claims against their employer
In addition to this option, there
is also the benefit for those age 701⁄2 and older who may wish to make a donation to charity. Funds may be paid directly to a charity (or multiple charities) from the retirement account, and this donation will not be taxable income. The annual limit is $100,000, but the distribution does satisfy the required minimum distribution (RMD). If the taxpayer is going to make dona- tions in any event, the IRA should be used to fund the donations.
The amount does not get added to taxable income, so the taxable amount will be less, Social Security payments may then not be taxable, and the Medi- care premium will not be higher as the
many companies claiming they devel- oped mesothelioma after their spouse, for example, brought asbestos into their home after work.
The first take-home COVID-19
case was recently filed in Illinois by a daughter who alleged her mother died after her father contracted coronavirus at work and then brought it back into the home, infecting her mother. In this
RMD does not get factored into the calculation.
If a taxpayer has losses to report, they may be taken and either reduce income up to $3,000 or perhaps offset gains of other assets. If a person has gains, they may wish to take the gain in 2020 with the anticipation that cap- ital-gains rates could increase and/or income-tax rates may increase.
As with all tax and estate-planning considerations, there are many gen- eral rules with specific exceptions, so a qualified professional should be con- sulted prior to making any decisions. But be sure to get started soon, as deci- sions should be made and implement- ed prior the end of 2020. u
BusinessWest
CONTINUED
OCTOBER 26, 2020 49