Five things you need to know about the IRS and payroll taxes to protect your business

We have all heard the cautionary tales about companies and their ownership running afoul of the IRS. The IRS is charged with the task of collecting taxes from individuals and businesses in the United States and the most famous tax day in the US is April 15 of every year.

What many people are not aware of or do not understand is that the IRS collects taxes every day from individuals and businesses in the form of the Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return or Form 941. However, if you are a business owner with employees, you are very aware of Form 941 and the constant pressure to make your daily, semi-monthly deposit or monthly deposits.

E-Verify system: “E” is for error

Last month, I blogged about the E-Verify system, which is a mostly voluntary program offered by the feds free of charge. It is designed to help employers to verify whether or not an applicant or employee is legally allowed to work in the US.

In my first post on the subject, I shared what the E-Verify system means to you, as employer; in a follow-up post, I shared what some people are saying about the effectiveness of the E-Verify system. Here’s more.

Here’s more information about the E-Verify system and how you, as an employer, now play a role in fighting illegal immigration in the US.

Earlier, I shared how the crackdown on illegal immigration in the US has shifted. Here are more specifics:

The E-Verify system is a voluntary program (unless you have government contracts) offered by the federal government that compares Form I-9 information to Social Security Administration and DHS records to quickly determine the eligibility of applicants to work in the US.

Employers, there is a new sheriff in town! Find out what the new E-Verify system and Form I-9 compliance regulations will mean to you and your business.

As with most things in Washington DC, a new administration brings a new way to approach old problems. Anyone who has watched the news, read the newspapers or been online knows that illegal immigration in the US and undocumented workers have been hot-button issues for some time. However, what you may not know is that the approach to cracking down on the problem has shifted from the workers to you - the employer.

How well could your security business handle an urgent call for extra guards? What would that do to your cash flow management system?

Let’s face it. Some companies don’t hire the security they need until a crisis happens. Maybe the company gets robbed; maybe someone even gets hurt. Then, when they call your company to get the amount of security guards that they need, they need them NOW.

You’re happy about getting new business but you may not receive payment for your services for 30 days – or maybe even 45 – but your employees need paid every two weeks.

Is your security business fairly new? If so, are you struggling to find business funding? What about accounts receivable factoring?

As we recently reported, the Bureau of Labor Statistics is predicting a dramatic increase in the demand for security guards. This is encouraging news if you own or manage a security business; but, if your business is new, then you’ll probably face challenges in getting the funding you need to grow your business.

Fortunately, we have the business funding solution that you’ve been looking for: accounts receivable factoring.

Security guard demand is expected to grow 17 percent between 2006 and 2016. Can your current cash flow management system fund your growth?

There are growing concerns about crime and vandalism – and private security firms are taking over more and more of the duties previously performed by police officers. Because of these factors, the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts a greater than typical growth for the security industry; this predicted growth of 17 percent means that about 175,000 new security guard jobs will be created.

Another Ohio-based entrepreneur training program: JumpStart sponsored a 54-hour event for people wanting to start a high tech business.

I recently shared how I have been reading entrepreneur blogs and how encouraged I have been reading about the programs and initiatives taking place.

Well, here is another example: JumpStart, which is a Northeast Ohio-based program that “accelerates the progress of high potential, early-stage businesses,” hosted a sold-out entrepreneur training weekend in Cleveland. Similar events have been hosted, according to JumpStart, in Boston, Paris and Israel, but Cleveland had the highest number of sponsors. “Who knew, six years ago” the blogger writes, “we’d be setting the bar for the world in entrepreneurial energy.”

There are lots of great entrepreneur blogs and resources on the Internet. One of my early New Year’s Resolutions is to read more of them.

While looking at some blog posts recently, I found out about an interesting entrepreneur training program taking place right here in Ohio. In this program, the Youngstown Business Incubator and Youngstown State University’s Williamson College of Business Administration are partnering to begin an internship program in Youngstown, to help each participant become a successful entrepreneur.

A growing trend towards using American products means that light manufacturers may need to boost cash flow management to take on new customers.

According to Manufacturing.net, manufacturers could be receiving increased amounts of business; after a series of high-profile recalls from countries such as China, even the recession isn’t stopping businesses from choosing to outsource to American companies.