This is Part 2 of a 3-Part series of information we are sending to our small business clients regarding the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) and its impact on millions of small businesses. The CTA was passed by Congress a couple of years ago and the government has been ironing out the details since that time. …
Linda Phillips
CORPORATE TRANSPARENCY ACT: It’s Time to Get Prepared
This is Part 1 of a 3-Part series of information we are sending out to our small business clients regarding the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) and its impact on millions of small businesses. The CTA was passed by Congress a couple of years ago and the government has been ironing out the details since that …
Commercial Leasing for A Small Business
Are you looking to renew or enter into a new lease for commercial space for your business. Before talking to the landlord, you should have a good idea of what is expected from you and what you can expect from them. Commercial leases are contracts, enforceable by and against both parties in court or via …
Patrons, Patronizing, Patronage Dividend
These are all terms used in the cooperative business community and sometimes their meanings are unclear or jumbled. This blog will discuss the definitions of these terms with examples of how they are used by different types of cooperatives. A patron patronizes a cooperative and receives a patronage dividend at the end of the year. …
Updated Section 1042 Tax Benefits
There is a section of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) that provides some tax benefits for people who sell their companies to either an ESOP or to a worker cooperative. This blog will explain how 1042 provides tax advantages when selling to a cooperative. If you are thinking of becoming employee-owned or selling your business to …
Selling to a Worker Coop Over Time
Many businesses are looking at the possibility of selling their companies to their employees through a worker cooperative. They have crunched the numbers, gotten the employees interested, have figured out the financing, but now want to explore the timing of a potential sale. Often there is a misconception that the owners have to sell 100% of the business in one lump sum, in …
Mandatory Business Owner Reporting
The federal government has passed some new legislation that will require small businesses to report personal information about the business’s owners to a database controlled by the Securities Exchange Commission. The legislation is called the Corporate Transparency Act (the “Act”), adopted as Title LXIV (64) of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act. The purpose of …
Cooperative Equity Capital, Income and Patronage: How They Work Together
Cooperatives have three areas of accounting that need to be understood by their members as the cooperatives are formed and as they are operated. Cooperatives obtain and track equity capital, usually through the members. As a business entity, the cooperative generates income through the products its sells or the services it provides to clients and …
Use of the term “Cooperative”
Edited June 26th, 2020: An earlier version of this blog post implied that only organizations incorporated as cooperatives under Massachusetts law may use the word “cooperative.” This post has been edited to accurately reflect that other businesses may use the term if they distribute earnings consistent with cooperative law. Entity formation is often the first …
