New York SBDC Research Network

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Small Business Administration launched its 2013 Emerging Leaders executive-level training initiative, formerly known as e200, in 27 cities and communities across the country. Since 2008 the initiative has trained more than 1,300 promising small business owners in underserved communities, and continues to expand its impact helping small businesses grow and create jobs. The city of Los Angeles is joining the initiative for the first time and Oklahoma City, Portland and Seattle are returning. “Emerging Leaders has a proven track record of helping small businesses in underserved communities,” said SBA Administrator Karen Mills. “Graduates of the program have increased their revenue, created jobs and helped drive local economic growth in their communities. The addition of four major cities this year builds on this success and provides even more entrepreneurs in underserved communities with the support, resources and skills to succeed.” The Emerging Leaders initia

Small Business Profiles for the States and Territories supply data on small businesses in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The publication also provides national-level data and limited data on the U.S. territories. What do the profiles say about small business health? Despite continuing challenges, the profiles show that the U.S. economy was relatively strong in 2011. At the national level, the unemployment rate was down 0.7 percent between 2010 and 2011, and 48 states reported a decrease as well. Of these states, 10 had rates equal to the national level. The usefulness of the profiles is the great detail it provides about small businesses at the state level. Small business borrowing activity, as well as self-employment by various demographics, are presented. Also covered are the number of firms, small business income, banking, business turnover, industry composition, and employment gains and losses by size of business. Each profile is available in Adobe PDF

When filing your federal income tax return, you may deduct personal property losses that aren't covered by insurance or other reimbursements. Claim the losses as an itemized deduction using federal Form 4684, Casualty and Theft... Claiming the loss on an amended return for the prior year may result in an earlier refund, but waiting to claim the loss on the return for the year the loss occurred could result in greater tax savings, depending on other income factors. New York State follows the federal rules for casualty losses. As a resident taxpayer, you may claim the loss on your New York personal income tax return as an itemized deduction. You must use the same year you chose to claim the loss on your federal return. More here .

From MoneyWatch : It's 11 p.m. You are staring at the television. You left work at 6 p.m. and have done absolutely nothing since. What happened? Time coach Elizabeth Saunders, author of "The 3 Secrets to Effective Time Investment," has identified several potential problems that account for the scenario above -- and solutions.

Do you run an overseas business? Thinking of expanding and selling into the U.S. market? Because U.S. residency or citizenship is not required, non-U.S. citizens can readily sell into the U.S. However, many overseas business owners aren’t clear on whether they are required to incorporate in the U.S. and the associated tax implications. Here’s what you need to know: Essentially, if your intent is to sell goods into the U.S.—whether online or through U.S. partners such as a wholesaler—you may not have to file for incorporation in the U.S. However, if you plan to have a physical presence in the U.S. (such as an office or employees), then incorporation, whether as a corporation or limited liability corporation (LLC), is worth considering. Likewise, for online businesses in particular, remember that many U.S. consumers feel more confident buying from a registered U.S. business, so that’s another important factor to weigh. More from SBA HERE .

From CBS News MoneyWatch : When you own a small business or manage the social media program for your company, controlling the narrative is a constant concern. And no matter how much time you spend developing goodwill through your Twitter and Facebook presence, there will always be unhappy customers who flame, troll, and otherwise complain online. How do you reply to them? Should you respond at all? It's a tricky balancing act -- knowing how much you should engage without fanning the flames and making things worse. Recently, PC World's Christopher Null explained how you can clean up your business's online reputation, and he gave a lot of credible advice for dealing with negative feedback in a variety of common scenarios.

In the Spring of 2012 Adam Hoeksema, Co-Founder of ProjectionHub, was working on his personal taxes using TurboTax when it hit him, “If TurboTax could take a highly complex process like preparing a tax return, and make it simple enough for someone other than a tax professional to complete, there must be a way to make the process of creating financial projections much easier as well.” More HERE .