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H.R. 2466, the Small Business Efficiency Act of 2011, would provide clear rules for Professional Employer Organizations (PEOs) that are voluntarily certified by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to collect and pay federal employment taxes for their small business clients.
The legislation will provide certainty for small businesses that use certified PEO services and allow employers to focus on their core business, not government paperwork.
“Congressman Brady and I introduced the Small Business Efficiency Act to remove the regulatory burdens that stand in the way of small business success,” said Thompson, a senior member of the Ways and Means Committee. “By providing clear rules for Professional Employer Organizations to collect and pay federal taxes on behalf of their small business clients, our bill will allow small businesses to focus on innovating, growing, and creating good-paying jobs. These are the kinds of smart, targeted policies that will keep our small businesses – and our economy – on the path to prosperity.”
“America’s economic recovery depends upon our small businesses being able to create jobs and this bill helps get Washington out of their way," said Rep. Brady, the top Republican on the Joint Economic Committee. "Our legislation provides small business owners the flexibility to do what they do best – deliver quality products and services to their customers and expand their businesses, instead of worrying about reams of government paperwork.”
PEOs provide human resources services to their small business clients, including access to retirement plans, health insurance, life insurance, and other benefits that many small businesses would not otherwise be able to afford.
One of the most important tasks that PEOs can perform for small businesses is the collection and payment of employment taxes.
The Small Business Efficiency Act would create a voluntary IRS certification process to strengthen the ability of PEOs to accept liability for filing payroll taxes of their clients’ employees and, in the process, reduce the amount of burdensome paperwork for small businesses.
“Our top priority is producing great wine, not running a HR department,” said George Ling, the General Manager of X Winery in Napa. “The regulatory and administrative complexities of managing the HR component of our business, while necessary, limit the resources we have to focus on areas that grow our business – sourcing, making, marketing, and selling wine. The primary benefit of working with a PEO is that they remove some of these complexities and provide a more cost efficient alternative to managing HR and providing the benefits our employees deserve.”
To become a certified PEO (CPEO) under Congressmen Thompson and Brady’s legislation, a PEO must meet certain basic financial conditions, satisfy reporting obligations, and maintain ongoing certification with the IRS.
After meeting certification requirements, the CPEO would assume full and sole responsibility and liability for employment taxes due as long as they are certified.
Thompson represents California’s 1st Congressional District, which includes Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, and portions of Sonoma and Yolo counties. He is a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Rep. Thompson is also a member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition and Co-Chair of the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Wine Caucus.
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“These loans offset economic losses because of reduced revenues caused by the unseasonably warm weather followed by freezing temperatures in Glenn and Tehama counties from Nov. 23, 2010 - March 1, 2011,” announced Alfred E. Judd, Director of SBA’s Disaster Field Operations Center-West.
“SBA eligibility covers both the economic impacts on businesses dependent on farmers and ranchers that have suffered agricultural production losses caused by the disaster and businesses directly impacted by the disaster,” Judd said.
Small, nonfarm businesses, small agricultural cooperatives and most private, non-profit organizations of any size may qualify for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) of up to $2 million to help meet financial obligations and operating expenses which could have been met had the disaster not occurred.
“Eligibility for these loans is based on the financial impact of the disaster only and not on any actual property damage. These loans have an interest rate of 4 percent for businesses and 3 percent for private, nonprofit organizations, a maximum term of 30 years, and are available to small businesses and most private, non profits without the financial ability to offset the adverse impact without hardship,” Judd said.
By law, SBA makes EIDLs available when the U. S. Secretary of Agriculture designates an agricultural disaster. Secretary Tom Vilsack declared this disaster at the request of Governor Jerry Brown.
Businesses primarily engaged in farming or ranching are not eligible for SBA disaster assistance. Agricultural enterprises should contact the Farm Services Agency (FSA) about the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) assistance made available by the Secretary’s declaration.
Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure Web site at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.
Disaster loan information and application forms are also available from SBA’s Customer Service Center by calling SBA toll-free at 800-659-2955, emailing
The deadline to apply for these loans is March 1, 2012.
For more information, visit SBA’s Web site at http://www.sba.gov.
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In 2008, the Government Accountability Office reported that many of the developing nations that receive e-waste from the United States do not have the capacity or facilities to safely recycle and dispose of these used electronics. H.R. 2284 would address this growing problem.
“Each year, millions of tons of electronics equipment are discarded in the U.S. and shipped to developing nations for unsafe salvage and recovery,” said Rep. Thompson. “By carefully regulating the export of e-waste, this bipartisan legislation takes concrete steps to address a growing environmental and health crisis while creating good-paying recycling jobs here in the U.S.”
“E-waste is the fastest growing waste stream in the United States, and it can pose a serious problem in that most e-waste contains toxic chemicals which present environmental and health concerns when not properly handled,” said Rep. Green. “As the Ranking Member on the House Energy and Commerce Environment and Economy Subcommittee, I look forward to working with the majority in the House to pass this bill, which successfully addresses this growing issue. I also want to thank Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) for introducing the companion bill in the Senate.”
Specifically, H.R. 2284 creates a new section of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act that prohibits the export of “restricted electronic equipment” from the U.S. to developing nations. In defining restricted electronic equipment, the bill lists several toxic materials, the presence of which would cause covered equipment to be considered restricted waste.
The bill calls for the EPA to set de minimis levels for these toxic substances and clarifies that material streams such as plastics, metals, and glass that do not contain hazardous chemicals above the de minimis levels may be exported.
Under H.R. 2284, tested and working equipment can still be exported to promote reuse, along with products discarded for warranty repair or due to recall. Importing countries must give their consent to accept exempted exports. This legislative approach is consistent with the e-waste policies adopted by most other developed nations via international treaties, such as the Basel Convention and Basel Ban Amendment.
“As an industry leader in product lifecycle improvements, HP does not allow the export of e-waste from developed countries to developing countries. We support the work of Rep. Gene Green and Rep. Mike Thompson to pass the Responsible Electronics Recycling Act, and we encourage other companies to join the effort and promote responsible recycling,” said Ashley Watson, Vice President and Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer for HP.
In addition to promoting the responsible recycling of e-waste, The Responsible Electronics Recycling Act of 2011 will also create good-paying jobs in America. While there are domestic recyclers that currently process e-waste, they have a hard time competing with overseas recycling facilities that have few, if any, labor and environmental standards and are thus able to offer cheaper services. By promoting the domestic recycling industry, H.R. 2284 will bring recycling jobs back to the U.S.
“This is the most important step our federal government can take to solve the e-waste problem – to close the door on e-waste dumping on developing countries,” said Barbara Kyle, National Coordinator of the Electronics TakeBack Coalition, a national environmental coalition which promotes responsible recycling of e-waste. “It will bring recycling jobs back to the U.S.”
Dewayne Burns, CEO of eSCO Processing and Recycling, added, “Not only is this bill good for the environment, but it gives a boost to small business recyclers and creates more green jobs. This is what both the industry and our customers want.”
H.R. 2284 also creates a research program at the Department of Energy to help assess the recycling and recovery of Rare Earth Metals from electronics. This provision will help ensure the proper collection and recycling of precious and strategic metals.
H.R. 2284 has garnered bipartisan support with original Republican co-sponsors Rep. Steven LaTourette (OH-14) and Rep. Lee Terry (NE-2). The legislation also enjoys broad industry support, with officially endorsements from Hewlett Packard, Dell, Apple, Samsung, Best Buy, The Electronics TakeBack Coalition, and 29 recyclers representing 74 recycling operations in 34 states.
Congressman Mike Thompson represents California’s 1st Congressional District, which includes Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, and portions of Sonoma and Yolo counties. He is a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Rep. Thompson is also a member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition and Co-Chair of the bipartisan, bicameral Congressional Wine Caucus.
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In California, gasoline consumption declined 2.7 percent in March and declined 0.1 percent in the first quarter. Diesel fuel consumption declined 6.9 percent in March and declined 5.3 percent in the first quarter.
“It appears that higher gasoline prices, which averaged $4 a gallon in March, had an impact on consumer behavior causing the decline in consumption,” said First District Board Member Betty T. Yee.
In March, gasoline consumption decreased 2.7 percent to 1.24 billion gallons of gasoline compared to 1.27 billion gallons of gasoline in March last year.
In California, the average price of a gallon of gasoline rose 90 cents to $4 in March, a 29 percent increase compared to the average price of $3.10 per gallon of gasoline last year in March.
Nationally, the average price of a gallon of gasoline was up 79 cents to $3.62 per gallon in March, a 28 percent increase over the average price of a gallon of gasoline of $2.82 in March last year.
Gasoline consumption in the first quarter declined 0.1 percent with a total of 3.57 billion gallons of gasoline compared to 3.58 billion gallons of gasoline in the first quarter last year.
In California, the average price of gasoline per gallon rose 60 cents to $3.66 in the first quarter, a 20 percent increase over last year’s average price of $3.05 per gallon in the first quarter.
Nationally, the average price of gasoline rose 58 cents to $3.34 in the first quarter, a 21 percent increase over last year’s average price of $2.76 per gallon of gasoline in the first quarter.
In March, diesel consumption totaled 218.7 million gallons, a decrease of 6.9 percent compared to the total of 234.9 million gallons of diesel in March last year.
In California, the average price of a gallon of diesel fuel was up $1.13 to $4.19 per gallon in March, a 37 percent increase over the average price of a gallon of diesel of $3.06 last March.
Nationally, the average price of a gallon of diesel was up 99 cents to $3.91 in March, a 34 percent increase over the average price of a gallon of diesel of $2.92 last March.
Diesel consumption in the first quarter decreased 5.3 percent to 586 million gallons compared to 619 million gallons in the first quarter last year.
In California, the average price of diesel fuel in the first quarter rose 85 cents to $3.85, a 28 percent increase compared to $3.00 price per gallon of diesel last year in the first quarter.
Nationally, the average price of diesel fuel in the first quarter was $3.63, a 27 percent increase over the last year’s first quarter average price of $2.85 per gallon of diesel.
In March, diesel consumption would have been higher were it not for the impact of an unusually large refund related to audits.
Gasoline and diesel fuel figures are net consumption that includes the State Board of Equalization’s audit assessments, refunds, amended and late tax returns and the State Controller’s Office refunds.
The State Board of Equalization is able to monitor gallons through tax receipts paid by fuel distributors in California. Figures for April are scheduled to be available at the end of July.
To see all monthly, quarterly and annual reports, visit www.boe.ca.gov/sptaxprog/spftrpts.htm.