New York SBDC Research Network

The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance today announced the additional extension of certain tax filing and payment deadlines for taxpayers directly affected by Hurricane Sandy .

Here is info on dedicated phone lines for business victims of Sandy: 1) IRS They promote their Disaster Assistance Hotline at 1-866-562-5227 on some of their disaster recovery pages. Here’s a page dedicated to victims of Sandy. If you call the toll-free number, you’re given two options. One is specifically for questions relating to Sandy-inflicted damage. 2) Professional Licenses These are administered by NYS Dept of Education, Office of the Professions. There’s a box (in pink) at the bottom of the home page , titled “Important Information for Licensees Impacted by Hurricane Sandy”. In the last two paragraphs, two different phone numbers are mentioned to replace licenses or registration certificates.

According to New York State law , employees paid on an hourly basis generally do not have to be paid for time not worked, assuming the employer has informed the workers in advance that the office will be closed. Under state law, employers are required to pay a minimum level of ‘call-in pay’ if the employee shows up for work but the employer is closed and has no work for the employee to perform, unless the employer has attempted to notify the employee of the closure in advance. For most industries, the call-in pay rate equals four hours at the New York minimum wage rate. Salaried employees usually must be paid for the entire week, without any deductions, if they worked a portion of the work week but then were unable to work the remainder of the week because of a company’s closure, the premise being that salaried workers may have performed duties, such as calling clients or prospects, from home. One of our business counselors was told by the Department of Labor that businesses can ha

From CBS News MoneyWatch : Nearly everyone uses, or has used, a search engine like Google to find information on another person -- no real news there. People look up friends, dates, employees, celebrities and politicians, whether for research, snooping, or just curiosity. And if your name is associated with a business -- whether in the Yellow Pages, on the side of a truck or a real estate sign, or as an owner or executive in the news -- they're checking on you, too. Consider this: Among U.S. adults who have searched someone online, nearly half have searched someone before doing business with them, and 45% have found something that made them decide NOT to do business. What's significant here is that people are increasingly making decisions based not only about business information, but personal information about principals and others involved with a company. And this can lead to big problems, because while there may be only one company called John Doe Electronics Repair, a

WASHINGTON – As the nation marks Veterans Day 2012, the U.S. Small Business Administration continues to build on its successful programs for America’s military veterans, helping tens of thousands of veterans each year with small business financing, comprehensive business training and counseling and access to federal contracts. “Around Veterans Day, our thoughts turn to the men and women who are currently serving in the Armed Forces, as well as to all veterans who have made sacrifices and served our country over the years,” said SBA Administrator Karen Mills. “When you consider the leadership and management skills our veterans develop while on active and reserve duty, it’s no wonder we see so many of them choose the path of small business ownership.” According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau veterans are successful small business owners. Nearly one in 10 small businesses nationwide are veteran-owned. Collectively, these 2.4 million small businesses employ almost 6 million Ame

The Office of Advocacy has released two items of lending research. The Small Business Quarterly Lending Bulletin for second quarter 2012 shows that U.S. economic activity increased in the first half of 2012 at a slower pace than at the end of 2011, and total lending to small firms inched downward. The decline was generated primarily by commercial real estate loans; in general, the climate was supportive of economic growth. A new report, How Did the Financial Crisis Affect Small Business Lending in the United States? , by Rebel Cole, uses data from numerous sources for the period 1994-2011 to analyze lending to U.S. firms. It finds that bank lending to businesses declined significantly after the crisis, and small firms were affected more than large ones. The study was written under contract to Advocacy. The author of the study, Rebel Cole, is a professor of finance in the Kellstadt College of Commerce at DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois. Please note that the report examines t

From the Governor's webpage : You can register for FEMA assistance by calling 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585) or visiting www.DisasterAssistance.gov (or m.fema.gov from a smartphone or Web-enabled device). There is never a fee to apply for FEMA disaster assistance or to receive it. There is no fee for FEMA or U.S. Small Business Administration property damage inspections. Please be aware: Government workers will never ask for a fee or payment. They wear a photo ID. Watch out for middlemen who promise you will receive money, especially if they ask for an up-front payment. One of the dire consequences of any disaster for many people is the loss of important documents. Often, such documents are needed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and state emergency services in order to process assistance applications for those who suffered losses or damage to their homes and belongings. If papers are lost – like birth certificates, Social Security cards, drivers’ lice