March 2017

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THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL 24 www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com March 2017 2017 Tax Year Changes MONEY presented by Nicole M Albrecht EA, CTC 2017 starts with one set of tax rules… But we expect there will be major changes with President Trump in office. For now, we’ll note major changes in place for 2017 to look out for. Business Taxes: The standard mileage rate for business driving has changed in 2017, it falls to 53 ½¢ a mile, a 0.5¢ drop. Traveling for medical purposes and job-related moves the rate decreases to 17¢ a mile. For the charitable driving the rate remains at 14¢ a mile. Two business tax breaks first apply on 2016 returns: Small start-up businesses can opt to claim $250,000 of R&D costs to offset payroll taxes instead of their regular income tax ability. The next tax break is businesses that hire the longterm unemployed get a tax credit. The work opportunity tax credit is expanded to cover employers that have hired people that have been unemployed for 27 weeks or more and had received unemployment benefits. Individual Returns: The 2017 standard deductions have raised. Married couples get $12,700, plus $1,250 for each spouse age 65 or older. Singles are able to claim $6,350 or $7,900 if 65 or older. Head of Household get $9,350, plus $1,550 once they are 65 years old. High-incomers lose the ability to itemize deductions starting at a higher level in 2017. Their write-offs are slashed by 3% of the excess of AGI over $261,500 for singles, $287,650 for head of household and $313,800 for married. But the reduction can’t rise above 80% of itemizations. Personal exemptions are to stay at $4,050 for filers and their dependents in 2017. However, this tax break is not to be included for upper-incomers. Minimum Tax: Alternative Minimum Tax exemptions go up for 2017. They raise to $84,500 for couples and $54,300 for both singles and heads of household. Social Security: The base for Social Security wages increases in 2017 to $127,200, up $8,700 from 2016’s cap. But the Social Security tax rate on employers and employees remains at 6.2%. Social Security recipients will see an insignificant 0.3% hike in their benefits in 2017. People who are turning 66 years old in 2017 don’t lose any benefits if they earn $44,880 or less before they reach that age. There is no earnings cap once a beneficiary turns 66. The earnings amount needed to qualify for a quarter of coverage climbs to $1,300 a quarter. Health Care: The income levels to qualify for the health premium credit in 2017 go up. It is available for filers with their household income ranging from 100% to 400% of the federal poverty level or for singles their income ranging from $11,880 to $47,520 and $24,300 to $97,200 for a family of four. Medicals: For annual cap on deductions contributions to HSAs rises to $3,400 in 2017 but for self-only coverage. The top for account owners with family coverage remains at $6,750. Individuals that are born before 1963 can contribute an additional $1,000. Minimum policy deductibles stay at $2,600 for families and $1,300 for singles. Starting with 2017 returns filed in 2018, the threshold for deducting medical expenses on Schedule A will be raised to 10% of AGI for taxpayers who are age 65 or older. Estate and Gift Tax: For 2017 the estate and gift tax exemption increases to $5,490,000. The gift tax exclusion stays the same, $14,000 per recipient. For farm or business realty, up to $1,120,000, can receive discount estate tax valuation. Savings Plan: Most key dollar ceilings for retirement plans are not changing in 2017. People that are born before 1968 can put $6,000 more into their 401(k). For the defined contributions plans the pay-in limit goes up to $54,000. Contributions for retirement plan can be based on up to $270,000 of salary. The limits for pay-in for IRAs and Roth IRAs in 2017 are staying constant at $5,500, plus $1,000 as an additional catch-up contribution for taxpayers age 50 and up. In 2017, deductions phaseout’s for IRAs start at higher levels, from $99,000 to $119,000 of AGI for couples and from $62,000 to $72,000 for singles. Expired Breaks: Among the bundle of individual and business tax breaks that have expired January 1st: Having up to $2 million of foreign debt on primary residence. • Getting the credit for installing energy-efficient windows and exterior doors in a home. The credit of 30% for geothermal heat pumps, wind turbines and fuel cell property. • Being able to write-off private mortgage insurance premiums. • Getting a credit for two-wheeled electric vehicles and biodiesel or alternative fuels. There is no assurance that lawmakers will continue these provisions in 2017. As always, we will be here to keep you up to date on all the changes that occur. Nicole Albrecht EA, CTC Financial Accounting Services, 41769 Enterprise Circle North, Suite 209 in Temecula. Phone (951) 719-1515 - Fax (951) 719- 1518 - www.taxmanfred.com. connect: wwww.taxmanfred.com
March 2017 THE VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL www.TheValleyBusinessJournal.com Jacob Bennett tapped for Chief Risk Officer at NMA National Merchants Association, a global merchant advocacy group and a leader in merchant services named Jacob Bennett as Chief Risk Officer. Bennett has previously served in the role of Vice President of Risk and Underwriting since joining NMA in 2014. In his new role, Bennett is responsible for leading the risk and underwriting departments which make crucial credit decisions on high-risk and high-volume accounts as well as developing and maintaining internal policies for mitigating risk. “I am honored by the faith in me shown by Heather Petersen and Brian Randolph,” Bennett said. “It is a privilege to work for National Merchants Association and I am appreciative of the support and guidance the company has afforded me thus far in my career. “We have made some incredible advances in the risk and underwriting departments during the last few years and I am confident that we will continue our high level of execution and continue to develop and innovate on behalf of our partners.” Bennett will also oversee NMA’s new Chargeback Control Platform (CCP). This groundbreaking platform automatically intercepts inbound disputes before they become chargebacks, and is integrated with LimeLight CRM, NMI gateway and others. Because it is integrated at the processor level, CCP can conduct real-time refunds — protecting the end customers while helping to mitigate chargebacks for merchants. Bennett will also continue to oversee NMA’s proprietary merchant account optimization processes. With a firm grip on risk management, NMA can accurately and fairly adjust merchant rates, optimizing the viability of its merchants. Jacob Bennett brings more than 10 years of payments industry experience since graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of California, Irvine. He is a regular speaker at payments industry conferences and trade shows both in North America and abroad. He is a member of the Merchant Acquirers’ Committee, the International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators (IAFCI), the Electronic Transactions Association (ETA) Professional Development Committee and is an ETA Certified Payments Professional. Visit www.NationalMerchants.com or call 866-509-7199. Brian Randolph Named Chief Operating Officer at NMA National Merchants Association, a global merchant advocacy group and a leader in merchant services, today announced that Brian Randolph would assume the position of Chief Operating Officer. Randolph has served in the role of Chief Technology Officer and Partner since joining NMA in 2009. “I am thrilled and humbled to embark on this new challenge,” Randolph said. “I am very proud of everything we have accomplished here during my time with NMA. As we continue to grow and evolve as a company there will be new obstacles ahead. I look forward to meeting those challenges head-on, and with the help of our amazing team here at NMA, I am confident we will continue on this path of consistent growth.” Randolph is tasked with guiding the execution of the company’s vision and managing day-to-day activities. NMA has seen explosive growth in the last four years, experiencing a revenue increase of 800%, and the hiring of more than 85 new employees in the last year alone. “One of the most rewarding accomplishments we’ve experienced has been putting the right people on the right seat on the bus,” said NMA Chief Executive Officer and Founder Heather Petersen. “I am confident in Brian’s ability to lead our daily operations from the right seat on NMA’s bus.” Randolph assisted Petersen with developing NMA’s proprietary merchant account optimization software that became the differentiator between NMA and its competitors and propelling the company’s growth. Randolph also assisted with the development of NMA’s groundbreaking Chargeback Control Platform (CCP) which launched in October 2016. This innovative product Brian Randolph automatically intercepts inbound disputes before they become chargebacks, and is integrated with LimeLight CRM, NMI gateway and others. Because it is integrated at the processor level, CCP can conduct real-time refunds — protecting the end customers while helping to mitigate chargebacks for merchants. Randolph holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Chico. He has been an ETA Certified Payments Professional (ETA CPP) since 2013, and frequently attends industry trade shows and conferences such as the ETA Strategic Leadership Forum, annual Transact conference, and Transact Tech, the forum for financial technology evolution. Visit www.NationalMerchants.com or call 866-509-7199. NMA names Jason Holderness as Chief Technology Officer National Merchants Association, a global merchant advocacy group and a leader in merchant services has named Jason Holderness to the position of Chief Technology Officer. Holderness has served in the role of Director of Software Development since joining NMA in 2016 and takes the reins from former CTO Brian Randolph, who now assumes the role of Chief Operating Officer. “This is an exciting time at National Merchants Association, and I am humbled to have the opportunity to lead such an amazing team” Holderness said. “Under the leadership of Brian Randolph, National Merchants Association is fast-becoming a leader in the FinTech landscape, and I look forward to supporting our latest product launches, as well as continuing to push the boundaries of technological innovation. We’ve done some great things over the last few years, but we’ve only just begun.” Holderness will be responsible for all application development, technological innovation, advancement and adoption. The IT department is credited with developing innovation and technology that has positioned NMA as a leader in the payment processing industry. “Jason’s vision and leadership make him the logical choice for the position,” Randolph said. “I have the utmost confidence that his innovative spirit, extensive knowledge and experience will help us continue our growth trajectory while upholding the standards and goals we have set for these departments.” Jason Holderness NMA’s proprietary merchant account optimization software is a major differentiator between NMA and its competitors. With a firm grip on risk management, NMA can accurately and fairly adjust merchant rate pricing, optimizing the viability of its merchants. In 2016, the IT department released NMA’s groundbreaking Chargeback Control Platform (CCP). This innovative program automatically intercepts inbound disputes before they become chargebacks and is integrated with LimeLight CRM, NMI gateway and others. Because it is integrated at the processor level, CCP can 25 conduct real-time refunds – protecting the end customers while helping to mitigate chargebacks for merchants. Holderness joined National Merchants Association with more than 15 years of combined experience in IT and technology startups, and is a product of the San Diego technology scene. Prior to joining NMA, he co-founded TakeLessons.com and led the Product and Development teams as Sr. Product Manager. Earlier in his career, Holderness spent 6 years in IT with Siemens, the largest manufacturing and electronics company in Europe. Holderness earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in Music Industry and Recording Arts from California State University, Chico and is a certified Scrum Master. Visit www.NationalMerchants.com or call 866-509-7199.
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