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Accounting and Tax Procedures

For new and existing businesses

  

 

 
This workshop is designed to help business owners and bookkeepers understand proper accounting procedures and record keeping requirements necessary to manage your business, calculate payroll, and pay state and federal taxes. 
 
June 17
12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
$20
 

SBDC logo 7-2013 

 

 

Need a widget to build your product?

 

Looking for a local service provider?

 

 


Try our FREE online Networking Directory to locate a Pinellas business!

And be sure to add your business, as well.


 

  

Industry Information

  Advanced Manufacturing

Aviation & Aerospace

Business & Financial Services

Defense & Homeland Security

Information Technology

Life Sciences & Medical Technologies

 

What's Happening in Pinellas? 
Events Extra (published monthly)
Events & Opportunities (updated weekly)
 

Contact the Editor

 
 Vanessa Panzarella Watkins
(727) 464-7332  

 

 

June, 2014

Export Sales Missions to Panama Oct. 5 - 7, Singapore/Malaysia Sept. 19 - 26


Panama is one of the strongest economies in Latin America, boasting the second fastest growing GDP in the region and expected to reach a 6% growth in 2015.  Enterprise Florida will offer a limited number of Gold Key Matchmaking one-on-one appointments. The price of this service is $1,050. Small and mid-sized Florida manufacturers and eligible high tech companies as well as service providers may qualify for a Gold Key Grant. This grant will offset 100% of the Matchmaking Registration fee for the first company representative. A separate application process will be required for this grant. Participation cost for delegates will be $350/person. Participants will be selected on a first-come, first-served basis. Learn more at http://www.enterpriseflorida.com/events/export-sales-mission-to-panama/.  

 

Join Enterprise Florida (EFI) in Sept. on this export sales mission to Singapore and Malaysia, which will include networking opportunities and face-to-face appointments with the top businesses in this leading global marketplace.  Singapore and Malaysia target industries include, but are not limited to:

 

Aircraft and parts

Electronics

Medical devices

Computer hardware and software

Franchising

Oil and gas equipment

 

 

Trade grants are available for qualified Florida manufacturers and professional service providers, covering 100 percent of the registration fee for the first company representative. The grants are only available for Gold Key participants. A separate application process is required for this grant. To register by July 16, please contact Selma Fates at [email protected]. For more information on the mission, please contact John Diep at [email protected]. 

 

Infinite Potential Learning Center Utilizes the Florida SBDC at PCED to Develop and Grow 

 

 

Sometimes, the ideal business concept springs from life's challenges. Frustrated by watching students struggle to read, former elementary school teacher Twanna Monroe was motivated to form a non-profit program to build skills in young readers, to better prepare them to enter the elementary grades. Monroe sought the assistance of the Florida Small Business Development Center (FSBDC) at Pinellas County Economic Development (PCED) and, working with Center Director Dr. Cynthia Johnson, soon realized her business model was a better fit as a for-profit enterprise.

 

"I didn't know what to do," explains Monroe. "I didn't know who to seek out to help with financial planning, to help get a business started from the ground up."

 

Acting on a suggestion from her husband (also a client of the FSBDC at PCED), Monroe contacted Dr. Johnson and found in her both an ally and business mentor.  Click to read more... 

 
Infinite Potential on My Fox Tampa Bay

 

 

 

Watch Twanna Monroe and Dr. Cynthia Johnson talk about Infinite

Potential's growth on My Fox Tampa Bay.

 

 

 

 

 

  

2014 Tampa Bay International Town Hall a Success!

 

On May 9, 2014, Pinellas County Economic Development and the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corporation celebrated World Trade Month by hosting the inaugural Tampa Bay International Town Hall. Participants enjoyed a morning of panel discussions, question and answer sessions, and the gracious, efficient hospitality of the Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay as they learned about opportunities for local businesses to grow their exporting programs.

 

Local business, government and economic development leaders provided insight into the current climate for international trade and announced the creation of the Tampa Bay Export Alliance, which pairs Pinellas and Hillsborough counties in a partnership to lead international trade missions. Commercial experts discussed export opportunities available to Tampa Bay's target trade markets. Representatives of local exporting companies shared their "real life" experiences in exporting and gave accolades for the support provided by Tampa Bay's economic development partners. Live updates via social media kept those unable to attend the event in the know and, by the end of the event, #ITH2014 was trending on Twitter. Photos from the event are posted on our Facebook page, and watch for a video package on the event from Good Business Pinellas Television, coming soon.

 

A date has already been set for the next Tampa Bay International Town Hall, so mark your calendars: May 1, 2015 at the Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay.  We hope to see you there for another exciting experience!

 

#ITH2015

 

News coverage of the event: 

Economic development leaders push marketwide synergy 

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

Bay area creates export alliance 

(Tampa Bay Times)

Editorial: Counties combine to attract trade, jobs 

(Tampa Bay Times)

'Bromance' leads to formation of Tampa Bay Export Alliance 

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)
Dates set for Bay area trade mission to Chile

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

 

Is your business prepared?  June 1 begins the 2014 Atlantic hurricane season.

 

We hope that every business in Pinellas has a plan and is ready to weather any storm... but we know that life gets busy and not everyone has a plan in place.  Don't worry, we can help!

 

Visit www.pinellascounty.org/emergency to view real-time updates from the National Hurricane Center and Pinellas County Situation Reports.  You'll also find links to a full range of services to help you prepare your business and recover in the event of a storm.  Look up the evacuation zone for your business location and help your employees find their zones.  Develop pre-storm preparation plans, find information on post-storm assistance programs, and explore tools to help get your business up and running as soon as possible.

 

Subscribe to Pinellas County's E-Lert newsletter to receive information and updates on County emergency management topics.

 

Sign up for FirstCall, a free service from Pinellas County, to receive automated emerge4ncy notifications by phone, text message or email.

 

View the 2014 Pinellas County Hurricane Guide for an in-depth reference on personal storm preparation.

 

Shop for storm supplies during a nine-day sales tax holiday on the purchase of hurricane preparation supplies, including batteries, flashlights and generators.  May 31 through June 8, 2014. Details at http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/tips/tip14a01-03.pdf.

 

 

  

Join manufacturers, state/federal agencies & resources, and trade & logistics educators from across Florida to talk about exporting for manufacturers and the unique opportunity for Florida's manufacturers to expand in international markets.

 

Learn more and register at http://www.flchamber.com/event/trade-logistics-study-2-0-regional-rollouts-june-4/

 

Click here to explore sponsorship opportunities.

 

New on Good Business Pinellas TV: GEOINT 2013*

In April, Pinellas County Economic Development and our partners at the Tampa Hillsborough EDC joined forces to host the Tampa Bay Pavilion at the GEOINT Symposium, the event of the year for the defense, intelligence and homeland security communities.  
 
GEOINT Symposium 2013* in 2014
GEOINT Symposium 2013* in 2014
 
2014 Tampa Bay European Business Travel Survey

Tampa International Airport (TPA) is currently recruiting new nonstop air service from TPA to European markets. The airport would like to accelerate that service timeline by providing these airlines with market insights from our business community.  They also want to determine which routes to regions, besides Europe, would benefit your business or organization.  

Please take a moment to join this collaborative community effort by completing a short survey at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PCEDCInformation about your business will be kept confidential, and only an aggregate of the responses collected will be presented to TPA and the target airlines. Thanks for your time and participation.

 
Florida Manufacturers Get a Tax Break      

Effective April 30, 2014, House Bill 7007 provides a sales and use tax exemption for industrial machinery and equipment purchased by manufacturing businesses to be used at a fixed location within the state. To be eligible for this exemption, business and equipment must meet the following criteria:

  • The business's primary activity must be defined by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code 31, 32 or 33 at the specific location where the industrial machinery and equipment are installed.
  • Industrial machinery and equipment must be used as an integral part of manufacturing, processing or production.
  • Tangible personal property must have a depreciable life of three years or more. 

Parts and accessories purchased prior to the in-service date of the machinery and equipment also are eligible for the exemption. Buildings, structural components and heating and air conditioning equipment are excluded from the definition of machinery and equipment.

 

Manufacturers can take advantage of this exemption until April 30, 2017, when the legislation expires.  More information is available at http://dor.myflorida.com/dor/tips/tip13a01-06.html

 

 
Park Boulevard Bridge to close for repairs in late summer
Pinellas County is conducting an upgrade of the Park Boulevard Bridge in Indian Shores.
The project is expected to begin in late summer of 2014 to reduce the impact on the tourist season. Due to the nature of the work, the entire bridge will be closed in both directions for a maximum of 30 days.  Indian Rocks Causeway and Tom Stuart Causeway bridges will be used as the detour
routes, and signs will be in place to give motorists ample detour information.
 
Visit www.pinellascounty.org/roadwork.htm for updates on this and other road projects.
 
Pinellas News

 

Pinellas Unemployment drops to 5.7% in April

(Tampa Bay Newspapers)

 

Startups get a new home in St. Petersburg

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

 

Students In USFSP Entrepreneurship Program Launch Creative Startups

(83 Degrees)

 

Largo passes incentives to lure growth

(St. Petersburg Tribune)

 

Report: Raymond James' gains could bring Wall Street to Carillon

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

 

Plans to redevelop 34th Street S corridor moving forward

(Tampa Bay Times)

 

A stroll through the technology supermarket with Tech Data's CEO

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

 

Leaders of Tampa Bay's biggest public companies cite mass transit as priority

(Tampa Bay Times)

 

Great Bay Distributors to top its new building with state's largest private solar array

(Tampa Bay Times)

 

Bovie Medical lifts the surgical drape on J-Plasma (Video)

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

 

Plasma-Therm Wins Customer Satisfaction Awards

(Tampa Bay Newswire)

 

8 Tampa Bay area companies compete for Ernst & Young entrepreneur award in Florida

(Tampa Bay Times)

 

Valpak signs with Letterman's racing team

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

 

Panama's Copa Airlines says it's here to stay in Tampa Bay

(Tampa Bay Times)

 

Brewers, arts venues collaborate on Beer Project in St. Pete

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

 

Pinellas Commissioner Karen Seel drives mass transit

(Tampa Bay Business Journal)

 

Pinellas County Public Schools Teach STEM Skills Through Interactive Play

(83 Degrees)

 

Where To Stay On Clearwater Beach? Choices Grow With New Hotels

(83 Degrees)

 

Two Fold Bicycle Shop Opens In St. Petersburg

(83 Degrees)

 

Sundial shopping plaza expected to thrive where Baywalk failed

(St. Petersburg Tribune)