------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alpha-Mail

A Tax Professional's Guide to Credits and Incentives, Courtesy of Alpharesults
Vol. VIII No. 5 May 2014
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In this issue

Catch Up Means Tax Credits

Spotlight on Texas Credits and Incentives

Healthcare:  ICD-10 Update

Upcoming Event

Hello!

Welcome to Alpha-Mail, the monthly newsletter about tax credits and incentives for tax professionals.

This month, learn how you can help your clients generate tax credits from "catch up" information technology projects 2014. Also, some of you may have clients with operations in Texas, so be sure to see our overview of Texas credits and incentives. Get a quick update on ICD-10 requirements for your healthcare clients, and finally, note our upcoming speaking engagement at the 2014 Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA) Georgia Financing Roundtable. We hope you can use this information to strengthen your client relationships!

Thank you for reading Alpha-Mail -- please click reply to tell us what you think.

All the best,

Dale&JimSigsSM1

Dale Stapler Jim Tinsley
Alpharesults, LLC

Catch Up Means Tax Credits                  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

We are seeing many companies cautiously coming out of the recession. For example, architects, engineers and construction firms are finally getting new business. As things pick up, they are finding that their software (such as business-wide systems and project management, document management and CAD software) is out of date or no longer supported. In addition, their customers' and suppliers' requirements for electronic interfaces (for example, paperless contracts) and e-commerce are driving changes. 

Your customers are now having to play the "catch up" game to either get current on their installed versions or even buy new versions. These catch up activities may qualify for Retraining Tax Credits in Georgia since many of the company's employees have to be retrained on the systems. Other states may offer incentives for these activities as well.

So get out there and identify those client activities that happened in 2013 or planned for 2014 that qualify for tax credits.  Your clients will appreciate your proactive followup!

Texas Credits and Incentives            
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
      As we've mentioned before, our Georgia clients frequently ask us to investigate potential credits and incentives in other states where they have operations, potential acquisitions or strong relationships with customers or vendors. In addition, private equity groups ask us about potential $$ for their portfolio companies.
 
We were recently asked about credits and incentives in Texas. I was able to speak with some Texas economic development professionals and learned some of their details (Texas Wide Open For Business site click here).
 
The main difference between Texas and most other states is that they have no corporate income tax or individual income tax!

Texas' main incentives focus on rewarding "companies who are creating jobs and driving innovation in Texas."  The Texas Enterprise Fund (TEF) is the largest "deal-closing" fund of its kind in the nation.  The Texas Emerging Technology Fund (TETF) provides grants to recruit the research talent and to help companies in R&D activities.  State and local communities offer a variety of sales and property tax incentives and financing solutions for businesses expanding or relocating. Programs include Enterprise Zone sales tax refunds, manufacturing sales tax exemptions, property tax value limitations, and freeport exemptions. 

Pre-approval is required for all of Texas' primary incentives.  Texas' credits and incentives are not as complicated as many states and are generally straightforward. 

Other incentives and grants include generous workforce training programs provided through the Texas Workforce Commission. 

Compared to Georgia, Texas has:  
Different corporate taxes:  No corporate income tax.  No personal state income taxes.  Similar sales taxes and somewhat higher property taxes. 
A broader range of industries eligible for incentives if adding jobs, a far narrower range for training incentives, and a much broader range of companies not needing incentives because they aren't paying taxes in the first place!    
Almost no opportunities for incentives unless pre-approved by state and/or local officials. 
To summarize, Texas is very competitive for new and expanding businesses.  Representatives at the state and local level are eager to help - Texas economic developers are very aggressive and want your growing clients to move to Texas!

Do any of your clients have Texas connections?  Make sure you review their potential qualifying activities early to maximize their $$ benefits!!

Healthcare: ICD-10 Update                   
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was recently announced that the ICD-10 mandate has been moved one year to Oct. 1, 2015. Your healthcare clients should use this delay to continue staff education efforts, to improve their clinical documentation processes, and to build a strong foundation for process improvement and downstream strategic initiatives (many of these activities may qualify for Retraining Tax Credits in Georgia). Adoption of ICD-10 remains a question of "when," not "if." The Retraining Tax Credit can provide $$ to help offset the costs, time and effort for ICD-10 (for more information click here).

Upcoming Event-------------------------------------------------------------------------
We will be speaking at the upcoming 2014 Council of Development Finance Agencies (CDFA) Georgia Financing Roundtable Conference on Wednesday, June 4, 2014 in Atlanta (click here for details).

About Us-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alpharesults has assembled a team with the specialized knowledge and approach required to obtain Georgia income tax credits.  We are not a public accounting firm.  Rather, our services complement those of public accounting firms and do not create conflicted loyalties, because our professionals do not perform attestation work or other external audit functions.  
We focus on small to medium-sized businesses and work exclusively in Georgia with a wide variety of in-state and out-of-state accounting firms.  For more information on our services, follow this link. 
 

Quick Links...-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alpharesults
Georgia DOR
Georgia DCA Job Tax Credits
Georgia Retraining Tax Credit Guide

Contact Information-------------------------------------------------------------------------
email:  alpha-mail@alpharesults.com                   phone: 770-667-1332 
            -------------------------------------------------------------------------


Forward Alpha-Mail to a Friend!

Click link below: